Nacionalidad: Colombia

Nombre de la Organización: Fundación Soy Oportunidad

Región de Impacto: South America

Sobre el Negocio Social: Fundación Soy Oportunidad empowers young mothers who live in vulnerability and poverty, through entrepreneurship and life projection programs that allow them to generate new economic and social opportunities for themselves and their families.

Sobre el Y&Y Fellow: María del Mar is 28 years old, a proud Colombian woman and also a lawyer. She became a mother when she was 18 years old, in a complicated scenario, but that little baby brought with him what her vocation is today. As you can imagine, her biggest fear was presented for the first time when she knew she would be a mother. It was easy to overcome this because she had the support of her husband, her family and friends. She emphasizes that it was so much help, that she could study, work, perform as a woman and as a human being, without her son being an impediment, as many people believe it might happen. Of course, nothing came for free. Her effort was superhuman and today she sees the results. Her son is a wonderful human being and she knows that her work with him is on the right track. With this experience, she met thousands of women who lived this same situation, but did not have the same opportunities. It was because of them that she decided to create the Soy Oportunidad Foundation. Her team started making donations for mothers living in poverty in Bogotá, but over time, she understood that I would never solve the real problem through donations. Only work allows a woman to get ahead, so she decided to create a job training and life projection program focused on these women. The results have been wonderful and she hopes to be able to link many more Colombian mothers in her program. Now, teenage mothers are already working, while they can take care of their children. This is literally, what she calls ""living the dream"".