With nearly all heritage loss being linked to economic causes, the Sustainable Preservation Initiative (ESCALA’s predecessor organization) began as a way of saving endangered archeological sites through poverty alleviation. Larry Coben, an entrepreneur turned archeologist from New York, combined his extensive experience in site preservation and the financial sector to create SPI in 2011. With a mission to help people leverage their cultural heritage to earn a livable wage, SPI began running informal ‘Mini Business Schools’ in order to train local artisans and entrepreneurs in essential business skills. SPI’s “Build Futures, Save Pasts” model not only contributed to the preservation of over a dozen archeological sites around the world, but also provided locals with the transformative tools to build their own future. 

SPI’s projectss were then absorbed into the ESCALA Initiative, so they could be expanded beyond archaeological sites to bring free business education to women entrepreneurs living in underserved communities around the world. In 2019, we launched our flagship ESCALA Business School in Peru, utilizing our proprietary curriculum developed through the implementation of numerous projects and courses. This Business School and Capacity Training Program emphasizes the skills and knowledge needed to successfully start businesses, identify potential markets and understand how to sell products and services profitably. This curriculum takes a comprehensive approach to business education often ignored by other development organizations that focus too narrowly on production, resulting in high failure rates. 

Our holistic model creates a strong foundation of long term, community-based economic development, ensuring that people have the right skills to own and grow their enterprises for many years.

 

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ESCALA WINS STATE DEPARTMENT AWARD!
ESCALA WINS STATE DEPARTMENT AWARD!
Empowering More Women Entrepreneurs as ESCALA Goes Digital!
Empowering More Women Entrepreneurs as ESCALA Goes Digital!

We put the ESCALA Business School online, allowing us to provide our curriculum and scale at an accelerated rate in spite of the pandemic and economic climate.

Supporting Poor Entrepreneurs in a Time of Crisis
Supporting Poor Entrepreneurs in a Time of Crisis

As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads, it has left the world's poorest and most vulnerable people at greatest risk - including many of the entrepreneurs trained by SPI in Peru, Tanzania, Bulgaria, and Guatemala. However, thanks to your tremendous support for SPI’s COVID-19 Relief Fund, entrepreneurs and artisans now have the resources to step up as local leaders, keeping their families and communities safe.

What the COVID-19 Response Means for SPI Artisans in Peru, Tanzania, Bulgaria, and Guatemala
What the COVID-19 Response Means for SPI Artisans in Peru, Tanzania, Bulgaria, and Guatemala

For these vulnerable small business owners, new government restrictions to curb the pandemic mean less or no income at all in the coming weeks. Although these entrepreneurs are doing everything to adapt to this evolving situation, most do not have the resources to do so. Your support could be their lifeline.

Celebrating Women's Day: An Interview With the Pachacamac Museum Director
Celebrating Women's Day: An Interview With the Pachacamac Museum Director

When I began to study archeology, we concentrated on hard research. Now, thirty years later, we realize that if the community does not participate, it is useless to continue doing archeology. I think through archeology we are opening spaces for these women, for these people, to have a chance to improve their quality of life.

 

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