Border Partners: Fostering Economic Growth

One reason low income Mexicans migrate to the United States is that they can’t make enough money to support their families in Mexico. They often have ideas for how they could make more money but lack capital or some of the skills needed to get started.

Augmenting Income

Local Border Partners garden promoters have the expertise to answer questions and offer information to workshop participants.

Border Partners helps low income residents of Palomas start businesses so they can support their families. Our assistance might be a small loan or the use of needed tools. It could be access to a Border Partners volunteer who has skills needed by the prospective entrepreneur. With training, some Palomas residents are now paid by Border Partners to teach their neighbors and students in the schools practical skills, perhaps gardening skills or how to build and use a solar cooker.

For some other individuals, the wood shop Border Partners established in Palomas provided the only resource they needed to start a business.

One enterprising woman invested the money she earned as a participant in the women’s co-op oilcloth business to buy the equipment she needed to start a nail salon in her home. Now, she’s built up a nice clientele of loyal customers.

Palomas Oilcloth Designs–A Worker-Owned Business

Palomas Oilcloth Designs successfully employs seven women using a worker-owned model. Now it’s poised on the brink of standing as it’s own entity and operating independent of Border Partners. Learn more about the fascinating story of its success on the Palomas Oilcloth Designs webpage. Purchase their products on their Etsy site and at these fine merchants.