International Experiential Travel
Wonderful Women Trips
For the past few years Ann Becker has been organizing annual, customized “Wonderful Women” trips to Costa Rica. In this creative extension of her consulting practice, Ann has combined her extensive knowledge about organizing successful and meaningful gatherings with her long-standing interest in international economic development and sustainability. Through a carefully structured itinerary of education, volunteer activities, short-term home stays, recreation and relaxation, the Wonderful Women trips provide an in-depth and enriching experience for participants as well as for their hosts. By design, these trips also offer opportunities for environmental awareness and international giving.
The following items reflect some of the ways Ann has ensured that the Wonderful Women trips achieve their broader goals:
Articles from Costa Rica's Tico Times, February 24, 2006.
- Tico Times Reporter’s Story about a Roundtable Discussion on Women’s Issues
- Reflection on the Roundtable
- Boruca Carvers: Rainforest Masks a Smash at Shelby
Article about the artisans from Boruca, Costa Rica, who preserve their culture's mask carving traditions. Boruca was the site of the Wonderful Women 2009 home stays.
Handout from the Chicago Global Giving Network Conference, Sept. 25, 2007
Photo Gallery from Past Trips
CFSI’s South Africa Innovation Exchange
When CFSI launched this innovative program with the support of the Ford Foundation, they asked Ann Becker to help ensure the program’s success by applying both her decades of experience structuring group experiences so that they achieve their objectives and her more recent venture organizing and refining the Wonderful Women trips to Costa Rica.
The South Africa Innovation Exchange invited a a select group of leaders from the U.S. financial service’s industry, nonprofit sector and policy arena to participate in a week long series of meetings with major actors in the South African financial services industry. The program’s goal was for participants to gain an in-depth understanding of a range of innovations being pursued by both industry and government to more effectively and responsibly reach and serve the underbanked.
Ann Becker’s role was to provide a wide range of strategy and logistical consulting services, including:
- Advising on the development of tools for project management including time/task schedule; clarification of roles and responsibilities for staff and consultants in the two countries; and development of an internal working agenda;
- Suggesting how to fine tune the overall itinerary design so that all aspects of the experience would fulfill their promise;
- Reviewing the specific itinerary details to ensure they were flexible enough to accommodate the inevitable realities facing international travelers;
- Advising on appropriate preparation for the participants;
- Recommending and coordinating specific arrangements with the travel company;
- Researching and arranging several major food functions in South Africa.
After the program’s successful conclusion, Ann provided counsel on the reports to Board and staff about the learnings from the first program. She continues to participate in CFSI discussions about what the program might suggest for future CFSI initiatives in bringing together American financial services professions with their peers in other parts of the world.
World Learning
World Learning asked Ann for advice as it was developing a pilot project for its new lifelong learning initiative, an international experiential trip for trustees. Ann drew on her experience both in organizing and leading the Wonderful Women trips to Costa Rica and as an alumna and ongoing supporter of World Learning’s Experiment in International Living program. She advised the organization on how to achieve the objective of giving participants firsthand and meaningful exposure to the impact of World Learning’s programs today.
