Economic Self-Reliance Center Introduces New Publication

PROVO, Utah — Nov 03, 2006 — In its continued effort to provide new research information and strategies to a worldwide audience, the Economic Self-Reliance Center has released a new publication, ESR Review.

The magazine, which takes the place of the center’s previous publication, the Journal of Microfinance, addresses the general topic of economic self-reliance, where the previous journal dealt mainly with the issue of microfinance.

“Since the inception of the Economic Self-Reliance Center we’ve been looking at ways to refine and focus our scope as well as finding better ways to deliver information about economic self-reliance,” Managing Director Todd Manwaring says. “This revamped publication is one of those visions we had from day one.”

The goal of the ESR Review, according to Manwaring, is to provide a venue for those involved in the cause of economic self-reliance to network and exchange ideas. Microfinance, he says, is only part of the solution to economic self-reliance, and the new publication will involve other areas of study, including microcredit and microenterprise.

The ESR Review is a twice-yearly publication and also features a companion Web site. The Web site serves both to increase the center’s visibility among fellow researchers and practitioners as well as augment the content of the publication. The new publication serves more as a tool for applied research and not as an academic journal about the field of economic self-reliance itself.

Ginny Lowry, executive director of the B. Attitudes Foundation, a center for economic self-reliance, says she believes that the ESR Review will result in a more cohesive and coordinated effort in the fight against world poverty.

“I would hope that those reading the ESR Review would gain valuable insights into initiatives, programs and agencies that would inspire and motivate them,” Lowry says. “Rather than working in isolation one from another, readers may be made aware of, or even possibly partner with, other practitioners, resulting in a more global approach to problem solving. Collaborative efforts ultimately reach out to and improve lives in greater numbers.”

Readers may subscribe to the ESR Review and find out more about the publication by visiting the magazine’s main Web site, www.esrreview.com.

The Economic Self-Reliance Center originates in the Marriott School of Management, located at Brigham Young University. BYU is the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems, organizational behavior and entrepreneurship. The school’s mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School’s graduate and undergraduate programs.