Maxwell Bevilacqua

Country: Java, Indonesia
Organization: Ruma

BEVILACQUA: "RUMA (now transitioning to “Mapan”) is an Indonesia-based company that works on providing lower-income communities with better access to goods and services through technology. I was assigned to the marketing team to work on a project called Gugus Mapan. Gugus Mapan is a financial literacy program where the deliverable was an activity book directed towards the women who are typically in charge of the family’s finances.

The concept of the book was to increase financial literacy. The fundamental issue with our audience, however, was not so much “financial literacy” as it was “behavioral change” that allowed them to approach their finances. Specifically, within financial literacy, and at the heart of our model was savings. The initial exercises of tracking expenses existed for the purpose of drawing attention to money that could be saved and the final exercises that channeled funds into entrepreneurial endeavors were only as successful as the saving was. “

“Before we could impart financial literacy, which we conceived as “SiTaTa” or “Setting aside, saving, and adding money back into a side business,” we realized that we needed to develop a psychologically appealing and motivating way to begin and then continue the conversation. Thus we created an interactive book with a built-in friend, supporter, teacher, and guide - “TaTa”. Our Gugus Mapan meetings were most successful when the norms of a classroom were in place. The design of an interactive “textbook” was therefore fitting and it was easier to push our audience to be good “students” by reminding them that this was an opportunity to model diligence and dedication for their children.

The philosophical underpinnings of the book actually came from Alcoholics Anonymous. First, we were admitting that we have a problem, second we were realizing that there is a process

that could make them “well”, and thirdly we were imparting hope/faith in the process of working through the book based on previous successes. The group structure, rituals and repetitions, were meant to be reminiscent of AA because they contain many elements of group cohesion. “

“I felt incredibly lucky to have been given substantive work within a private company doing public good. I noted, with some humor, that whereas I had thought my father’s line of work (financial advising) was boring as a child, I had found myself reveling in the project of financial literacy. I am excited to continue exploring public good from the private sector thanks to this experience which would not have been possible without the generosity and support of the Blakeley Fellowship.“