Like A Mother

  Coming out of her own marriage, Erin Williamson, 39, of Seattle, realized that because she did not have equal income in her marriage, she did not share equal power. So she set out not only to change her own financial autonomy, but committed to ensuring that women around the globe also have equal access to financial capital — typically for work they are already doing, but are not paid for. "Direct access to money can mean power, freedom, choice, and for those being oppressed by domestic violence, a woman's access to money can mean life," the mom of two told me. Erin is the founder of Pier Coffee, a cold-brew coffee company that buys 100 percent of its beans from women-owned farms. She is also the founder of Engendered International, a non-profit organization that provides certification to companies that prove: Percentage of supply-chain workers who are women Percentage of supply-chain companies owned by women Work within countries that do not place legal restrictions on economic opportunities for women and