How can bankruptcy be an opportunity?

ECONOMY

by THE OLBIOS TEAM

Everyone is informed that the current state of the global economy has created mass underemployment, leaving millions of people unable to meet financial obligations. In Germany alone in 2010, there was a record 140,000 cases of personal bankruptcies, many of which belonged to individuals who became micro-entrepreneurs after labor market reforms and countrywide job losses. What follows is living in secrecy, isolation and having difficulty obtaining jobs and opening bank accounts. Believing that bankruptcy should be seen as a tool to bring about future opportunities rather than a time of paralysis for the people who are hardest hit, Attila von Unruh began Insolvency Anonymous (IA). Modeled after Alcoholics Anonymous, IA works with people before, during, and after bankruptcy through a combination of peer support, community building, consulting, and lobbying. As it happens very often, this initiative came from a bitter personal experience. Attila von Unruh felt frustration and despair when he was suddenly hit by bankruptcy. While looking for ways to cope, he learned that there is no such thing as self-help groups focused around bankruptcy. Today, he is fulfilling his new life mission to help fellow Germans break the secrecy, isolation and paralysis caused by bankruptcy. Within three years, IA has reached 5,000 bankrupted individuals and spread to nine German cities in addition to Austria. Attila created the first lobby for the bankrupt, working to reform bankruptcy laws. A related charitable association that Attila founded leads a fund to help people out of debt, a phone hotline, drop-in sessions and public outreach. Anonyme Insolvenzler Startseite_website Website: http://www.anonyme-insolvenzler.de/ Just a tool

 

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