World Ventures is a non-profit organization, established in 2002, by a group of business, manufacturing, and agricultural professionals.  After drawing upon one of the founding members 25+ years of serving as a missionary in developing countries, they realized that many of the programs to assist development in these countries were approaching problems from the top-down.  These programs, in general, had limited success because they did not involve the people in planning projects.  The finances came from outside sources with minimal input from the local people, who were viewed as needing assistance.  Ownership of the programs rested in the hands of experts, who were always outside the system.  Because these programs depended on these experts and their finances, most of the projects failed after the organizational input ceased.

Therefore, there was a critical need to address this situation and develop a bottom-up process that would maximize culturally sensitive projects designed by the local beneficiaries.   And so, this group began to study the problem by meeting with individuals who were involved in cross-cultural business in Asia and Africa. Through these meetings they realized there was a significant need for a mentoring approach to assist entrepreneurs in the developing world.  Thus, World Ventures began, a board was formed with advisors, and three projects were undertaken.  Since 2002, World Ventures has expanded greatly.  We are now serving hundreds of businessmen and businesswomen in over 20 countries with self-sustainable opportunities all implemented at the local level.