Rebecca photographed Yadira’s career at Nielsen to showcase the economic opportunity she accessed through Upwardly Global.

This is her story:

“I came only with one suitcase, my son and my dream…[of] building a new family.”

That dream changed when her marriage turned abusive. “The hardest part for me was to know that I wasn’t independent,” Yadira says.

Upwardly Global eliminates employment barriers for skilled immigrants and refugees, helping highly-educated and skilled, but under- or unemployed immigrants and refugees achieve employment opportunities and financial security.

Yadira is now a membership representative with Nielsen, recruiting Hispanic and Latino families to participate in the Nielsen TV ratings. “I have such a cool job. I get to talk daily with different people, different backgrounds, [and] different stories.”

The job has had an immediate impact on her sense of economic security. “I feel better; I feel secure. And I feel that I can make plans,” she says. “I feel that I can provide for me and for my son. This is real life. This is a real professional life.”