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In Brazil, a Break Through Investment Model in Affordable Housing: Harnessing a public-private solution to sustainable housing
At Bamboo Finance, we view housing as a critical component to driving economic growth, and our investment of R$7 million (US$3.6 million) in Bille, a Special Purpose Enterprise (SPE) created by Crinale, a Brazilian housing developer, for building and selling 1,200 houses in the interior of Sao Paulo State, represents a scalable solution to a massive social and economic problem.
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- Uncategorized
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- housing, infrastructure
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BoP Career Paths: At the Root of a Baobab Tree, A New Food Company to Benefit the Poor : Bumbleroot was launched by a former TechnoServe Volunteer
Sara Andrews is a former policy advisor and strategy consultant who developed the idea for Bumbleroot while serving as a volunteer consultant for TechnoServe in Zimbabwe. A Montana native and graduate of the University of Notre Dame, she prefers to be outdoors rather than indoors.
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- Uncategorized
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Why South Asia is a Hub for Social Entrepreneurship
An April 2012 study of the social entrepreneurship landscape in India found that the sector has really taken off since 2005. But while social entrepreneurs are excited to consider next steps, they clearly have a lot of learning to do—and must do a lot more to prove positive outcomes, financial and social. But, if they can, India could become a hotspot and global test ground for impact investing.
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- Education, Social Enterprise
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Waste Not, Want Not: Eco-Fuel Africa
Sanga Moses, is the founder of Eco-Fuel Moses recently applied for the WWF Switzerland Tropical Forest Challenge – a challenge that is working to identify the best for-profit solutions having a positive impact on tropical forest biodiversity in any of the 75 tropical forest-rich countries around the world.
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- Energy, Environment, Technology
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How the Arab World Can Build a Tech Sector of its Own
Unemployment in MENA is 10.3 percent, according to the International Labor Organization, the highest anywhere in the world. That rate grows to 23.8 percent for those between the ages of 15 and 25. But where should youth turn to look for meaningful jobs? Maybe the same place they turned to stage protests against their governments: online.
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- Technology, Telecommunications
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Turning Poop into Profits: Waste Enterprisers Drive to Turn Waste Outputs into Fuel Inputs
If Ashley Murray has something to say about it, the economics of poop are in for a shake-up. “85 percent of human waste generated on the planet is dumped directly into the environment without any treatment at all,” she said. Murray, founder and CEO of Waste Enterprisers and a Fellow at this year’s Unreasonable Institute, believes that waste can be transformed into fuel.
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- Health Care, Technology
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- waste
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The Art of ‘Nice,’ Putting ‘Care’ In African Healthcare
What’s the secret to attracting 300 patients a month to a brand new, three-room health clinic in a sprawling industrial area? It might be the free manicure/pedicure women receiver after paying for a full “head-to-toe” checkup, but more likely, it’s the value of Penda. In Swahili, Penda means love, and that’s the key to Penda Health Clinics, a new chain of low-cost health facilities in Kenya that puts “care” at the center of their business model.
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- Health Care, Social Enterprise
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Gender Roles in Green and Inclusive Business – Replicating Old Patterns or Breaking New Ground?
The green economy has the potential to empower women – but risks replicating old gender patterns of the ‘brown’ economy, says a new DCED / GIZ study. How does the case look for social entrepreneurship and impact investing?
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- Agriculture, Education, Environment, Social Enterprise