NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

In July, Ayllu released iuMAP (read why we built it here) in media partnership with NextBillion. Since then, it has grown by 50% and is easier to search. iuMAP today lists 450 enterprises employing market based solutions to poverty in 65+ developing countries, and has been visited by users in 135 countries! To our knowledge, iuMAP is one of the most comprehensive directories of market solutions to poverty. And that’s only the beginning.

The Ayllu team developed iuMAP in response to what we saw as a lack of centralized information on social enterprises. It is a place where users can find easily digestible and critical information to help the social enterprise community learn from successes, failures and challenges, so that decisions can be made more easily, quickly and cheaply.

This week, Ayllu is unveiling a new and improved iuMAP! Here are two important new features we’re rolling out:

• Improved filtering: Thanks to our tech partner, OpenAction, you can now filter enterprises on the map more easily (i.e. Nonprofit enterprises focused on water in India, or For-Profit enterprises focused on Energy in Tanzania). You can also view the enterprises as a list, with tags that make them even easier to sort.
• Sector Pages: We created resource pages for key sectors (Agriculture, Education, Energy, etc.) Each resource page has a collection of the best sector resources we’ve found, including reports, case studies, and links to other online resources.

Check out this video to learn more:

Energy & India Maps: In the spring, Ayllu will release in-depth maps on the iuMAP platform. Our survey and information collection process was built with IRIS, GIIRS, Acumen Fund, the William Davidson Institute, and Santa Clara University. We’re now using it to map India and Energy. The Energy Map, focused on social enterprises delivering energy solutions to the poor, is surveying 60+ enterprises and is funded by the Center for Science, Technology, and Society at Santa Clara University.

The India map, focused on social enterprises in India facing enormous growth challenges, is surveying 50+ enterprises and is funded by Artemisia International. Both maps will be ’live’, which means we will continue updating and expanding them over time. We’ll use them to prototype tools for funders and enterprises to more easily find and use market information. To learn more please click here.

Here’s what a few users have said about iuMAP:

• “It helps me understand how the global puzzle fits together, and to find my peers” (Shashin Chokshi,Moneythink.org)

• “I use it to find new investment opportunities. I love how organized it is!” (Paulo Bellotti, PRAGMA)

Now we’d like to hear from you. We hope to make iuMAP into the most valuable resource possible. Please help us do so with your feedback and by commenting on this post. We’d love to hear how you’re using the map and what features are most important to you. And in the meantime, enjoy!