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Biz-school courses focus on giving back
In 2010, Donnel Baird grew increasingly frustrated while working for a coalition of labor and environmental groups in Washington, D.C., to promote residential energy efficiency and sustainability projects. In the process, he discovered how difficult it was for entrepreneurial businesses, nonprofits, churches and other small enterprises to find backers such as banks willing to fund their efforts to install solar power or energy-conservation technologies. "The transaction costs and the risks were too high," he said.
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- Education
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HaPinoy, PBSP work to revive E. Visayas sari-sari store economy
SOCIAL enterprise HaPinoy is closely working with the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) to revive the sari-sari store economy in Yolanda-ravaged areas in Eastern Visayas. HaPinoy president Mark Ruiz said they will initially help 2,000 sari-sari stores in Leyte for the livelihood rehabilitation effort that will benefit 100,000 residents to have access to basic commodities.
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- Uncategorized
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Empowering People With Cooking Stoves
Imagine spending 30 percent of your income on cooking fuel, inhaling the equivalent of 20 cigarettes daily while preparing meals for your family, and having to send your daughter to collect fuel for hours every day. What sounds like a far-fetched scenario is the reality of millions of people around the world in countries like Nepal, Darfur and Haiti.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Health Care, Technology
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(With Video) Beyond the Prototype: Wello’s CEO on product design, understanding customers and advice for social entrepreneurs
Cynthia Koenig, CEO of Wello, whose flagship product is a rolling water tank, advises against getting too reliant on a series of check boxes when it comes to measuring impact. In a video interview with NB, she talks about prototyping the next generation of the device, designed for BoP customers.
- Categories
- Education, Impact Assessment, Social Enterprise
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NexThought Monday – China’s Social Enterprise Movement Set to Blast Off: The country is urging a bigger role for social enterprise in society and the economy
China is urging a bigger role for social enterprise in society and the economy. In response, socially-minded businesses are taking off. Given China’s energy and strong entrepreneurial spirit, as the social enterprise movement grows and flourishes, the world’s second largest economy could soon be poised to make a significant global impact.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Social Enterprise
- Tags
- housing, scale, social enterprise
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The 5th Annual Impact Conference at Sustainatopia: One of the world’s largest impact investing conferences to be held in Miami, April 16-18, 2014
Sustainatopia is one of the world’s largest events for social, financial, and environmental sustainability, drawing over 350 speakers and hundreds of attendees from 40 countries. Its Impact Conference will feature some of the top names in impact investing and social enterprise. As a media partner, NextBillion will provide extensive coverage and interviews with several key speakers.
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- Environment, Impact Assessment, Investing, Social Enterprise
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Know Thy Hospital: Engineers and entrepreneurs are rethinking medical device design, and the world could be healthier as a result
Well-meaning individuals and organizations from high-income countries often donate medical equipment – mostly used – to hospitals in low-resource settings. But it often fails because it isn’t designed for the "predictable unpredictability" of these settings. Mike Miesen argues that we need innovative devices designed for the needs of the customer, not the donor.
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- Environment, Health Care, Social Enterprise
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The Power of Investing in Women: Lessons learned from WIN-WIN
Calvert Foundation and Citi Foundation launched the Women Investing in Women Initiative, or WIN-WIN, on March 8, 2012, International Women’s Day. The initiative aimed to raise and deploy $20 million in capital to empower women and girls around the world. WIN-WIN surpassed this goal in December, and Calvert CEO Jennifer Pryce discusses four lessons learned along the way.
- Categories
- Investing, Social Enterprise