“Whatever you do, don’t touch it,” my mother instructed after I put my first paycheck into my mutual fund at age fourteen. “That’s your security blanket. It will keep your head above the water in case of an emergency.” I was interested to know how a blanket – presumably made of money — was [...]
Anyone who knows me knows that my cell phone situation has never been on the cutting edge of technology, my – I’m not buying into the whole ‘2 year contract’ – attitude has kept me with a ‘pay as you go’ phone for years now. The only way I could see obligating myself to [...]
No, not Ned Flanders, despite how much of a philanthropist he might be. <Ned> is an Oregon-based global, all-volunteer, member-governed, online social network for social entrepreneurs, grassroots nonprofits, activists and anyone else looking to create something that improves the lives of others. You might explain it as a giant forum for motivated do-gooders — [...]
The UK-based Social Enterprise Coalition recently announced that it is now accepting submission for its second annual Social Enterprise Day Photography Competition. Social Enterprise Day is a national day celebrated in England on November 19th. You have to be a resident of England in order to submit, but you don’t need any particular photography [...]
The International Peace Day (IPD) movement is on September 21st across the globe. This annual event is an international effort to stop war and violence if only for one day, I can’t think of a better way to spend my Monday.
When I think of promoting peace, some of the great men behind its evolution come to mind, Martin Luther [...]
This is Part II in a two-part series. Check out Part I here.
So what’s the alternative? How can non-profits turn the model upside down?
In simple terms, non-profits can stop being the bottleneck! Rather than play the role of go-between, non-profits can facilitate interactions between donors and their target populations, similar to what Google and [...]
Non-profits all over the world do some incredible work. From sheltering refugees to mediating community disputes, there is an unreal amount of value brought to our world by the social sector.
But it’s also no secret that non-profits face a unique set of problems that prevent them from doing more. Many of these problems are [...]
Wandering through the stalls of the Minnesota Monthly Fresh Taste Festival a few weeks back, I was treated to a delicious morsel of Divine Chocolate and an equally delightful conversation with Divine sales representative, Dana Emmanuel. As she was relaying the history of the cocoa product that was currently mesmerizing my mouth, I was [...]
This week Ashoka announced their new fellows elected during the December 2008 — April 2009 session. I am especially excited to read about the system-changing work that these social entrepreneurs are doing after reading David Bornstein’s book, How to Change the World. As I profiled in an earlier post, How to Change the World [...]
What do web 2.0 companies like Facebook and Twitter and base of the pyramid (BOP) enterprises have in common?
Yes, both are awesome. That’s correct, but not what I was getting at.
In both cases, companies are challenged to generate income and become profitable even when most of the value they bring to society must [...]
Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) began in 1970 working with young children and their families as the city’s first truancy-prevention program. Since then HCZ has been led by Social Entrepreneur Geoffrey Canada and become a beacon of light within a city that has lived through the best of times and the worst of times.
In Whatever [...]
Did you know that half of the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day, and have you ever wondered what living on just $2 would be like? This was a challenge that several interns from Opportunity International decided to understand and experience.
So what was the outcome of [...]
The most powerful clause in the Mozilla manifesto is outlined in their 2nd listed goal: a commitment to speak to people whether or not they have a technical background. It’s easy to assume that technology and the familiarity of its use is ubiquitous. That is the message that is consistently marketed to us, but [...]
