Balancing the Teeter-Totter of Opportunity
People in the nonprofit sector learn quickly that change happens best when those involved are excited about sharing what they know and knowing what is worth sharing. The nonprofit sector has a confidence crisis about its value to social entrepreneurship. VentureCharities offers esteem to both sides.
Q1: Jed Emerson and associates noted in their piece Capitalism 3.0 the following quotations, which are presented here somewhat out of context but that basically speak for themselves:
The wisdom of the field does not rest solely in papers and emerging research, but rather in the experience of those who have in many ways gone ahead. We need to support and make available the knowledge of those leaders of the field who have already had success.
Nonprofits tend to approach collaboration as a tactic to achieve a given project goal, not as part of an overall strategy to attain their broader goals.
Does this suggest to you what VentureCharities.biz suggests to me?
Idea Description
The topic of social entrepreneurism and its elements are part of a growing and exciting network of young, excitable and often quite successful people. Interestingly, the topic draws tremendous and ready acceptance even though respected writers and thinkers (from SocialEdge.org to Jed Emerson and BlendedValue.org) readily note that many of the basics need to be blended into practical tools and concepts that focus on quantifiable value. My belief is that this can best be done by creating the tools to learn from and refine what the nonprofit advocates themselves have learned. VentureCharities.biz seeks to do this by documenting and giving voice to what is known to work from the caring sector.
What will you do if you win $10,000 for this idea?
Mostly pull together the tools and concepts that already exist and develop an interactive virtual portal whereby discussions of possibilities can be made real. I've already received incredible responses from people who like the idea but we need to increase the visibliity of the concept and allow for virtual particpation in the effort. This would be a very empowering concept and one that could allow US-based nonprofits to become more visible in the efforts so far. In particular, I would love to developed a balanced model of learning that showcases the "social case" and "best practices" that directly balance the work of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (www.WBCSD.org).
Vote for it now.
I like your idea; I want to improve your odds of getting funding I will vote for your idea if you will vote for mine. My idea is for a web site that raises money for inventors and entrepreneurs called New Idea website Check out my idea blob submission and visit New Idea Website and see what I can do for you. http://www.ideablob.com/ideas/4060-NEW-IDEA-WEBSITE The need for jobs is one of the biggest problems that a democratic government faces because creating jobs is an unwanted byproduct of business and industry. The reason I say its unwanted is the more jobs a business creates the more its expenses are and the smaller it’s bottom-line. If business and industry have their way they would run their companies with no jobs at all no management or labor. To deal with this dilemma I pr…moreopose a federal venture capital carrot fund that literally pays entrepreneurs to create jobs. The investment bank would be expected invest in seed level startup projects like yours and to lose money at a specified dollar per jobs ratio for example during hard times that figure may be as high as $20,000 per job and good times the figure may be as low as five dollars per job, by controlling this ratio the fed could roughly control unemployment. The bank will be expected to fund novel products and services and stay away from things like restaurants that will simply draw jobs from other restaurants or moving factories from one part of the country to another. If you like this idea vote for it and send the congressional letter from the website. Sincerely Frank Scruggs
Hey Chaula. Thanks for reviewing my idea in general. I think there are a world of new ways that for- and nonprofit enterprises could negotiate in the form of mutually beneficial relationships, including some with long-lasting revenue elements. The whole idea of SE thinking suggests this is what will result, at least from what the theoretical literature says. I'm discussing this with some angel and venture capitalists to hear what they say while putting some ideas into their brains. But the first step would be showcasing these potentials. Since it's Saturday I'm just thinking off my cuff. If you could send me a note to Allan@AllanShore.com and I'll follow through with specifics and post them in a comment for the benefit of others too.
Hi Allan... Will forwarded me your idea. This sounds very interesting. To me the above statement suggests sharing lessons from SE-ship to broader nonprofit sector, but not the other way round. Could you help me understand the benefits for both sides?
Ideablob will be hosting a panel at the conference on Tuesday. Stop by if you're there. I also sent your idea to my friend who has worked with Ashoka and now leads the social entrepreneurship initiative of a large non-profit.
Thanks for the suggestion. I know about the conference and hope to attend. It is appears to be a great gathering for the field as a whole, but remains mostly focused on the business side of the teeter-totter. I love what GoodCap does in SF and hope to work more with them in the future. Thanks again.