Green Options » social innovation

Mobilizing Change

Kelli Peterson — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 07:17:05 +0000

It was a trifecta of inspiration for all social entrepreneurs this evening. The founders from three bay area start-ups gathered in HUB’s first bay area home in front of a sold-out crowd to talk about their origins, give the audience - and each other - advice and insights on the “secret sauce” for creating impact.

Set up as a “201″ panel discussion, the moderator asked the audience and participants to be honest, avoid soliloquys and “pitches” and stick to the business of user-worthy advice. Matt Flannery, co-founder of Kiva.org, Steve Newcomb, co-founder of Virgance (new owners of this blog), and Ben Rattray founder of Change.org then answered questions designed to help fledgling business idealists through the realities of what it takes to rally social change.

The Executive Case for Social Innovation

Kelli Peterson — Thu, 07 May 2009 05:54:38 +0000

Yesterday the White House announced President Obama’s 2010 request to Congress for $50 million to set up a Social Innovation Fund with the goal of identifying the most promising results-oriented non-profit programs in order to expand their reach throughout the country.

Taking a page from his grass-roots leadership style, Obama’s announcement of the request continues to drive home a message that change will come from the individuals who make up the communities they live in. The request for seed capital to identify and foster those efforts will come in parallel to an administration re-looking at policy areas to enable new approaches.

Danish Students Publish Book on Concept of Social Innovation

Adam Williams — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:08:39 +0000

Students of the KaosPilots International Education in Aarhus, Denmark spent this past spring living and working in Shanghai, China. OurTheir mission: explore the term “Social Innovation”.

The result of their research, study and exploration is a book: A Travel Guide to Social Innovation. It will be for sale as of Sept. 12, 2008, but they offer a PDF version via their Web site: http://socialinnovation.biz/.

via Ode Magazine

Green Business Podcasts: Are You Tuned In?

Julie Sammons — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 13:37:58 +0000

In an entrepreneur’s world, staying current means staying ahead of the competition. Yet with all of the urgent tasks piling up on your to-do list, keeping tabs on the latest industry news and views can easily fall by the wayside. Don’t lose that competitive edge — listen to it.

My personal introduction to the growing menu of green business podcasts came while searching for strategies to make my commute time and gym visits more productive. Ranging from four minutes to forty-five minutes in length, these concise audio feeds speak directly to ecopreneurs through a mix of interviews, international news, trend analysis and expert commentary on the emerging green economy.

I’ve pre-screened the front runners and highly recommend these five favorites:

The Global X Series on SocialEdge
Ethical Corporation
GreenBiz Radio
Social Innovation Conversations at Stanford University’s Center for Social Innovation
IdeaCast from the Harvard Business Review

(descriptions after the jump)