Links: Social Enterprise Alliances/ Networks Community Development Venture Capital Alliance (CDVCA) CDVCA is the trade association of the community development venture capital industry. The organization works to make improvements in economically distressed communities by offering training programs and consulting services, conducting research, and advocates for the field. Resources on this site include public programs for investors and a job bank. The Institute for Social Entrepreneurs The Institute for Social Entrepreneurs offers training, education, and consulting services for social entrepreneurs in the U.S. and abroad. The Institute provides workshops and seminars for interested parties. npEnterprise Forum The official listserv of the Social Enterprise Alliance (below). Use this site to ask questions and share ideas with other stakeholders in the social enterprise field. Social Enterprise Alliance A membership based organization striving to build strong, self-sustaining nonprofit organizations by connecting entrepreneurial nonprofits with learning opportunities, technical assistance, and resources to further their efforts. SEA keeps updated information of events and current news in the social enterprise world. Social Enterprise Magazine Online Find news articles and interviews with key players in the social enterprise world. The Social Venture Network The Social Venture Network is nonprofit network committed to building a sustainable world through business. These efforts are championed through initiatives, information services, and forums to strengthen community and empower members to work together on behalf of a shared vision. Consulting/ Technical Assistance Community Wealth Ventures Community Wealth Ventures is a social enterprise consulting firm that helps nonprofits become more self sustaining by generating revenue through business ventures and corporate partnerships; and corporations by helping them improve their bottom line through the implementation of community development strategies. Through its consulting and research, CWV influences both nonprofits and corporations to think differently about market-based approaches to their social sector activity. Corporate Alternatives, Inc. Corporate Alternatives offers training and consultation for nonprofit organizations. Included on the website are marketing, management and technology ideas; free tools, including a self-assessment; and resources for current clients. Net Impact Service Corps This is a program that offers pro-bono consulting engagements to local nonprofit organizations. The work is done by Net Impact’s members, allowing them to provide leadership, talent and business acumen to organizations in need of building their capacity. Nonprofit Enterprise and Self-sustainability Team (NESsT) NESsT’s is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to further the financial sustainability of civil society organizations working for social change and development through the use of entrepreneurial, self-financing strategies. To reach its goal of supporting social enterprise, NESsT focuses its work in three strategic areas: applied research, capacity building, and policy and outreach. Foundations/ Philanthropy Ashoka Ashoka is a global organization that identifies and invests in social entrepreneurs. The organization offers stipends and professional services that allow fellows to focus full time on their ideas for leading social change in education and youth development, health care, environment, human rights, access to technology and economic development. CDFI Fund The CDFI Fund provides relatively small infusions of capital to institutions that serve distressed communities and low-income individuals. Use this site to learn about funding eligibility, CDFI programs, and to retrieve applications. Echoing Green Echoing Green is a first stage funding source for visionary leaders with bold ideas for social change. Through a two-year fellowship program, Echoing Green, assists social entrepreneurs develop new solutions to come of society’s most difficult problems. The Global Social Venture Competition (GSVC) A partnership between the Haas Business School, Columbia Business School, London Business School and the Goldman Sachs Foundation, GSVC promotes the growth of social ventures globally. The partnership hosts a business plan competition that provides an opportunity for social ventures to showcase their plans and for investors to support the enterprise. Robert Enterprise Development Fund (REDF) REDF partners with nonprofit organizations in the San Francisco area, offering financial support, business support, human and intellectual property and other customized support to help build organizational capacity. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship The Schwab Foundation provides a global platform to promote social entrepreneurship as a key element to advance societies and address social problems in an innovative and effective manner. The Skoll Foundation The Skoll Foundation advances systemic change to benefit communities around the world by investing in, connecting with and celebrating social entrepreneurs. Venture Philanthropy Partners Venture Philanthropy Partners makes philanthropic investments in high-potential nonprofits. In addition to funding sources, the organization offers management expertise and other non-financial resources to nonprofits. Yale School of Management - The Goldman Sachs Foundation Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures The Partnership educates nonprofits about nonprofit enterprise, serves as a mechanism for capitalizing promising profit-making ventures with financial support, and provides intellectual capital to build the practice of social entrepreneurship in the nonprofit sector at-large. In the May 2002, the National Business Plan Competition for Nonprofits was launched. Winners have received technical assistance with the development of their ventures and monetary awards of up to $100,000. Higher Education Institutions The Center for Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE) CASE seeks to advance the field of social enterprise by creating an environment where students, faculty, and leaders in the field can exchange information and ideas regarding social enterprise. CASE programs include the following areas: knowledge development and dissemination, MBA involvement in the social sector, and increasing awareness of the field. The Hauser Center for Nonprofits The Hauser Center for Nonprofits, a research center at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, works to expand understanding and accelerate critical thinking about nonprofit organizations and civil society among scholars, practitioners, policy makers and the general public. The Center hosts events and offers informational resources to nonprofit organizations. Knowledge @ Wharton Knowledge @ Wharton is a bi-weekly online resource that offers the latest business insights, information and research from a variety of resources. Their special section on social entrepreneurship has numerous articles about the field. Small Business Consulting Program (SBCP)- Columbia Business School The Small Business Consulting Program is a program that allows business school students to offer pro-bono consulting services to entrepreneurs, nonprofit organizations, and a variety of businesses. Areas of focus include accounting, finance, marketing, organizational development, operations, e-commerce and strategy. The Social Enterprise Initiative at Harvard Business School The Social Enterprise Initiative at HBS generates and shares knowledge that helps individuals and organizations create social value in the nonprofit, private, and public sectors. Social Enterprise plays a critical role in supporting the School's mission to educate leaders who make a difference in the world by integrating social enterprise-related research, teaching, and activities into the daily life of HBS. print this page Support for this web site was generously provided by the Mizuho USA Foundation. Page last modified: Oct 15, 2004 Modified by: Joshua Reisner copyright © Seedco