NEWS & VIEWS FEATURE - The Internet generation is bringing the principles of venture capital to philanthropy. It's innovative--but is it effective? Writer David Whitford of Fortune Magazine, in the June 12, 2000 edition, writes about the new shape of philanthropy. He describes how outfits like Social Venture Partners try to be for nonprofits what venture capitalists are for businesses: funders, yes, but also strategy consultants, media advisors, tech experts, headhunters--whatever it takes to build more effective organizations.
FORTUNE MAGAZINE: The New Shape of Philanthropy
[More articles in the News & Views Index]

About Echoing Green – Foundation fellowships to emerging social entrepreneurs. Applies venture capital approach to philanthropy with seed money and technical support to individuals creating innovative public service organizations; or projects to catalyze positive social change.
http://www.echoinggreen.org/index.htm?id=3

Benetech - The Benetech Initiative is a newly created non-profit venture that will provide social benefits by harnessing the power of technology. Benetech uses the new model of social entrepreneurship, which combines market forces with philanthropic capital and entrepreneurial drive. Benetech will focus the efforts of technology and technologists to solve important problems facing society. For example, Benetech is developing new high tech nonprofit enterprises to address accessibility, education, literacy and humanitarian concerns. Benetech's focus is on socially-oriented technology projects. The organization provides seed capital for market and technical feasibility studies, and provides infrastructure for such ventures. Ideas for projects most often come from potential customers, Benetech staff, Benetech's advisory structure, and external inventors and entrepreneurs. Most projects operate as divisions under the Benetech umbrella, realizing significant cost reductions through sharing a common infrastructure.
http://www.benetech.org/

The Business Enterprise Trust – National nonprofit promoting social leadership in business. Information on awards, educational guides and newsletter.
http://www.betrust.org

Changemakers.net – An initiative focusing on the growing world of social entrepreneurship. Their mission is to provide inspiration, resources and opportunities for those interested in social change. Includes a library collection of global resources, innovative examples of creative resourcing (including how nonprofits can form 'for profit' businesses), and a multi-media showcase on social entrepreneurs. Also includes monthly journal. Best Bet.
http://www.changemakers.net

Changemakers Library - Subject area links, featured articles and research studies, highlighted links and other resources.
http://www.changemakers.net/library/index.cfm

Changemakers Journal - Current and archived articles of their monthly online journal.
http://www.changemakers.net/journal/index.cfm

Community Wealth Ventures, Inc. – Community Wealth Ventures is a consulting firm that helps nonprofit organizations become more self-sustaining by generating revenue through business ventures and corporate partnerships, helps corporations improve their bottom line through the design and implementation of community investment strategies and through its consulting and research, CWV influences both nonprofits and corporations to think differently about market-based approaches to their social sector activity. Includes links to: a Database of Social Entrepreneurs, Employment, Links/Resources, News, Publications and Tools.
http://www.communitywealth.com/

Database of Social Entrepreneurs - Community Wealth Ventures has assembled a directory of nonprofit organizations with business ventures and strategic alliances as a reference tool to help build a broad network of social enterprise practitioners around the country.
http://www.communitywealth.org/intro.asp

Links/Resources - Links and descriptions relating to: Social Enterprise, Socially Responsible Business, General Resources, and Publications.
http://www.communitywealth.org/resources_links.htm

Tools - Worksbooks titled: Mapping Your Assets and Identifying Opportunities and Feasibility Analysis for Social Ventures. Also, a Community Wealth Screening Questionnaire to ready an organization for entering revenue generating ventures.
http://www.communitywealth.org/resources_tools.htm

Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy - A report by Raymond W. Smilor, Ph.D. and the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. Healthy communities require self-sufficient people, and self-sufficiency requires economic as well as social well-being. This paper explains how this is the special challenge and opportunity facing foundations today ... to merge the economic and social dimensions of philanthropy. This report is found on the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation web site.
http://www.entreworld.org/Bookstore/Product.cfm?DID=6&Product_ID=22&CATID=22

Institute for Social Entrepreneurs - The Institute for Social Entrepreneurs provides education, training and consulting services for social entrepreneurs in the United States and abroad
http://www.socialent.org/

Initiative on Social Enterprise - An effort at Harvard Business School focusing on nonprofit organizations and other private social-purpose enterprises. It was created to respond to the growing social and economic importance of the nonprofit sector, and its ever-increasing interrelationship with business. The Initiative does this through research and academic programs.
http://www.hbs.edu/socialenterprise/

Morino Institute - Created in 1994, the Morino Institute is a nonprofit organization that explores the opportunities and risks of the Internet and the New Economy to advance social change. Their work is focused in four key areas: stimulating entrepreneurship, advancing a more effective philanthropy, closing social divides and understanding the relationship and impact of the Internet on our society. The Morino Institute's new report From Access to Outcomes: Raising the Aspirations for Technology Initiatives in Low-Income Communities provides a starting point for a major rethinking of the way our nation seeks to bring technology to families struggling at the margins of our economy. Venture Philanthropy 2001: The Changing Landscape provides a comprehensive look at the state of venture philanthropy in the U.S. today. This report seeks to understand what venture philanthropy is, who is involved, what impact has it had so far.
http://www.morino.org/

National Center for Nonprofit Enterprise - The National Center on Nonprofit Enterprise (NCNE), a 501(c)(3) headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, helps nonprofit organizations make wise economic decisions to efficiently and effectively pursue their social missions. NCNE's extensive network of academic researchers, business leaders, and nonprofit practitioners form the backbone of NCNE's comprehensive program of educational activities and services that address the critical economic and decision-making issues facing the nonprofit sector. There is a newsletter and other resources.
http://www.nationalcne.org/

Task Force Reports - Eight task forces considered various dimensions of economic decision-making by nonprofit organizations. Leaders from the academic, nonprofit, business, management consulting, and funding communities serve on these task forces. Abstract and Full Reports included are: Pricing of Nonprofit Organization Services; New Ventures and Strategic Philanthropy; Institutional Collaborations; Compensation of Nonprofit Workers; Spending on Fund Raising; Investment and Expenditure Strategies for Nonprofit Funds; Outsourcing of Activities and Functions by Nonprofit Organizations; and Internet Commerce and Fund Raising. The Task Forces' work was supported by grants from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and other foundations that helped fund NCNE's inaugural conference.

Research Papers - Topics such as: The Shifting Boundaries of the Mixed Economy and The Future of the Nonprofit Sector; Economic Decisionmaking by Nonprofit Organizations in a Market Economy: Tensions between Mission and Market; Enterprising Nonprofits: Revenue Generation in the Nonprofit Sector; A "How-To" for Joint Ventures; Corporate Partnerships: A Guide for the Nonprofit Manager; and Give it Away or Make Them Pay? Price Discrimination and Rationing by Nonprofit Organizations with Distributional Objectives.

Nonprofit Times Columns - The Nonprofit Times Financial Management Edition publishes "Notes from NCNE," a bimonthly column that features current research, advice and useful information on a variety of business and economic issues facing nonprofit organizations. The column is written by NCNE's extensive network of academic researchers, business leaders and nonprofit practitioners. Reprints are included here.

National Center for Social Entrepreneurs - The National Center for Social Entrepreneurs offers nonprofits a new strategy for dealing with marketplace realities. It combines the passion of a social mission with a business-like approach to the marketplace. It purports to help nonprofits find - and keep - a productive balance between doing good (mission) and paying for it (money).
http://www.socialentrepreneurs.org/index.htm

A Board Members Guide - Merging Mission & Money: A Board Member's Guide to Social Entrepreneurship is a document available for download.
http://www.socialentrepreneurs.org/boardMember.htm

Nonprofit Business Solutions - This is a 'seminar selling' web site, so it is commericial. However, the website provides instruction and practical hands-on exercises for nonprofits interested in exploring the possibilities of earned-income. The exercises are designed to help identify and assess a nonprofit's current assets, as well as the earned-income opportunities these assets may present.
http://www.nbsolutions.org/1pgs/about/about1.html p>Partnership On Nonprofit Ventures - The Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures is a major initiative at the Yale School of Management focusing on social entrepreneurship in the nonprofit sector. The Partnership was created to respond to a growing interest in income generation among nonprofit organizations. 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.
http://www.ventures.yale.edu/

Nonprofit Ventures Resource Center - The Resource Center provides cutting edge research and business tools to nonprofit organizations interested in commercial ventures, and offers ways for nonprofits to share their own experiences with others in the field. The Resource Center gives members of The Partnership access to the latest research on nonprofit enterprise; how-to guides; publications and articles; case studies; profiles of business ventures; conferences, courses and workshops; an online discussion group; a calendar of events; and more. Access to the Resource Center is by membership only. Membership is free,
http://www.ventures.yale.edu/aboutresourcecenter.asp

The Roberts Enterprise Development Fund - A Social Venture Capital Approach to the Support of Social Purpose Enterprise Development. The Roberts Enterprise Development Fund evolved out of a six year effort to expand economic opportunity for homeless and very low-income individuals through the creation of social purpose business ventures. These businesses, free of "training" time limits imposed by traditional government funded efforts, could employ individuals for longer periods of time and were operated by nonprofits in order to provide transitional and permanent employment to individuals outside the economic mainstream. Best Bet.
http://www.redf.org/index2.htm

Publications - Download free publications from The Roberts Enterprise Development Fund on the philosophy and practice of social entrepreneurship, venture philanthropy and the ever-changing nonprofit sector. Additional papers are also available by other individuals exploring the many challenges of nonprofit-run social purpose enterprises and investing in social change organizations.
http://www.redf.org/pub_intro.htm

Social Entrepreneurship - A sub-section of Dr. Carter McNamara's Free Management Library including links, library resources and information on social entrepreneurship, cause-related marketing, and organizations.
http://www.mapnp.org/library/soc_entr/soc_entr.htm

SPECIAL NOTE: The Free Management Library is a "must-see to believe" resource, and among this Directory's Featured Web Sites. The overall list includes nearly 700 topic areas and thousands of links to information and websites of value to both to the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Compiled by Dr. McNamara's Management Assistance Program. Best Bet.
http://www.mapnp.org/library/

Social Venture Partners - This organization is an example of philanthropic models linking younger, new money donors to social causes. (See "News & Views" article at top of page.) Social Venture Partners seeks to develop philanthropy and volunteerism to achieve positive social change in the Puget Sound region. Using the venture capital approach as a model, SVP is committed to giving time, money and expertise to create partnerships with not-for-profit organizations.
http://www.svpseattle.org/

Social Venture Partners: Helpful Links - SVP are professionals looking for a way to invest their time, skills and resources in the Puget Sound community. Building a dynamic connection between entrepreneurial energy and grassroots innovation, SVP links community professionals and non-profit organizations to make a hands-on difference. They have also provided a significant collection of web links helpful to nonprofits in a variety of areas. The main site link takes you to their home page. The following go to some of the specific areas offered: