JumpStart Helps Cleveland’s New Entrepreneurs
Posted by Gina-Marie Cheeseman November 17th, 2009 
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Cleveland is part of the “rust belt,” the moniker given to the upper Midwest because many of its factories and plants are no longer in operation. However, in 2004 Cleveland’s business leaders, government, and foundations created the nonprofit corporation JumpStart to help entrepreneurs. JumpStart invests only in companies that have the chance to grow between $30 million and $50 million in sales within five to seven years and have innovative products.
JumpStart has helped 40 companies who have the potential to create 2,400 jobs at an average salary of $65,000. Last year JumpStart spent $9 million last year, generated $75 million in local spending, and Cleveland made $8 million through payroll taxes.
Early stage investment starts at $250,000 and goes up to $600,000. The nonprofit corporation assigns an experienced CEO to help create a business plan. In order to qualify for JumpStart’s help, companies must have the following:
Interfaith Power & Light: Energy From Heaven
Posted by Bill Roth November 16th, 2009 4 Comments
“The faith community must be heard, now is the time for people of faith to take a moral stand to save our planet.” –Reverend Canon Sally G. Bingham, president of The Regeneration Project Interfaith Power & Light
I was raised by a God-fearing mom with a strong affinity for fire and brimstone preaching that grounded me with a strong respect for the power of the pulpit. So when someone introduced me to the Interfaith Power & Light (IP&L), an organization of 10,000 churches, synagogues, mosques and temples covering the religions of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Buddhism, my internal radar started to buzz. If I were a business person in America I would post this article on my bathroom mirror to reflect upon every morning because 85 percent of Americans define themselves as persons of faith.
The Impact of Storytelling on International Development
Posted by 3p Guest Author November 13th, 2009 1 Comment
By Mary Solecki
The entrepreneurs of international development work will have a special place in history. These are entrepreneurial spirits that have risked their careers and livelihoods, not to make exorbitant profits or seek the thrill of the IPO, but instead to make life better for their fellow countrymen. These men and women are rarely recorded in history books, but have devoted all their time and talents toward the thankless job of making the world a better place.
Last summer I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to intern with a non-profit organization in Nicaragua. During my experience, I lived in rural Nicaragua, and spent a lot of time not only watching the hard efforts of a social entrepreneur, but trying to wrap my mind around the differences between my origins and the Nicaraguans. The whole summer, and most days since, I have tried to envision how not only my life, but I might be different if I was born there. After all, I did nothing to earn the opportunities I have in my life. Just as Nicaraguans were simply born there, I was simply born in the United States. A simple act of fate and geographical convenience that permanently alters the paths a life might take. It is the realization of my blind luck that drives me to appreciate and create these opportunities for others.
The Hurdles and Heroes of International Development
Posted by 3p Guest Author November 12th, 2009 0 Comments
By Mary Solecki
I frequently tell people I’m ‘into’ international development. I recently received a raised eyebrow at this statement, reminding me just how vague the term is. Is it sinister international globalization plans? An underground tunnel to China (finally)? When asked to describe what this means to me, I tend to go for the explanation “helping people to meet their basic needs of clean water, food, and education.”
Now, this might sound like pure humanitarian efforts, but I have a very negative impression of humanitarianism. I envision crates of food dropping to people on the ground, canned in English they do not understand nor have the can openers to open without bodily laceration. International development is the sustainable version of humanitarianism, based off the ‘Teach a Man to Fish’ life lesson #218. Rather than a crate of canned food, the international development plane might drop off a fishing pole and a fly-fishing guide that knows a few local jokes and swimming holes.
While the world seems to have growing enthusiasm for international development, the hurdles and risks associated with this work have not gone away. As social entrepreneurs are sprouting up throughout developing countries, governments of these countries are relaxing their own efforts, and becoming more dependent on these organizations to provide services in their place. Social entrepreneurs face a huge obstacle in their very existence. They exist to help improve lifestyles and meet basic needs to some of the world’s poorest. In order for an organization to consider itself ‘social’, they cannot turn too much of a profit off the very people they are trying to help. The amount of creativity required to help meet people’s needs while still fulfilling bottom line needs walks the fine line between exhilarating and exhausting.
Greenhouse Gas Accountants to the Rescue!
Posted by BC Upham November 12th, 2009 0 Comments
Lost in all the talk about whether or when nations and industries will have emissions targets, is the question of who, exactly, is going to measure those targets.
Without a pool of trained and certified professional GHG managers, climate change initiatives — from the United Nations Framework down to the sustainability plan for the shop around the corner — could stall.
Worse, a lack of accountability could turn the “greenhouse gas expert” into the snake oil salesman of the 21st century, peddling a dubious product whose ingredients change from one bottle to the next.
Enter the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute. The Institute provides professional training in greenhouse gas accounting and verification, primarily online, and its ultimate goal is to create a professional society for greenhouse gas accountants and verifiers, similar to the way other fields — architecture, law, medicine, accounting — have national or international certification bodies.
The Institute was launched in 2007 as a non-profit by Michael Gillenwater and Tom Baumann, two recognized experts in emissions measurement, who realized that there was an emerging need for standardization in their field.
Warrior Film-making: The Story of Free Range Studios
Posted by Ryan Mickle November 6th, 2009 0 Comments
Jonah Sachs and Louis Fox at Free Range Studios in Berkeley, CA
I recently visited Free Range Studios to meet with its talented co-founder Jonah Sachs in Berkeley, California, to talk about his startup story. Free Range began 10 years ago as two guys, one laptop, one apartment, and enough creativity and change-the-world-or-bust aspirations to eventually challenge agribusiness, and our consumer lifestyle, with The Story of Stuff, The Meatrix, and countless other films and stories. If you haven’t see these incredible web videos, which have won countless awards, I genuinely suggest taking the time to so.
From Childhood Collaboration to Warrior Film-making
After graduating with a degree in journalism, Jonah moved to Washington D.C., where he interned for NPR, then did graphic design work for a local studio for a meager 8 bucks an hour. He didn’t last long. After getting offers for freelance work for $50 an hour, he was on his own before 6 months had passed.
3P Founder Opens Closet for Ecouterre
Posted by Jen Boynton November 5th, 2009 1 Comment
Nick takes his sustainability seriously- from his head down to his toes. He let Ecouterre take a tour of his closet and he let it all hang out. Click the link to see his labels and his adorable message tees.
SF Green Chamber of Commerce Celebrates Second Anniversary
Posted by Steve Puma November 3rd, 2009 0 Comments
Over the past several months, TriplePundit has published many stories about the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s stance opposing climate change legislation, and the subsequent announcements by Nike, Apple, PG&E and others that they would be leaving the national chamber in response. The Chamber has been embroiled in even further controversy, when it was discovered that the organization was playing fast and loose with its membership numbers and suffered a false press conference attack by the Yes Men.
Yesterday, we reported about several organizations that see sustainability as a catalyst for economic opportunity, and are helping member businesses realize the potential. Today, I would like to add to this list the Green Chamber of Commerce, a San Francisco-based business network of more than 160 Bay Area businesses from various industry sectors including architecture & design, media, finance, legal, renewable energy, and health. The company is celebrating its second anniversary this Thursday, November 5th, with an event titled, “Building an Honest Economy”, featuring a keynote speech by Ahmed Rahim, CEO and co-founder of Numi Organic Tea.
Finisterre Finds Best Path to Staying Warm and Dry Is to Act Like an Otter
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor October 30th, 2009 1 Comment
On any given day, you’re likely to find a small team of product designers, material developers and scrappy marketers holed up in a converted mine building in the town of St. Agnes on the North Cornwall coast—unless, of course, the surf is good. At those times, you’re more likely to see these folks, who operate the Finisterre outdoor apparel company, bobbing in the chilly waters of the Atlantic, just a quick walk away from the office of Finisterre.
Finisterre makes jackets and base layers for people who love being outside, whether they’re surfing, hiking, skiing, climbing…whatever.
Most of the baselayers it sells are made of the soft, high-performance wool of sustainably-raised merino sheep. But the company is not only using materials from animals in its products, it’s also designing products that mimic the way that animals stay warm and dry. In developing this season’s Humboldt and Storm Tracker Finisterre jackets, the designers employed biomimicry.
New Book Gives the Low-Down on Green Business Models
Posted by Shannon Arvizu October 21st, 2009 0 Comments
There’s a lot of hype in this field about how “green is gold.” But there is little hard evidence that shows actual trends and models in green business operations. A new book, “Hybrid Organizations: New Business Models for Environmental Leadership,” aims to fill that gap by providing up-to-date analysis of green start-up firms.
Of course, we have to start with what makes a “hybrid organization.” The authors recognize that there are a lot names thrown around these days for classifying companies with an explicit social or ecological mission. They define a hybrid organization as “a market oriented, mission-centered organization which operates in the blurred space between for-profit and nonprofit enterprises.”
eBay, Others, Offer Strategies for Turning Customers into Allies
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor October 21st, 2009 0 Comments
Triple-bottom-line businesspeople aren’t just in it for the money; they seek to satisfy social and environmental bottom lines, as well. And generally, the same can be said of their patrons. That shows up in consumers’ willingness to pay premiums for fair trade, responsibly-sourced products. But the relationship between company and customer does not—and, many would argue, should not—end in a financial transaction. So how can socially- and environmentally-responsible firms go about turning their customers into advocates?
That question was posed to three panelists—Danny Kennedy, founder and CEO of Sungevity; Ron Gonen, cofounder and CEO of Recyclebank; and Amy Skoczlas Cole, director of citizenship outreach at eBay—during the JustMeans Social Media for Sustainability conference on Monday, in San Francisco.
Sigh of the Times: German Bordello Uses Green Incentives
Posted by Bill DiBenedetto October 21st, 2009 1 Comment
Bike to work, bike to the workout, and now bike to work it. The world’s oldest profession, once considered recession-resistant, is going green–in Germany at least, and largely out of economic necessity.
The country’s flaccid sex-for-hire industry could follow the example of one flagging bordello in Berlin, the Maison d’Envie (House of Desire) which is offering discounts to customers who pedal their bicycles to the door.
BizTechDay: Helping Start-ups Succeed
Posted by Amie Vaccaro October 20th, 2009 2 Comments
Later this week I’ll be writing from BizTechDay, which is billed as the most powerful entrepreneur and small business conference. Two days long, the schedule is jam-packed with successful entrepreneurial speakers. I’ve recently joined a start-up, Viv, and naturally have loads of questions about launching and building a business that I hope will be answered.
With so many start-ups failing, I’m excited to learn from leaders of some who’ve succeeded. The conference is broken into 3 tracks: fundraising, social media, and marketing/selling, all of which pertain to your start-up or small business.
While this conference doesn’t bear an explicit sustainability focus, I would argue that entrepreneurs with a leaning towards doing good need to learn these lessons more than the rest, to enable maximum uptake and maximum impact. There are very few businesses with killer value propositions that also solve environmental and/or social problems. Those that do are among my favorite businesses of all time (e.g. RecycleBank, TerraCycle, Shorebank etc).
Social Entrepreneurs: So Hot Right Now
Posted by Mary Catherine O'Connor October 16th, 2009 1 Comment
Socially-minded startup ventures are nothing new, but their numbers are growing–just look to our weekly Friday feature on startups. And it’s not just well-off do-gooders or disillusioned cube-dwellers who are deciding to start companies that adhere to the triple bottom line. MBA programs with an emphasis on social entrepreneurship are totally in right now. The Wall Street Journal even says so.
In highlighting the trend, WSJ interviewed Jeff Denby, who launched the sustainable underwear company PACT (a startup we featured earlier this month) after graduating from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2008. He told the paper that his interests in starting a socially-responsible enterprise was fostered by his Cal colleagues and faculty, and given a boost through guest lectures by like-minded entrepreneurs.
It’s no coincidence, since Triple Pundit’s founder and its managing editor both hold MBAs in sustainable management from the Presidio School of Management, that recent grads and current students in that and similar program often grace the pages of this site–both as contributors and as entrepreneurs. Take Sandra Kwak. Armed with her MBA in sustainable management she started a energy management product for small businesses called Powerzoa.
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