Today's BIY is not an article, but rather a thought. I would love this to be the start of a discussion.
Over the last 2-3 years, I have been working on a couple different start-up companies. As a result, I have taken a lot of enjoyment from studying the markets for products--particularly consumer goods and internet services. When I started this blog, the idea was to eventually become a non-profit run in a for-profit business model. This week, I came across a Design 21 Competition called Power to the Pedal.
"The DESIGN 21 series challenges designers of all disciplines to find solutions to social and global issues. It’s guided by UNESCO’s premise that education, science, technology, culture and communication are tools to spread knowledge and information, build awareness and foster dialogue."
Inspired by the plot, I think this can be taken to the next level to create a phenomenal project in social entrepreneurship. Read on...
THE IDEA
Providing innovative solutions to everyday problems in poverty stricken regions.
SUMMARY
When people believe in ideas, they do not need to be monetarily compensated for their effort. Think Wikipedia. Think the translation of Facebook. With this in mind, I want to create a worldwide network to design and develop products that will solve everyday problems in poverty stricken regions.
People in poverty stricken regions face countless problems that those in developed nations take for granted--access to food and water, transportation, medical supplies, power supplies, shelter, and many more categories come to mind. Creative minds around the world have a plethora of ideas to help solve these problems economically. This business will connect the two.
HOW TO DO IT
1. Use an open social platform to create a network of product designers who will create solutions to everyday problems in poverty stricken regions.
2. Take investment to develop the best solutions--as decided by the network.
3. Create an e-commerce solution to sell the products before manufacturing, and mass manufacture based on demand. Products will be purchased by people around the world for those in poverty stricken regions. All revenues over manufacturing costs will be put back into the company for product development.
4. When enough units of a product are ordered to create economies of scale, manufacture using an approved facility in a developing nation and distribute in the specified regions.
HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL IT TAKE?
1. To begin, one full time person to coordinate all elements. This person must be able to build and maintain both the networking platform and the e-commerce solution. He/she must also be able to oversee the production and distribution of products. As we start to manufacture more products at the same time, more people may be necessary.
2. Marketing Department: Members of entrepreneurship clubs worldwide
3. Designers: Worldwide volunteers interested in seeing their designs developed and manufactured
4. Manufacturing: Approved facility in developing nation
HOW MUCH MONEY WILL IT TAKE?
I believe this project can begin under $100,000 and become self-sustainable thereafter.
WHY WOULD THIS BE A GOOD NON-PROFIT?
There are tons of charities out there--too many to count. For a person who wants to give to a charity, it is very difficult to decide. Moreover, when giving to a charity, it is even more difficult to know where your money is actually going. This project would be completely transparent--every cost would be broken out and made readily accessible to the public. For every purchase someone made, they would see exactly how much money goes to the manufacturing and distribution of a product, where the product is going and how it is helping, and how much money is going to future product development.
So, this is a fairly brief synopsis of the idea. But, what do you all think? Ridiculous or realistic?
Showing posts with label social entrepreneurship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label social entrepreneurship. Show all posts
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
Social Entrepreneurship
I have been thinking a lot about entrepreneurship lately. Today, I thought it would be interesting to read someone's take on social entrepreneurship. Here is a brief article from PBS describing just what social entrepreneurship is. I hope to be an entrepreneur who transitions into a social entrepreneur down the line.
What is Social Entrepreneurship?
"Social entrepreneurs identify resources where people only see problems. They view the villagers as the solution, not the passive beneficiary. They begin with the assumption of competence and unleash resources in the communities they're serving."
David Bornstein, author of How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas
"Social entrepreneurs are not content just to give a fish or teach how to fish. They will not rest until they have revolutionized the fishing industry."
Bill Drayton, CEO, chair and founder of Ashoka
A social entrepreneur identifies and solves social problems on a large scale. Just as business entrepreneurs create and transform whole industries, social entrepreneurs act as the change agents for society, seizing opportunities others miss in order to improve systems, invent and disseminate new approaches and advance sustainable solutions that create social value.
Unlike traditional business entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs primarily seek to generate "social value" rather than profits. And unlike the majority of non-profit organizations, their work is targeted not only towards immediate, small-scale effects, but sweeping, long-term change.
The job of a social entrepreneur is to recognize when a part of society is stuck and to provide new ways to get it unstuck. He or she finds what is not working and solves the problem by changing the system, spreading the solution and persuading entire societies to take new leaps.
Identifying and solving large-scale social problems requires a committed person with a vision and determination to persist in the face of daunting odds. Ultimately, social entrepreneurs are driven to produce measurable impact by opening up new pathways for the marginalized and disadvantaged, and unlocking society's full potential to effect social change.
The past two decades have seen an explosion of entrepreneurship and a healthy competition in the social sector, which has discovered what the business sector learned from the railroad, the stock market and the digital revolution: Nothing is as powerful as a big new idea if it is in the hands of a first class entrepreneur.
This revolution is fundamentally changing the way society organizes itself and the way we approach social problems.
The stories featured in The New Heroes showcase the work of social entrepreneurs whose innovations are bringing electricity, water, medicine and other life-changing tools and resources to people in the developing world. Each story illustrates the results possible when an innovative idea is coupled with a strategy for action and an entrepreneur's indomitable will.
What is Social Entrepreneurship?
"Social entrepreneurs identify resources where people only see problems. They view the villagers as the solution, not the passive beneficiary. They begin with the assumption of competence and unleash resources in the communities they're serving."
David Bornstein, author of How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas
"Social entrepreneurs are not content just to give a fish or teach how to fish. They will not rest until they have revolutionized the fishing industry."
Bill Drayton, CEO, chair and founder of Ashoka
A social entrepreneur identifies and solves social problems on a large scale. Just as business entrepreneurs create and transform whole industries, social entrepreneurs act as the change agents for society, seizing opportunities others miss in order to improve systems, invent and disseminate new approaches and advance sustainable solutions that create social value.
Unlike traditional business entrepreneurs, social entrepreneurs primarily seek to generate "social value" rather than profits. And unlike the majority of non-profit organizations, their work is targeted not only towards immediate, small-scale effects, but sweeping, long-term change.
The job of a social entrepreneur is to recognize when a part of society is stuck and to provide new ways to get it unstuck. He or she finds what is not working and solves the problem by changing the system, spreading the solution and persuading entire societies to take new leaps.
Identifying and solving large-scale social problems requires a committed person with a vision and determination to persist in the face of daunting odds. Ultimately, social entrepreneurs are driven to produce measurable impact by opening up new pathways for the marginalized and disadvantaged, and unlocking society's full potential to effect social change.
The past two decades have seen an explosion of entrepreneurship and a healthy competition in the social sector, which has discovered what the business sector learned from the railroad, the stock market and the digital revolution: Nothing is as powerful as a big new idea if it is in the hands of a first class entrepreneur.
This revolution is fundamentally changing the way society organizes itself and the way we approach social problems.
The stories featured in The New Heroes showcase the work of social entrepreneurs whose innovations are bringing electricity, water, medicine and other life-changing tools and resources to people in the developing world. Each story illustrates the results possible when an innovative idea is coupled with a strategy for action and an entrepreneur's indomitable will.
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