Written by:
9/1/2010 8:06 PM 

Social entrepreneurship is a fast-growing career field. With the growth of green consciousnesses all over the planet, it is no surprise that some of these innovators are making quite the profit while simultaneously bettering our social environment. Oil spills, war and combat, and a failing economy riddle our news media on a daily basis; it's time for some good news--some stuff that will make us proud to be human.

Here are five companies that are changing the world…for the better.

1. ACCION International: "Helping millions help themselves," ACCION is the leader in the fight against poverty by evolving into a micro-lending genius. Instead of providing the poor with "charity" money, as CEO Maria Otero scoffs, ACCION provides the less fortunate with business training and education in order to teach them how to make and keep making money, eventually garnering the ability to lift themselves out of poverty. ACCION issued its first loan in Brazil in 1973 after getting its feet wet in 1961, and now gives assistance to poor citizens of Asia, Africa, Latin America, as well as the United States. Ku-dos!

 2. Aspire Public Schools: Education in the U.S. has long been a focal point of disappointment in the eyes of the country. With statistics showing more and more kids opting out of college and even high school, many are concerned that our country's growth and ability to compete with other tycoons will eventually become stagnant due tp the level of failure. Aspire has accomplished amazing feats in some of California's roughest neighborhoods; they've built high-quality public charter schools in Oakland, Modesto, East Palo Alto, Los Angeles, Sacramento, and Stockton, serving over 6,000 students in low-income communities. Their academic rankings continue to blow other institutions out of the water, as their mindset of "College for Certain" is working: as of June 2007, 99% of students who graduated from Aspire schools matriculated into colleges and universities like UNLV, Columbia University, and UC Berkeley.

 3. City Year: "Give a year. Change the world." A member of AmeriCorps, City Year has expanded from a 50-person experimental year in 1988 to an 18-location service powerhouse, completing over 16 million hours of service. City Year students take on roles of mentors, tutors, and role models by working with children and at-risk communities in Johannesburg, South Africa and London, England, as well as across the United States. Not only are City Year participants changing the world one at-risk child/school/community at a time, they are simultaneously garnering life skills in civic leadership and philanthropy that will serve their own goals throughout their lives. An all-around accomplishment, City Year projects that this year's 1,400 participants will log over 2.4 million service hours in hopes of keeping kids "in school and on track."

 4. Common Ground: Sometimes people just have bad luck; ordinary people with extraordinary ability who got dealt a rotten hand and wind up homeless are Common Ground's target recipients. Their mission "is to END homelessness." With an affordable "supportive housing" strategy, tenants usually take advantage of Common Ground for about 5 years. Within supportive housing, tenants receive medical and mental health services, skills training and employment opportunities, substance abuse counseling, and quality of life services; computer, cooking, and exercise classes. Their approach has reduced homelessness in NYC's 20-block Times Square area by 87%, an astonishing result.

 5. Endeavor Global: these guys are the ones behind entrepreneurs; they fund, encourage, and support high-impact entrepreneurs in order to act as a catalyst in creating jobs and helping money come into high-need communities all over the globe. How are they doing this? "Endeavor identifies entrepreneurs through a rigorous search and selection process. Working through a network of local business leaders, we identify and screen a large number of entrepreneurs leading high-growth innovative companies. Four times a year, international panels of experienced business people elect a new class of Endeavor Entrepreneurs based on the following criteria: innovation, initiative, role model potential, values and ethics, and development impact. Entrepreneurs who are selected receive customized services and access to a world-class global network." How's that for promoting a business-minded philanthropist? 

 These companies and individuals are amazing at what they do, and extremely good at getting people involved. Click the hyperlinks. Browse their sites; see how you can help fuel the change.

Anna Forge is a guest blogger for My Dog Ate My Blog and a writer on online schools for Guide to Online Schools.

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Tags: Socially Conscious Companies , Changing the World

Categories: Business First

Location: Blogs ISMagazine.com

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