New Frontiers: Redefining Service for the 21st Century:
This year’s theme highlights the emerging trends in social enterprise that benefit society throughout the public, private, social, and non-profit means. Over the last decade, the word “service” has become multi-dimensional, stretching beyond basic volunteering to encompass fields like micro-financing and corporate social responsibility, among others.
Date: February 27-28, 2010 Location: Harvard Business School, Cambridge, MA Price range: $40 - $110 depending on student status and Harvard affiliation Register
Social Venture Capital/Social Enterprise Conference, Miami-2010 will be your best opportunity in 2010 to learn, network, and connect with hundreds of top social enterprise/financial leaders and organizations from Latin America, the Caribbean, and the state of Florida- in addition to organizations worldwide which have an interest in expanding to the region.
Date: Mar 17-19, 2010 Location:Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami, Fl Price Range: $179 to $545 depending on whether you are a student, in an NGO/Government or book early. Agenda (subject to change): Day 1Day 2Day 3
Bonus: Pete Haas, our ED, will be speaking on a panel.
The non-profit TED has selected AIDG’s Executive Director Peter Haas as one of 20 inaugural Senior Fellows. The TED Senior Fellows program is designed to bring together young world-changers and trailblazers from the arts, science, entrepreneurship, the NGO sector and education. As part of its commitment to TED, AIDG will be launching an exciting new initiative in our technology research and development program in 2010 that will transform our ability to do research with local and university partners. We’ll be able to share more details next year.
Two of our favorite bloggers Erik Hersman (Co-founder of Ushahidi.com; blogger, AfriGadget and White African) and Juliana Rotich (Co-founder, Ushahidi.com; blogger, Afromusing and Global Voices) are also 2010 senior Fellows.
Erik Hersman of Afrigadget documents low-tech entrepreneurialism in Africa. Specifically he looks at ingenuity born of necessity, “tech that keeps economies on life support”. Raised in Sudan (until the war got bad), Kenya, and then again Sudan, he’s a bit of a tech anthropologist searching for Africans solutions to African problems.
From wikipedia
Ushahidi (Kiswahili for “testimony” or “witness”) was a website created in the aftermath of Kenya’s disputed 2007 presidential election that collected eyewitness reports of violence sent in by email and text-message and placed them on a Google map. It is also the name of the open source software developed for that site, which has since been improved, released freely, and used for a number of similar projects.
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The software has since been used to track violence in Congo and pharmacy stockouts in Uganda, Kenya, Zambia, and Malawi, and monitor elections in Mexico and India, among other projects. It was also used by Al Jazeera to collect eyewitness reports during the 2008-2009 Gaza War.
In addition to Pete, Eric and Juliana, here are the 17 other fellows:
Taghi Amirani (Iran/UK) - Documentary filmmaker, Amirani Films
Rachel Armstrong (UK) - Teaching fellow, The Bartlett School of Architecture; physician; science-fiction author
Frederick Balagadde (Uganda/US) - Research scientist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; co-inventor of the microchemostat, a medical diagnostic chip
April Karen Baptiste (Trinidad) - Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Colgate University
After months of competition, over 30 hours of business development training, and endless hours of practicing business pitches on October 24, 2009 six talented teams presented their business plan proposals in the final phase of AIDG’s business plan competition: GuateVerde 2009.
Needless to say, with such strong competitors and outstanding presentations, choosing a winner was not easy but it is with great pleasure that AIDG announces this year’s GuateVerde winner, Quetsol.
Quetsol is a new business that will provide high efficiency, low cost solar technologies that aim to increase access to basic illumination, electricity generation, and water pumping in Guatemala. Their mission is to help their clients save money and improve their quality of life through the use of appropriate technology.
Who are Quetsol?
Quetsol’s Director of Technology and Finance, Manuel Aguilar, holds a Master’s Degree in astrophysics and a Bachelor’s Degree in astrophysics and physics from Harvard University. His work experience includes founding and managing a global-macro hedge fund, working as a quantitative analyst for a private equity group, as well as significant astrophysics research.
Director of Marketing and Sales Juan Rodriguez has a Business Administration degree from the Universidad Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala City with an emphasis in finance and marketing. For the past four years, he had worked as a marketing manager for Proctor & Gamble Interamericas and formally owned and managed his own advertising agency.
The third member of the Quetsol team is Matthew King, their Director of Logistics and Operations. Mr. King is a recent graduate of Harvard University with a Bachelor’s degree in the Comparative Study of Religion. His studies have also taken him to Cuba, via the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, and Japan. His work experience includes solar photovoltaic and biodigestor installations in Nicaragua, appropriate infrastructure development advocacy in Brazil, and activism against deforestation in California.
Manuel Antonio Aguilar and Juan Fermín Rodríguez
Samples of Quetsol’s proposed product line
AIDG is greatly looking forward to working with this talented team and continuing in our mission to increase access to basic energy through local business support. Congratulations to Quetsol and thank you to all the staff, volunteers, reviewers, judges and supporters who made GuateVerde 2009 a huge success!
GuateVerde 2009 Judges: Ing. Saúl Santos, Dr. Dennis Rodas, Ruth Degolia, Peter Haas, Cat Lainé, Lic. Juan Molina
Pete Haas just made an interesting post on starting a small international NGO over at the TED Fellows Blog. Here is a snipit:
Entrepreneurs or Idiots?
Don’t let the social overtake the enterprise.
“Fortunately if you are starting a new program abroad you don’t need to be an idiot like I was. Here are ten “rules” of starting an international service organization that would have helped me if I had known them a few years ago, and maybe can help you. To anybody running an organization they may seem obvious but it is amazing how many early stage entrepreneurs ignore them while focussed on the mission of trying to just get the school built, the pollution reduced, the farm running, etc. With these rules maybe you can start an enterprise that is as much enterprise as social.
Rule number 1: Don’t start a new organization
There are literally millions of established organizations globally that are in need of support. Before you start something new ask yourself: “What can I do to help something that is already here become more effective?” There are several programs I know of now that if I had learned about them earlier and applied to a management position it could have likely saved me a few years of getting my program running.
Rule number 2: Clearly define what you do and stick with it
So in the face of massive unmet need there is always the temptation to run the feeding-housing-water-sanitation-ecotourism-renewable energy-child education-dolphin saving program. But unless you are say putting up a millennium village presenting this type of program to funders can be a tough sell. To draw an example from my experience at AIDG donors may not see the clear link between a program in say ecotourism and a program in say light industrial fabrication. Don’t be a swiss army knife. Do one or two things well . . . ”
Clinton talk, push SME development, need to build out airport in Cap, need to build roads, Haiti turning corner, IS more stable 3:16 PM Oct 1st
One group in small solar systems saw seven fold slaes increase from 100K USD to 700K USD this past year. 2:25 PM Oct 1st
In group deal meetings on the energy sector. Saw several applicants that were matches for E+Co. Including one from our konkou in biodiesel 2:23 PM Oct 1st
It is essential that Haiti`s political class works in spirit of cooperation to smooth over bueracratic processes and form favorable climate 7:51 AM Oct 1st
Canada believes development of SME should be foundation of economic growth. Launched Haiti markets program.7:48 AM Oct 1st
Amb. Canada: Haiti second largest investment partner for CA, after afghanastan. 555 mil CAD invested. At forefront of debt reduction. 7:47 AM Oct 1st
IDB value added TAS (technical assistance) roughly 400K in Haiti. Future oncentrate on infrastructure, agirculture, managirial training SME 7:39 AM Oct 1st
IDB MIF (microentreprenuer investent fund) 6.8 million dollar portfolio in Haiti. 7:35 AM Oct 1st
Exports currently only 12% of GDP, has protections and favorable regimes with the US. IDB invests in road, electric, ag, watsan, tourism, ed 7:33 AM Oct 1st
Steven Puig, Q:why haiti why now? A: It is about Haiti`s growing possitive trajectory. 7:29 AM Oct 1st
The panel for the IDB needs a moderator. The monologues are going too long. 7:25 AM Oct 1st
strong new protections for international investors to encourage investment tax breaks, need to create conditions 4 productive investment 7:13 AM Oct 1st
Minister of commerce, we are ready to accept investment.7:04 AM Oct 1st
Haiti`s PM: Jobs and economic development are a priority of the Haitian Government, foreign investors must work with local entreprenuers 7:03 AM Oct 1st
Haiti`s PM opened strong: need to remove negative media image, move away from aid and into job creation, build roads, make investent 7:01 AM Oct 1st
At IDB international Business meeting in Haiti. Waiting for President Clinton, Prime Minister Pierre-Louis to speak. 6:09 AM Oct 1st
PCH on his way to Port-au-Prince today for a Haiti conference put on by the InterAmerican Development Bank 6:51 AM Sep 30th
At Clinton Global Initiative last month, we recieved an invitation to attend the Inter American Development Bank meeting on investment in Haiti. Here are a few clips from the event in Port au Prince. Overall the meeting held a high level of optimism for development both of job growth and infrastructure within Haiti. Let us hope, as UN special envoy Clinton says in the following clips, that we can move beyond just having discussions and into partnerships that hold tangible results for the Haitian people.
Bill Clinton honors AIDG along with Fonkoze, Partners in Health, BRAC, Jacob Fruitfield Food Group, Habitat for Humanity International, Green Family Foundation, Sunnight Solar, International Action, Micronutrient Initiative, and James Lee Witt Associates for outstanding work in Haiti.
In 2009, AIDG became a member of the Clinton Global Initiative. CGI, created by Former President Bill Clinton in 2005, is a non-partisan organization that brings together global leaders from the public and private sectors as well as civil society to discuss challenges facing the world today. But CGI is not all talk. There is a very strong focus on action. Members of the initiative are called on to devise and implement innovative solutions to these challenges. The initiative culminates in a yearly conference where each member must make a specific commitment with measurable results and success metrics that will address one or more of CGI’s focus areas for that year. CGI staff then monitors the progress and success of these commitments throughout the year.
2009 CGI Action Areas
Harnessing Innovation
Strengthening Infrastructure
Building Human Capital
Financing an Equitable Future
Here is AIDG’s commitment that was selected for presentation during the plenary:
Over the next 5 years AIDG will scale its business incubation services to create 25 new infrastructure development enterprises for underserved communities. These enterprises will aid a combined population of over 200,000 people, bringing water, sanitation, energy and other desperately needed services. From $1.25 million in initial investment, these entrepreneurs will generate $5 million per year in economic activity and will help bring basic services to struggling communities.
The Omidyar Network announced a three-year, $30 million commitment to support global entrepreneurship, especially in India and Sub-Saharan Africa. Their investment into emerging market entrepreneurship seeks to ignite innovation and foster a more entrepreneurial culture within these countries. Omidyar Network focuses on high-impact entrepreneurs, those with a proven business model and the ability to scale their operations to serve hundreds of thousand or millions living at the base of the pyramid.
Today at the opening plenary of the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting, Water.org co-founders Matt Damon and Gary White announced the organization’s $2 million commitment to provide 50,000 people in Haiti with safe water and sanitation over the next three years.
And now for something a little different: a president chaser.
The Parade of Presidents
It’s UN Week in NYC, so the heads of state were out in full force at Day 1 of the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting.
[FYI: Videos were recorded with a Flip Mino and uploaded with FlipShare. It erodes the quality quite a bit. If we get more video today, I’ll see if I can upload it in HD. ]
Six entrepreneurs with ideas on how to promote renewable energy and sanitation in
Guatemala have proceeded to the semi-finals of GuateVerde, AIDG's 2nd business plan competition in Latin America and the Caribbean. These semi-finalists will compete for up to $50,000 in grants and small-business financing. The winners will be announced November 24, 2009.
Flowercin
FLOWERCIN (FLOWER, CREATIVITY & INNOVATION) is a young team that has previously been recognized by Technoserve. Their idea is to process the organic waste generated in the municipal market and slaughterhouse in Solola to reduce pollution of Lago Atitlan.
Quetsol
Quetsol is a new company that provides high
efficiency, low cost solar solutions to meet their customers' basic energy needs. Their mission is to help their clients save money and improve their quality of life through the use of appropriate technology.
Sistemas Electricos
Sistemas Electricos started in 1984 as an energy consultancy. They want to perform energy audits for Guatemalan companies and organizations as well as design strategies to help their clientele to use their resources more effectively and sustainably.
SET Renova
SET Renova provides effective and affordable energy solutions for families, businesses and industries in Guatemala. They aim to be a leading provider of low-cost renewable technologies in the country, thus promoting sustainable development. Their main products are solar thermal units, solar water heaters, and solar panels.
Reciclaje PET
Reciclaje PET wants to tackle the massive plastic waste problem in Guatemala by recycling the PET plastic packaging material most commonly seen in soda or water bottles into household items such as brooms.
Ingecofun
Ingecofun, our 6th and final semi-finalist, is also interested in plastics recycling. They want to provide farmers and large landownders with a recycled plastic alternative to wood for fencing and enclosing their properties.
AIDG has received the tremendous honor of being invited to attend the Clinton Global Initiative Meeting this week (9/22-9/25) in New York as a commitment member.
The CGI Annual Meeting brings together a diverse group of the world’s most distinguished leaders from government, business, and civil society to examine today’s most pressing global challenges and transform that awareness into tangible action.
Peter Haas, our executive director, will be posting to our Twitter and blog throughout the week. Check back for the latest updates and posts as the conference progresses.
