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Gobal endorsements of social entrepreneurship


By Karen Coppock - Posted on 15 October 2006

The Norwegian Nobel Committee and the MacArthur Fellows' Selection Commitee selected three social entrepreneurs as award winners this year. The Nobel Peace Prize was given to Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank and MacArthur Fellowships were awarded to Jim Fruchterman (Benetech) and Victoria Hale (Institute for OneWorld Health).

The three social entrepreneurs represent distinct fields: microfinance (Yunus/Grameen), health (Hale/OneWorld) and technology (Fruchteran/Benetech). They have challenged and overturned traditional assumptions about the poor's creditworthiness, the financial viability of developing cures for illnesses common in developing world countries, and the concept of value creation. These entrepreneurs measure both financial, as well as social, return on investment, allowing them to create viable business models where others could not.

The Nobel and MacArthur prizes are an endorsement of these social entrepreneurship pioneers and hopefully will lead to wider recognition of the value and impact of social entrepreneurs around the world.

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Gerard Rego's picture

Karen:

This is a very good example of what is emerging in terms of business models to serve communities and consumers. These models are sustainable and scaleable which are critical and these awards are just the beginning I am sure to what will become the role models for opportunities.

Gerard

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