Social Goodies

Note: This article was recently published in Green Home & Family magazine and is posted here with their permission.

Prof. Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank

He’s a Nobel Laureate, a recent recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and a past guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show. But Muhammad Yunus is not a household name. At least not yet.

But that may change as California State University Channel Islands launches a new program they’re calling the California Institute for Social Business (CISB).

The proposed program would introduce students to the concept of Social Business – something that Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank, helped pioneer in the late 70s through a program you probably have heard of: micro-credit. His work over the past 30 years has impacted over 10 million Bangladeshi citizens. And, his model is replicated in the poorest regions of every country in the world.

As luck would have it, the California Institute for Social Business is being developed in collaboration with Professor Yunus and Grameen Bank. A fact that is sure to bring a huge amount of attention to CSUCI and my corner of the world (Ventura County, CA).

So what’s a Social Business?

The simple answer is that it’s a venture that seeks to advance a social mission through entrepreneurial, earned income strategies — but not where those strategies would profit investors or individuals. Like a nonprofit organization, those revenues are reinvested into the business for further development of the mission.

Other practices of a Social Business include an eye toward:

• + Financial and economic sustainability
• + Environmental consciousness
• + Living and market wages with better working conditions for employees

Dr. Yunus visited the Channel Islands campus this past May to meet with faculty and lay the groundwork for the Institute, and will return this Spring at an event to formally launch the CISB. The event will include a campus-wide reading of Dr. Yunus’ book, “Creating a World Without Poverty.”  (Those interested in sponsoring this event, should get in touch with Julia Wilson at CSUCI.)

I spoke with Dr. Ashish Vaidya, Dean of Faculty at CSU Channel Islands recently about the CISB and he was very enthusiastic about the new program:

“This is a real opportunity to have both our students and faculty explore the concepts of social business in both a local and global context.” Dr. Vaidya said. “CSUCI has always emphasized innovation and interdisciplinary work in its academic programs, and the notion of using business practices to address social goals aligns well with our values and mission.”

The CISB has some big plans which will include courses for both undergraduate and MBA students as well as an International Social Business Plan competition. It’s hoped that the students themselves will get involved in developing and launching a social business – either here in the U.S. or abroad.

Green Home & Family magazine and my company, Social Good Consulting, are proud to support this new venture through the development of a scholarship fund specifically for undergraduate students looking for a career in Social Business after college.

The First Annual Emerald Awards slated for early next year is a project that will benefit, in part, that scholarship fund. It’s an event we hope will draw wide attention to the heroes in Ventura County -– in business, education, and the community – who are driving the creation of a better world for us all.

Interested in learning more about this topic?  Leave a comment or question below and we’ll make sure you get the information you need.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.