The Buzz 3-11-11

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Here's our quick read on the top tweets, news, and buzz circulating in the field of social entrepreneurship and changemaking this week. What's got you talking?

• Far and away, the biggest buzz this week came from Jim Fruchterman’s article, For Love or Lucre, in the most recent Stanford Social Innovation Review. Fruchterman, founder of Benetech, walks you through the essential questions you need to ask yourself to help determine if your social enterprise should be a for-profit, a non-profit, or something in between. If you haven’t read it by now, you’re definitely missing out: http://ht.ly/4dYOx

• The other buzz-worthy news this week came from IDEO, the innovative design firm behind your computer mouse. They announced the launch of IDEO.org, the nonprofit arm that will focus on human centered design for the social sector. They also announced a new 11-month fellowship to bring together leaders in design, business, and social impact with their senior IDEO designers to focus on some serious poverty alleviation issues. We can’t wait to see what happens. http://ht.ly/4e2nU

• What would happen for our future if we taught our students to become learning entrepreneurs? If we taught them to be flexible and nimble, equipped with the mindset that they were the managers of their own learning? What if we created an environment that that that encouraged them to believe that learning was all around them, not just the next exam around the corner. We are owners of our companies, why not of our learning: http://ht.ly/4dYoq

• GIIN recently introduced Impact Base—an online, searchable database of current impact investing funds. Whether you’re looking for funding, or starting your own fund, this definitely a resource to bookmark and check often: http://ht.ly/4dYUd

• Two big honors for Echoing Green Fellows this past week: 2008 Fellow, David del Ser was named a World Economic Forum 2011 Young Global Leader and Fellows Cheryl L. Dorsey, Wendy Kopp, and Malika Saada Saar were named  by Newsweek as one of the 150 Women Who Shake the World.

So many places around the world are facing upheaval and hardship. We are reminded over and over again how much we are all connected and how much we can all do for each other. Our hearts and minds are with the people of Japan this week.

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