The Buzz 4-13-12

Our quick read on the top tweets, news, and buzz circulating in the field of changemaking this past week. Tell us, what's got you talking? And what do you want to be talking about?

• In case you didn’t hear, we announced the Finalists for the 2012 Echoing Green Fellowship! From 3,508 to thirty-eight, approximately one percent of the applicants will come to New York for their final interviews. Forty percent plan to launch for-profits, fifty percent will launch nonprofits, and the remaining plan to launch a hybrid. Learn more about their bold ideas and send them you congratulations! http://ht.ly/ahPSs

• Jens Martin Skibsted, the founder of the Skibsted Ideation design agency, encourages his fellow designers to stop feeling sorry for Africa. By taking a patronizing approach to investing in the continent, we are undermining the people and the entrepreneurial promise that is exploding across countries. So, stop with the sweeping generalizations, engage Africans as smart customers, and watch out for competition. http://ht.ly/ahQe6

• Echoing Green’s President, Cheryl Dorsey, spoke on a panel at CGIU a few weeks ago, alongside Biz Stone, a co-Founder of Twitter, Robin Chase, the Founder of Zipcar, and Ashifi Gogo, an innovator in residence at Dartmouth. They focused on failure—both business and personal. Biz even offered that failure looks good on your resume—if you have started something and it failed, share it—your future employers will appreciate you more for it. Watch the panel for more insights: http://ht.ly/ahQm0

• Making a big career change, or starting your own business isn’t easy. How do you decide when it’s the right time to quit your day job and dive in? First, make sure you are in a financial position to do so—following a budget is one thing, not having enough money to live is another. Next, consider your timeline—how long are you going to give yourself to make the transition? The presidents of Babson College and Innovation Associates, along with Paul Brown share additional factors you need to consider: http://ht.ly/ahQAP

• Our question last week focused on what is really holding you back from what you were meant to do. At first glance, it might be money, time, family, etc., but we want you to dig deeper and think about the second greatest barrier. Because sometimes we have to get past the barriers we blame to uncover that which is really hold us back. Here’s what our community is sharing with us—add your answer, too: http://ht.ly/ahQJL

• A recent study by researchers at the University of Cincinnati found that women are more likely than men to start social ventures versus ventures just for money and even more likely to start a venture with an environmental focus. The results stem from data on different startup types on more than 10,000 individuals from fifty-two countries. The results have caused a good deal of reaction and make us wonder, why aren’t we hearing more from these women? http://ht.ly/aiRCZ

• From universities, to incubators, to accelerators, to investors you name it, people are jumping at the chance to fuel social entrepreneurship and innovative ideas. It’s great to see, since change, anywhere, requires an ecosystem of support and financing. Learn more about a few initiatives growing the sector you may not have heard of: http://ht.ly/aiRXa