Entrepreneurs receive mentoring, education, and seed capital funding

PROVIDENCE, RI (May 3, 2010) - Social Venture Partners Rhode Island (SVPRI), a non-profit organization of social investors and change-makers, announces the first class of social entrepreneurs selected to participate in start-up acceleration in the state’s first Social Venture Incubator, the Change Accelerator.

The Change Accelerator, one of only a handful of such social enterprise incubators globally, launches on Monday, May 3, 2010 at the Rhode Island Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (RI-CIE).    The eight-week mentor-based program includes workshops on essential start-up topics, mentor matching, business plan refinement, and early-stage seed capital.  Social entrepreneurs will cap the program with a pitch of their ideas and plans to a forum of social investors.  The Change Accelerator is largely funded by the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and the Providence Chamber Foundation through a federal grant awarded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Sponsoring Partners include Brown University’s Social Innovation Initiative and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Office for Public Engagement.  Lt. Governor Elizabeth Roberts, a strong advocate for small, local business and Buy Local RI – a statewide initiative, will give the opening address to this first class of Change Accelerator participants.

“Rhode Island’s social enterprise community will benefit greatly from the wealth of resources, leadership and coordination through this exceptional endeavor,” said Chuck Holland, SVPRI Board Chairman.  “This program, which is a national model, was conceived just months ago -- at our first Social Enterprise RI Summit -- when it was clear that early-stage, mission-based businesses needed a place to grow and a support system that recognizes their unique models and structures.”

Change Accelerator is based on another successful Providence-based early-stage accelerator program, Betaspring--a twelve-week program assisting entrepreneurial teams transform themselves into functional, fundable companies by providing mentorship, kickoff funding, and immersion in an intense startup community of like-minded entrepreneurs.

Laurie White, President of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, said, “This type of program is designed to help grass-roots ideas and business models aimed at social change both here and abroad to scale fast and grow quickly. Historically, Rhode Island has been a hub of innovation and innovative business models, and it is extremely important that the private and public sectors support these ventures alongside other high-growth, high-potential industry sectors such as IT and digital media, life sciences, design. alternative energy and financial services.”

The eight Rhode Island-based Change Accelerator ventures, selected from a pool of 20 applicants, to participate in this inaugural class include:

- Bliss: provides an innovative curriculum to schools in Pakistan that enables youth to remain in school, and ultimately grow their earning potential, by earning a salary through the sales of products created in trade-driven courses.

- Capital Good Fund - Double Green Credit Builder Program- is an innovative new loan that covers the cost of purchasing and installing a programmable thermostats in households throughout Rhode Island and beyond using a green micro-entrepreneur model.

- Groundwork Trees 2020: a tree nursery that provides a hands-on training site for green jobs and enables lower cost re-greening of low-income communities.

- Little Giant Design Studio: investigates and employs innovative models in the production and sale of graphic design and contributes to the open-source solutions available to social entrepreneurs.

- Maternova: a web-based global marketplace offering best practices, tools and supplies to front-line health care workers in developing world countries to improve maternal health and infant survival.

- Smart Phone Solutions: a minority student-run business based at the Met School that is a value-added reseller for Mission Critical Wireless, providing complete end-to-end planning, implementation and support for wireless data and voice for small, medium and large companies.

- Solar Sister: empowers women and girls in Africa with solar technology and provides women with training and support to create solar micro-businesses, providing much needed household income for the women, and much needed light for their communities.

- 1000 Faces: markets apparel made in Guatemala from hand-woven and recycled materials. This venture will support "1000 faces" in the villages around Lake Attitlan, an area rich in tradition but poor economically.

About SVPRI

SVPRI is an organization of committed leaders who help Rhode Island's non-profit and social enterprise organizations become more effective and sustainable. SVPRI partners are united by a desire to make a difference in Rhode Island and a belief that leveraging our dollars with our time and expertise will maximize our impact in helping those in our community in need. Established in 2002 with the support of the Rhode Island Foundation, SVPRI is part of an international network of over 1700 partners in 24 cities and three countries who have given more than $21.6 million in cash and six times that amount in in-kind contributions to over 230 non-profit organizations.

About SERI

Social Enterprise Rhode Island (SERI) is a community-building program of Social Venture Partners Rhode Island (SVPRI ). Social enterprise, commercial endeavors that provide revenues and jobs for socially beneficial causes, is a growing force nationwide. With escalating social needs and declining charitable donations, policy makers and other leaders are adopting social enterprise as an economic development strategy. Meanwhile, university students are being trained to build and manage socially minded businesses to help solve crucial problems like food security, environment sustainability, quality education, health and wellness and disabled workforce development. Non-profits also seek non-donor-based sources of revenue that social enterprise can represent. SERI was created because SVPRI partners believe social enterprise can provide: stronger, more sustainable non-profits; community workforce development; innovative businesses that respond to social needs; opportunities for "double bottom line: investments for socially minded investors; less risk and greater returns for charitable/philanthropic investment and opportunities for local corporations to improve brand and transfer professional skills into the community.

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Media Contacts:

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , SVPRI, 734-272-6522
Andy Cutler, Cutler & Company, 401-743-7842