A social enterprise is a business that, rather than just focused on making money, tries to address a social problem.
It has a double bottom line — to be financially sustainable and to have a measurable impact on a societal issues such as poverty, health and the environment.
In this podcast, Rupert Scofield explores the challenges of starting, building and running a social enterprise. Guests include other social entrepreneurs and impact investors who share their insights and experience.
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Recent Podcasts
Episode 22: Productive Use Power for Off-Grid Communities – Andi Kleissner, Amped Innovation (42:18)
Andi Kleissner, co-founder and co-CEO of Amped Innovation, chats with Rupert Scofield about affordable energy solutions for off-grid communities. Amped Innovation is a social enterprise that designs solar-powered home energy systems and productive use appliances to help those living under $4 per day grow their wallets. This episode: How did the social enterprise get started? What is the go-to-market strategy for a hardware company? What are the unique challenges faced by a woman entrepreneur looking to raise early-stage capital?
Episode 21: Moving Smallholder Farmers into the Middle Class – Carl Jensen, Good Nature Agro (37:25)
Carl Jensen, co-founder and CEO of Good Nature Agro, chats with Rupert Scofield about agricultural solutions for smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. Good Nature Agro is a Zambian-based social enterprise that aims to grow farmer net incomes and bring smallholder families firmly into the middle class. It does so by partnering with farm families to improve their productivity through soil-enriching legume farming and links them to a high-value legume seed market. This episode: How did the social enterprise get started? What’s it like tackling the entire value chain? How do you go about developing a market?
Episode 20: Solving Problems in Global Sanitation – Andrew Foote, Sanivation (16:10)
Andrew Foote, co-founder and CEO of Sanivation, joins Rupert Scofield to chat about market-based solutions to global sanitation. Sanivation provides waste-to-energy sanitation services to local governments and refugee camps, turning fecal sludge into environmentally-friendly fuel alternatives to charcoal and firewood. This episode: How did the social enterprise get started? How is it possible to perform waste treatment in developing countries profitably? What partnerships have been key to successful growth?
About Rupert
Rupert Scofield is a social entrepreneur and an agricultural economist with over 40 years of experience in developing countries.
He is President, CEO and Co-founder of FINCA International, the founder and majority owner of 20 community-based microfinance institutions and banks across Africa, Eurasia, Latin America, the Middle East and South Asia. Rupert now leads FINCA International on the next leg of its journey: supporting the rise of social enterprises delivering basic service and financial innovation.
An expert on microfinance, social enterprise and impact investing, Rupert is an author, podcast presenter and frequent speaker, offering insights and guidance on market-based solutions to global poverty.
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From our early days focused 100% on #microfinance to our new business line of #impactinvesting, @FINCA social enterprises have provided solutions to more than just one of clients’ needs. #impinv #socent #SocialEnterpriseDay #SocentDay #WhoKnew
A Working Definition of Social Enterprise
Developing a definition of social enterprise can be difficult due to the term's evolution. Learn how FINCA International characterizes a social enterp...
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How to cultivate donor trust? Bring forth the customer-level story and impact that reinforces the shared goals between your nonprofit and the donor. And, provide key financial metrics that highlight the efficiency of your operations. (@forbes) #GlobalDev
Nine Practical Actions Nonprofits Can Implement to Increase Donor Trust
Follow these nine steps to ensure your donors feel comfortable with where their money is going, according to Forbes Nonprofit Council experts.
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How to Psychoanalyze a Twitter Feed
How to Psychoanalyze a Twitter Feed
Psychologists explore the possibility of using microblogs for psychoanalysis.
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Some great insights and resources from @FinDevGateway to help MFIs understand and get started on #digital transformation. #DigitalFinance #Microfinance #FinancialInclusion
Gateway Guide to Digital Transformation of Microfinance Institutions
Should all financial service providers climb on the digital bandwagon to stay relevant? In this Gateway Guide, we share our main take-aways from the l...
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