Social Entrepreneurship in the Greater Philadelphia Region

Convened by Delaware Valley Grantmakers in partnership with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, this event brought together a cross-section of community representatives -- from funders to software developers -- to discuss the potential for Philadelphia to define itself as the hub for social entrepreneurship and urban renewal.

Featured speakers were:

• Cheryl Dorsey, President of Echoing Green, a nonprofit organization dedicated to seeding sustainable social change organizations; and
• Christopher Wink, co-founder and full-time partner with Technically Media and a leading contributor to Technically Philly, a news site that covers the trends, developments and events around the region's growing technology community.

RESOURCE LINKS:

• Chris Wink's blog post that jump-started the converation (12/19/11):
  Social entrepreneurship: how Philadelphia could have a regional distinction for startups 
  
• 3/28/12 Social Entrepreneurship in Greater Philadelphia:
  - Discussion Notes
  - Presentation by Chris Wink
  
• Commentary on Technically Philly by Chris Wink (4/1/12):
  Philadelphia should own social entrepreneurship: presentation for Knight Foundation, others 
  

  7 Steps to Make Philadelphia Closer To Being a Hub for Social Entrepreneurship

• Blog post on Generocity by Dave Raible, Executive Director (5/31/12):
  Good News, Philly Has More Problems Than Other Cities

• Article: Best Places for Entrepreneurs (3/27/12)

• Carnegie Mellon University Report:  Creating Seedbeds for Social Innovation 

• Civic Innovations blog post by Mark Headd (4/3/12):
  Great Cities and the Shadow of Teotihuacan

• Echoing Green 2012 Fellowship Finalists

• Harvard Business Review blog post by Daniel Isenberg (6/5/12):
  Planting Entrepreneurial Innovation in Inner Cities

• Blog post by Christopher Wink (6/22/12):
  Social entrepreneurship education for angel investors: ‘All entrepreneurship has social impact'

• Harvard Business Review blog post by Lara Galinsky (7/19/12)
  Not Everyone Should Be a Social Entrepreneur

• Flying Kite article (8/16/12):
  Triple Threat: Three Philly Social Entrepreneurs to Watch

• Generocity article (3/14/13)
  Can Social Entrepreneurship Become Philly’s Calling Card? A Q&A with Garrett Melby of GoodCompany Group
  

Arts Funders: Conversations on Capitalization and Community

Based on the national conversation launched by Grantmakers in the Arts in 2010, Conversations on Capitalization and Community is an initiative designed to en­gage local arts funders in a dialogue on what this work means in Philadelphia and the region. This one-day workshop provided information on trends of the cultural ecology in Philadelphia and presented a framework for arts funders to think about capitalization in the context of their overall grantmaking.

Featured speakers:

• Liz Curtis, President and CEO, TDC (Boston)
• Rodney Christopher, Vice President, Consulting Services, Nonprofit Finance Fund (New York)

RESOURCE LINKS:

• Nonprofit Finance Fund:  Change Capital in Action: Lessons from Leading Arts Institutions  (April 2013)
  
• Nonprofit Finance Fund:  The Case for Change Capital in the Arts
• Grantmakers in the Arts:  National Capitalization 2010 Project Summary
• GIA National Capitalization Project Page
• Set in Stone: Building America's New Generation of Arts Facilities, 1994-2008
  Published by the Cultural Policy Center at the University of Chicago (June 2012)