S.E.VEN Fund Mini-Grant Competition Winners Selected

Seed Grants for Innovative Projects in International Development

Innovative research adds new dimension to international development debate

November 21, 2008 – CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS— The Social Equity Venture Fund – S.E.VEN – today announced further winners of the SE.VEN Fund Mini-Grants Competition, an ongoing program that invests seed funds in innovative projects in the field of Enterprise Solutions to Poverty. The winners, selected through a competitive review process, were chosen for their entrepreneurial approaches to Enterprise Solutions to Poverty.

The Winners Are:

Kenya’s Entrepreneurship Newspaper: Target Media will develop the first national level publication focused on entrepreneurship and enterprise solutions to poverty in Kenya.

Enterprise Solutions and Conservation: Do the goals of conservation, particularly in tropical forest areas, conflict with the economic needs of local populations? This study, co-sponsored by National Geographic, is looking at the intersection of conservation and enterprise solutions to poverty in Aceh, Indonesia.

Past and Future of Enterprise Solutions in Jamaica: – This grant is supporting the development of a manuscript examining the past and future of enterprise solutions and economic development in Jamaica, with potential lessons for other island-based economies.

Promoting Pro-Innovation Values in Arab Societies– This proof of concept project is examining the role of adult education and empowerment in promoting pro-innovation values in Arab Societies, with the ultimate objective of increasing entrepreneurship and economic self-sufficiency.

The Eight Domains in African Development– This study provides a look at the Eight Domains theory, developed by Michael Fairbanks, and applies it to the current development situation in Rwanda, with broader implications for African development.

A Sustainable Enterprise Systems Approach to Solving the Problems of Potable Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries: An interdisciplinary team with expertise in chemistry and business is developing a technology/enterprise solution to a core, unmet need of the poor. Research from this project will be presented to help disseminate the findings and further encourage interdisciplinary approaches to complex problems associated with poverty.

Role Modeling and Public Health: Lessons for Enterprise Solutions to Poverty – Promoting entrepreneurship and pro-innovation values is an important foundation of building prosperity. Role modeling is one technique to do so; this research study is the first in a series to quantify the lessons of the public health field and its potential application to economic development.

Maternova – Maternova is a new web portal, that will bridge the fields of social entrepreneurship and international maternal & neonatal health. This site will organize, highlight and share innovation in order to spur more rapid development of appropriate technologies to reduce neonatal and maternal mortality in low-income countries.

Empowerment of Students Through the Entrepreneurial Approach–This project focuses on empowering students in Las Vegas, New Mexico to become future entrepreneurs through structured curricula and applied projects.  The program builds on the idea that small towns that lack healthy economies need to empower their graduating students to think outside the box and into the entrepreneurial realm to fuel growth and future career opportunities.

Top30Under30 Innovative Entrepreneurs Exhibition (InEx) – “Ideas meet capital” – Innovative Entrepreneurs’ Exhibition) is one of the major highlights of Top30Under30 Inaugural Awards (www.top30under30.com) billed for October 21-25, 2008 in Nigeria. This grant will support InEx Fellowships enabling young African entrepreneurs to meet with leading finance and investment institutions.

The Role of Universities in Building A Culture of Civic Responsibility, Interdependence, and Prosperity – This roundtable event held in Kigali, Rwanda in March 2008 focuses on laying the groundwork for higher education to play a central role in developing citizens to sustain a strong civic culture and develop the entrepreneurial skills necessary for creating a successful and equitable economy.

Documentary – This seed grant will fund the early stage development of a documentary film profiling entrepreneurs.

The S.E.VEN Fund runs its Mini-grants Competition three times annually; submissions can be made online at http://www.sevenfund.org/submit-mini-grants.php. “S.E.VEN’s mini-grants program allows us to seed-fund audacious and integrative projects in the field of Enterprise Solutions to Poverty,” says Andreas Widmer, co-founder and Director of S.E.VEN. “The mini-grants program is an important vehicle that supports innovative programs that might not otherwise be funded.”

The Mini-grants Competition was supported by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

About the S.E.VEN Fund

S.E.VEN (Social Equity Venture Fund) is a virtual non-profit entity run by entrepreneurs Michael Fairbanks and Andreas Widmer whose strategy is to markedly increase the rate of diffusion of enterprise-based solutions to poverty. We do this by targeted investment that fosters thought leadership through books, films and websites; supporting role models – whether they are entrepreneurs or innovative firms – in developing nations; and shaping a new discourse in government, the press and the academy around private-sector innovation, prosperity and progressive human values.

About the John Templeton Foundation

The John Templeton Foundation (www.templeton.org) serves as a philanthropic catalyst for discovery in the areas engaging life’s biggest questions. These questions range from explorations into the laws of nature and the universe to questions on the nature of love, gratitude, forgiveness and creativity.