Fourth Sector Directory

Ashoka is the global association of the world’s leading social entrepreneurs—men and women with system changing solutions for the world’s most urgent social problems. Since 1981, we have elected over 2,000 leading social entrepreneurs as Ashoka Fellows, providing them with living stipends, professional support, and access to a global network of peers in more than 60 countries.

BALLE brings together small business leaders, economic development professionals, government officials, social innovators, and community leaders to build local living economies. We provide local, state, national, and international resources to this new model of economic development.

The Gauge—Pittsburgh’s best source for business networking, professional development, and idea sharing for social entrepreneurs, ventures and investors.

Investors’ Circle is a network of over 200 angel investors, professional venture capitalists, foundations, family offices and others who are using private capital to promote the transition to a sustainable economy. Since 1992, Investors’ Circle has facilitated the flow of over $130 million into more than 200 companies and small funds addressing social and environmental issues.

Net Impact is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to make a positive impact on society by growing and strengthening a community of leaders who use business to improve the world. We offer a portfolio of programs to educate, equip, and inspire more than 10,000 members to make a tangible difference in their universities, organizations, and communities.

Social Investment Forum is the U.S. national nonprofit membership association for professionals, firms and organizations dedicated to advancing the practice and growth of socially responsible investing (SRI). Forum members support SRI through portfolio selection analysis, shareholder advocacy and community investing.

A multi-stakeholder initiative to develop and promote sustainable corporate designs. The goal of Corporation 20/20 is to create a forum of leading thinkers, practitioners and advocates; construct positive and plausible visions of the future corporate form, and translate such visions into broad-based advocacy.

The web’s most comprehensive and up-to-date information resource on state-of-the-art strategies for democratic, community-based economic development. The resources offered here include directories, breaking news, publications, and conference information, as well as cutting-edge initiatives from cities, states, community development corporations, employee-owned firms, land trusts, non-profit organizations, co-ops, universities, and much more.

The Skoll Foundation’s mission is to advance systemic change to benefit communities around the world by investing in, connecting and celebrating social entrepreneurs. The Skoll Foundation connects social entrepreneurs with key people and resources through a number of academic, business and community channels which serve to advance the work of individual entrepreneurs, as well as the field of social entrepreneurship as a whole. To further academic study and build knowledge of social entrepreneurship, the foundation launched the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship in November 2003 at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford.

CDVCA is the network for the rapidly growing field of community development venture capital (CDVC) investing. CDVC funds provide equity capital to businesses in underinvested markets, seeking market-rate financial returns, as well as the creation of good jobs, wealth, and entrepreneurial capacity.

Business Fights Poverty is the free-to-join, fast-growing, international network for professionals passionate about fighting world poverty through good business. The network connects practitioners and experts around the world to form a global community of pioneers pushing the boundaries of how business can fight poverty.

AccountAbility is a global network of leading business, public and civil institutions working to build and demonstrate the possibilities for tomorrow’s global markets and governance through thought leadership and advisory services.

We are 24 organizations working to secure a better deal for producers. From our headquarters in Bonn, Germany, we set international Fairtrade standards and support Fairtrade producers. FLO is the organization that coordinates Fairtrade labeling at an international level. From our offices, in Bonn, Germany, we: * Set international Fairtrade standards * Organize support for producers around the world * Develop global Fairtrade strategy * Promote trade justice internationally

IFAT is the International Fair Trade Association, the global network of Fair Trade Organizations (FTOs). Over 270 FTOs in 60countries form the basis of our network and membership is growing steadily. Approximately 65% of our members are based in the South (that is: Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South America) with the rest coming from North America & the Pacific Rim and Europe.

The research-based Ethisphere Institute is a leading international think-tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability. The Institute’s associated membership group, the Ethisphere Council, is a forum for business ethics that includes over 200 leading corporations, universities and institutions.

The Social Enterprise Knowledge Network (SEKN), a collaboration formed to address the need for generating social enterprise intellectual capital developed in the region itself, came about in the year 2001 through the participation of a group of leading Latin American business schools and the Harvard Business School in partnership with the AVINA Foundation.

The Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship was launched in 2003 at the Saïd Business School, Oxford University, to promote the advancement of social entrepreneurship worldwide. The mission of the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship is to be the leading global hub advancing knowledge that serves social entrepreneurs in their pursuit to achieve a more equitable, prosperous, sustainable world. This mission is carried out by

• World class graduate business education that provides students with the global vision and critical skills to contribute to an equitable society
• Research that draws upon innovative, practical approaches implemented by social entrepreneurs to address the world’s most critical problems, and Oxford’s unparalleled capacity to generate and globally disseminate knowledge about the impact of those solutions
• Connecting accomplished social entrepreneurs with partners who are essential to advance their impact, working in close collaboration with key stakeholders

The Program on Social Enterprise supports scholars, students, alumni, and practitioners interested in exploring the ways in which business skills and disciplines can be harnessed to most effectively and efficiently achieve social objectives. PSE facilitates work on nonprofit and public sector social entrepreneurship as well as initiatives in private sector social enterprise. Our activities span courses, research, conferences, and publications. In addition to these formal activities, the PSE also serves as a focal point for social enterprise-related activities at SOM, facilitating, advising, and drawing connections among students, faculty, the Yale community, and the broader network in the US and internationally of interested practitioners and institutions.

The Cleantech Group, formerly the Cleantech Venture Network, pioneered clean technology as an investment category in 2002. The company has played an influential role in the development of the category, fostering growth through critical information products, world class research and the highest caliber industry connections. The Cleantech Group is credited with originating the term cleantech, and owns it as a registered trademark. Organizations requiring specialized clean technology market insight and recommendations retain the Cleantech Group for consulting engagements that de-risk their activities and accelerate their success.

GEXSI links charitable donors, entrepreneurs and investors in funding social businesses in low-income regions around the world. We support social entrepreneurs in moving “from Aid to Market”: from charity dependence towards sustainable business. GEXSI provides social enterprises with coaching and development investment services.

WBCSD is a CEO-led, global association of some 200 companies dealing exclusively with business and sustainable development. The Council provides a platform for companies to explore sustainable development, share knowledge, experiences and best practices, and to advocate business positions on these issues in a variety of forums, working with governments, non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations.Members are drawn from more than 35 countries and 20 major industrial sectors. The Council also benefits from a global network of about 58 national and regional business councils and regional partners.

A participatory workplace for collaborative action regarding individual and corporate sustainability practices. Our mission is to harness economic power—the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society.

IABS is a learned society devoted to research and teaching about the relationships between business, government and society. On another level IABS is a community of friends and colleagues. Founded in 1990, today it has over 300 members worldwide from over one hundred universities in more than twenty countries as well as members from various corporations and not-for-profit organizations. IABS is a multidisciplinary association which attracts scholars and executives from all the disciplines of management.

Starmind is the first global know-how trading platform: Researchers, business men and people like you and me can post challenges they face for a monetary reward on Starmind, which are then solved by outstanding individuals from all over the world.