Feb 20
Top 5 Non-Profits
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Acumen Fund makes diverse investments to a wide array of enterprises in four categories: water, health, housing, and energy. The investments made are tailored to the specific endeavor, with everything from grants to debt to equity. Led by Jacqueline Novogratz, the approach of Acumen Fund is also very strategic; they are not just funding programs that distribute anti-malarial bednets, they are investing in a factory in Tanzania that employs several thousand to produce these nets. | ||
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Vision Spring sells inexpensive eyeglasses (manufactured in China) in rural and remote areas using local entrepreneurs. Using what some refer to as micro-franchising or micro-consignment, Vision Spring equips each “vision entrepreneur” with training and a “business in a bag”, a portable sales kit including eyeglasses, eyecharts, forms, and marketing materials. They are even using salesforce.com to create sales plans and track market saturation. | ||
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Teach for America trains recent college graduates to be teachers and places them in challenged schools for 2 years. What’s fascinating about TFA is that it has managed to place itself alongside the McKinseys and Goldman Sachs of the world as an elite new grad employer. According to an article in Fortune, 10% of seniors from both Yale and Dartmouth applied in 2006. In fact, top companies, from Accenture to Wachovia, have created partnerships with TFA to gain access to their coveted alumni. | ||
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Heifer International funds placement of heifers and other productive livestock with needy families in the developing world through charitable donations. Donating a “trio of rabbits” is way better than donating $60. Putting an adorable face and a tangible asset to these donations increases the donors connection to the project. DonorsChoose uses a similar model to fund classroom projects in struggling US schools. | ||
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With a holistic resource management approach that includes community educational programs, Eureka has been a leading non-profit recycler serving St. Paul for over 15 years. Accomplishments include event recycling where over 96% of waste is recycled or composted, curbside recycling where over 98% of materials picked up being used in new products, and a fleet of trucks that run on soybean-based bio-diesel. | ||
