Rise Seminar – Social Enterprise – Update! This seminar is now full and therefore enrollment is CLOSED.

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7-30-2014 This seminar is now full and therefore enrollment is CLOSED. Look for announcements of upcoming trainings and seminars in the near future.

Social Enterprise Advancing Sustainable Community Development

Please join Rise as we collaborate and share information among community development professionals, bankers, investors and other engaged stakeholders to identify innovative social enterprise models that advance sustainable community development.

Under reduced federal funding support and economic challenges in neighborhoods and communities, some community development corporations are supporting enterprises or launching their own to address these issues.

One of the biggest challenges in today’s economy is the alleviation of poverty. Unemployment, lack of economic opportunities and the inability to provide for one’s needs and those of one’s family, lead to destructive consequences at the individual level and can lead to crime and armed conflict at the community level.

While the latest development theory recognizes the importance of entrepreneurship and micro-enterprise generation in combating poverty, providing employment and increasing income, in order to address poverty at the grass-roots level, community development professionals need to explore the intersection of traditional business concepts with social venturing. This training seminar aims to provide a basic understanding of social entrepreneurship that will help participants assist with putting theory into practice in a meaningful way.

Through a diverse group of guest presenters, this training seminar will examine entrepreneurship and enterprise generation as a key foundation of sustainable community development of both economic and social capital in urban core communities, as well as individual self-sufficiency and community empowerment. Its main emphasis will be the exploration of entrepreneurship with an imperative to drive social change and build sustainable ventures. Its focus will be on understanding enterprises in the context of disadvantaged communities. Information will be shared by those owning, operating and financing social enterprises so that community development professionals participating in this training seminar will gain valuable insights into fostering the development of new enterprises —– and potentially owning and operating their own enterprises within their communities.

Date: Friday, August 22, 2014 
Time: 9:30 a.m. – Noon 
Location: Thomas Dunn Learning Center, 3113 Gasconade Street, St Louis, MO 63118
RSVP Contact Brian Hurd Technical Assistance Program Manager 333-7012 (tel) or brian@risestl.org (email)  

Outcomes for Participants:

  • Understanding the role of enterprise development in poverty reduction
  • Identifying key elements to designing a successful social venture
  • Analyzing social entrepreneurship in the context of developing sustainable businesses
  • Networking with resource organizations for social enterprise development projects

Please continue to visit Rise’s website at risestl.org for updated information of confirmed speakers and other important information.