Part of the secret of a success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.
         -Mark Twain

Top 5 Favorite Non-Profits

Posted: August 31st, 2008 | Author: Adrienne | Filed under: Lists | Tags: | No Comments »

As promised, I am now going to add Non-Profits to my Top 5 lists. This list will include mostly earned income NGOs, but it is certainly not limited to that model. I’m skipping some obvious ones, like Kickstart and One Laptop per Child, as they’ve already been mentioned and are kind of old (but good) news.

Top 5 Favorite Non Profits

Organization Description Innovation Where Did I Hear About Them
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. 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. Jacqueline Novogratz: TED
VisionSpring formerly Scojo Foundation 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, VisionSpring 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. Probably Acumen Fund blog, but they are fast becoming social enterprise darlings.
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. Fast Company 2007 Social Capitalist Awards
Eureka Recycling One of the nation’s largest non-profit recyclers Apparently I like to give props to Minnesota in each list- Eureka is based in St. Paul. With a holistic resource management approach that includes community educational programs, Eureka has been 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. Heartland Circle’s Thought Leader Gathering
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. Or maybe I’m just partial because I grew up on a cattle farm. DonorsChoose uses a similar model to fund classroom projects in struggling US schools. Probably the Fast Company Social Capitalist Awards again. Seriously worth the whole year subscription.