Audeamus
Microfinance is not good for teens
Filed in archive Microfinance by gautam on February 5, 2010
Microfinance is not good for teens
© Sukanto Debnath
It gives us a good feeling that microfinance is reaching out to poor women but some say that the same may not apply in case of teens. A number of those related to this field feel that microfinance to teenage girls could make them more vulnerable. Since the eighties when microfinance started spreading its wings it has helped many people come out of the shadows of poverty. Ninety percent of the loans are given to women where interest rate for income generation activity can be as high as 20%.

You must be wondering how come teens are eligible for microfinance? You are absolutely correct as most of the countries do not permit contractual loan agreement with anyone under the age of 18 but despite this a few microfinance organizations still lend to teens. So this implies we have a segment of borrowers between the age of 16 and 24. Under microfinance scheme, the person participating in it has to offer some percentage of the loan as collateral and even if they manage it they are not able to repay it back or fail to pay their installments on time leading to intense pressure on them. Such kind of pressure at young age is uncalled for and definitely running business in your teens is not a child's play. As a result many of the girls tend to get into activities like prostitution, drug racket to pay back their loans since running a new business tends to be challenging and for a teenager it becomes even more difficult. This makes them vulnerable to diseases and other ills hence spoiling their future pretty early on life.

Giving loans to teenager is like committing a crime since at that age they can't distinguish between loan and grant and as most of them don't have any kind of business experience it puts them under intense pressure to pay back the loans and they end up doing things which they shouldn't be doing at an early age.

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Indian Premier League goes green
Filed in archive Go Green by gautam on January 29, 2010
Indian Premier League goes green
© B. Sandman
This game attracts billions of dollars and is watched by millions of viewers across the world. One of the biggest cricket extravaganzas in the world, Indian Premier League or IPL has decided to go green and for this purpose has entered into a tie up with United Nation Environment Program to make it happen. As a result IPL has become the first sports body in India to go carbon neutral by 2011. During every match of the season 2010, IPL will be calculating carbon footprint for each match and undertaking measures for reducing carbon emission. This would involve steps taken such as plantation of more trees, efficient usage of water and energy and eco friendly management of waste.

Since the country is cricket crazy, the league also plans to put to use its star cricketers for creating environmental awareness in India and abroad. Also environment friendly tips will be televised across the world so that people incorporate them in their lifestyle and make the world a better place to live. This can be termed as a landmark initiative as it will help in creating environmental awareness among million of cricket fans in India and across the world.

In order to cash in on the popularity of IPL, organizers will also be promoting other environmental initiatives of UNEP such as the Billion Tree Campaign, Climate Neutral Network and World Environment Day. This will be seen as a trendsetter initiative in the country since the country will also be hosting Commonwealth Games in 2010 and co-hosting ICC World Cup in 2011 and these events could be put to best use for furthering the cause of environment wellness.

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Aavishkaar: India’s First Social Venture Capital Fund
Filed in archive Social Entrepreneurs by gautam on January 21, 2010
Meet Vineet Rai, CEO of Aavishkaar, which can be termed as India's first social venture capital fund. With a corpus of just over Rs 1.65 billion, it is just a tiny drop in the Indian economy but that doesn't fetters Vineet. The social venture capital fund drawing cheers also challenges the skepticism over the prevalent idea that profit and social justice can never be combined.

Rai started working when Indian economy got into the liberalization mode and while being posted at a remote village in Orissa got first hand experience of complex structure of poverty in India. Very soon he realized that the major obstacle to livelihood generating rural enterprises in India is not the dearth of abilities but investors who are averse to taking risks. He wanted to do something to change it so he coupled with the support of business veterans and an investment of Rs 5 million started Aavishkaar.

Over the last decade Aavishkaar has invested in a number of ventures such as Vortex Engineering which is engaged in designing and manufacturing of low cost ATMs for use in remote regions, Servals Automation which creates energy solutions for the poor, Saraplast, providing mobile toilets for solving sanitation issues, Vaatsalya which is engaged in creation of rural hospitals for low income groups and Rangsutra Crafts, a company deploying a thousand textile artisans from the remote regions of India.

Conventional venture capitalists would have shied away from such ideas because the risks didn't match high potential returns and even after success of so many Aavishkaar ventures the mindset of conventional venture capitalists is still the same. Vineet Rai is also a frequent speaker at public events and his opening line at most of the events tends to be "I can't wait for the 'social' to be dropped" may sound premature but with these words he intends to convey the message that attaching the word "social" would not expand economic opportunity and social justice rather it would only happen when positive social impact gets embedded in the overwhelming majority of businesses. True words I must say!!
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Corporate Social Responsibility: It’s changing
Filed in archive CSR by gautam on January 15, 2010
Corporate Social Responsibility: It’s changing
© HowardLake
Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR is changing and definitely is changing for the better. The concept of CSR has been around since the early seventies but it entered the mainstream business a decade or earlier and its sustainability is yet another concept to be discussed.

If you look back, not much like ten or fifteen years ago then the concept of CSR was characterized by defense and response where companies received criticism for their acts and they had to explain them too.

Next we witnessed CSR being used as a tactical offense and a prospect to stay above the competition. This was followed by a brand commitment phase where companies made effort to establish bonds with their customers for driving loyalty and consumer behavior.

Next phase of Corporate Social Responsibility saw all opportunities, risks, drivers and tactics as part of company's business strategy. Now we would be witnessing a phase where the role of CSR would be to become an advocacy and public engagement organization. This implies developing a new culture which implies engaging and influencing the public by the companies in the same manner as they would form business strategies and execute them.

From here on it would be interesting to witness what turn does corporate social responsibility takes.

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Seen that? - In Focus: Naandi
Filed in archive Best of by Creative Weblogging on January 6, 2010
In Focus: Naandi Audeamus - How dare we...

Seen that? - In Focus: Naandi
In March while I was in Hyderabad, India working on documenting a project the foundation I work for is involved with, we made a number of excursions to see social entrepreneurial and social enterprise work throughout the city as well as in rural areas close by. I've already briefly profiled THRIVE, and will be profiling others when I can fit them in. Today we'll look at Naandi, a not-for-profit development [...] Read More


In Focus: Creative Capital Audeamus - How dare we...

(Photo from Creative Capital) Throughout history artists and writers have often enjoyed the patronage of aristocrats, the monied and others willing to fund their ventures. Today it seems there's little of this type of philanthropy going on. It's hard for artists and writers to support their work while also trying to support their families. Especially so in the U.S., where there is little government funding for creative types. Part-time jobs turn [...] Read More


In Focus: Literary Ventures Fund Audeamus - How dare we...

(Photo from the Edinburgh International Book Festival) Recently I profiled a venture called Creative Capital which supports creative artists by using a hybrid profit/nonprofit structure. I also happened to come across this piece over at The Literary Saloon that focuses on a similar venture, but this time specifically geared toward the literary arts called the Literary Ventures Fund. It's profiled here at the Washington Post. The Literary Ventures Fund is a [...] Read More


Finding Your Focus Business Computer Blog (UK)

© victoriapeckham

Sometimes we need to take a break from the everyday bustle and refocus. Why did we get into business in the first place? What inspired us to strike out into the unknown?

Recently I'd been going through the motions but I saw a commercial that made me stop and remember why I got into technology in the first place. You're welcome to watch the clip and read about why I [...] Read More


Is Your Life Out of Focus? Bizinformer

Do you ever loose your focus? Life gets in the way and all of a sudden your creative juices dry up, the visionary perspective becomes blurry and you have trouble just completing the everyday tasks required to trend water. How do you break free? "Time" from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon is playing in the background as I write this and it reminds me how quickly time passes. We can't [...] Read More
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