Business
A Good Business for Poor People
Microfranchising poses fewer risks and offers greater benefits than does creating a new business from scratch.
Microfranchising poses fewer risks and offers greater benefits than does creating a new business from scratch.
SI.SD-MikeSpence.2010.04.15.mp3
The financial crisis started on Wall Street but continues to have a profound impact around the world. Among those affected are the poorest of the poor. In this audio interview, Stanford MBA student Joy Sun talks with Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute and a professor at Columbia University, about how the financial crisis is shaping international relations and countries' paths toward economic development.
How have some developing countries managed to overcome poverty? What kinds of economic and political decisions have led to their success? In this audio lecture Michael Spence, Nobel Memorial Prize Winner in Economic Sciences, discusses what the Commission on Growth and Development has learned about the characteristics of nations that have been able to advance economically despite the recent global financial crisis.
The unique advantages of zinc air fuel cells have been harnessed as an environmental sustainability measure to deliver reliable, renewable, and affordable electricity to rural communities off the grid. In this audio interview, Stanford Center for Social Innovation correspondent Sheela Sethuraman talks with 2009 Tech Award winner Rolf Papsdorf to find out how his company, Alternative Energy Development Corporation, combines sound economics, customer service, and social responsibility to tangibly improve the lives of people around the world.
Audrey Seagraves has a passion for international development and social enterprise. In this audio interview with Stanford Center for Social Innovation correspondent Sheela Sethuraman, the director of programs at World of Good talks about the creation of Fair Wage Guide software, a free tool that tells the viewer how wages being paid to any artisan worldwide compare to international wage standards.
The area of education is ripe for social enterprise efforts, both within and outside U.S. borders. In this audio interview with Stanford Center for Social Innovation correspondent Sheela Sethuraman, Executive Director Tomas Recart talks about what Ensena Chile is doing to create educational change in Chile using the Teach For America model. He discusses recruitment, program evaluation, and the expansion of the effort to other Latin American countries.
The future of international development may lie in the hands of children. In this audio interview with Sheela Sethuraman, Jeroo Billimoria talks about how her organization, Aflatoun, provides social and financial education to youth ages 6 to 14 in 31 countries. She discusses Aflatoun's work with partners to create and disseminate innovative curricula to mainstream schools, and its vision for continuing to empower young people over the next five years.
A critical aspect of international development and the restoration of the global economy involves fostering entrepreneurship. In this panel discussion at a conference convened by the Hoover Institute at Stanford, experts and entrepreneurs discuss what it takes to create social and educational environments in the United States and abroad that support innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit. They consider what opportunities the world crisis has opened up for major transformations in every sector of the economy.
International development is increasingly dependent on the entrepreneurship of local citizens. But has the U.S.-caused global recession robbed American business and government of the ability to persuade other countries to partake of the capitalistic entrepreneurial model? In this panel discussion, part of a conference convened by the Hoover Institute at Stanford, experts discuss the role of entrepreneurship in economic growth worldwide.