Social Enterpirse Meeting Notes 2-22-12

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Original Message --------

Subject: todays notes Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:21:24 -0500 From: elise moussa <elise . moussa @ gmail . com>

Attendees: Elise, jk @ redsunpress.com, laurie . gta @ gmail . com, eric from allston, Monica Poole, Estelle, eli , Liam, Martin Dagoberto staceycordeiro @ gmail . com, terry mollner, bill @ billcimbrelo . com, Matt Carroll , Terra Friedrichs, john ford, Ravi Mishra Rene Perez

from Elise...

I would like to thank each and every one of you for connecting, sharing ideas, your passion and desire to make our world, our community a better place. Thank you


Here are tonight's notes:

To access, please create a google account and if I missed notes, feel free to edit. Note: you need a google email account I believe to access the notes. If you can't, please see the notes below. Thank you


  • purpose of meeting

- connect - $ - how - needs

  • intros (please insert your answers into the google notes)

- who are you? - what do you want to do? - what do you bring to the table?

  • opportunities

- occupy the economy - take movement to next phase - education / using media - close waste / loopholes - beyond human capital - full system thinking - space - progressive left splinters - cultural zeitgeist - taking advantage of "the brand" - timing, widespread discontent - lack of jobs - need-survival - crisis → obviously not sustainable - co-ops are better - hope of freedom from capitalist strategy - freeing talent - edge of the earth - tech skills - web - document our experience to guide the next wave - regionalism - age of adaption - solutions to bring to the movement - grow power by sharing - freedom from tyranny - co-ops can start with little money / resources by growing together - co-creation customers - status quo no longer an option and its a matter of fact now that we have to do something different - moment has come where we no longer point to the problems but devise solutions, co-ops, social enterprises to address social problems - process of innovation and social contribution

  • challenges

- how to structure - no traditional stake - “property” - left splintered / ing

  • tasks

- educate - fine space to operate - next meeting? - find templates/case studies for successful operational models for the group to read/explore

  • Resources

- Terry will send an article about the Mondragon cooperative - lists of advice and funding shared onsite. see Social Enterprise Group page at the bottom for links. see also below

  • operational models

- models for success - everyone need separate building or desk, computers, experts

  • talent
  • list of questions for those seeking to start co-ops
  • How to get money by Terry

- most people use money from friends & family, credit cards with 0% - Boston Community Loan Fund – their job is to make loans to businesses 550 million all over the USA (Boston is one of most progressive ones) - CDFI – nonprofits set up across USA that make loans to businesses in low income areas, but now anything that creates jobs is OK for them, especially cooperatives - Terry is a founder of the Social investment $6 billion and loaned to many business only that are socially responsible companies - we must plug in to the resources that already exist - start with Boston Community Loan Fundraising - Mondragon (umbrella to 250 co-ops) makes a loan to start a business always start with a grup of people, they choose a group that gorups chooses a member to get trained to run the business for 2 years and buy enough land around the factory, they person stays for 2 years to put business together

  • what's so beautiful about what they do is no equity, 13%loan interest for first loan, second at 7% and stay with people, down to just giving money. If these fail: management, employees, capital product – they never abandon the original people so if product doesn't work out, they get a new product

- there is a ration of highest paid person (5:1) - culture of joy so they retain talent - take priority to common good, create more jobs - because the workers own the company they aren't afraid of heirarchy (note that we could use different language – hierarchy by process NOT people) - they gave priority to the social good and that's why they survived - they treasure talent rather than be threatened by that - they have their own school, university, you never get fired, when economy is bad, they send you back to school because that is a contribution to the common good - capital flow is key - note: doesn't have to be a co-operative as long as it has a priority for the common good - the millions of people around the world that paid attention to Occupy said we are ready for the next stage of human evolution → we are all in this together, giving priority to the common good it's no longer about capitalism OR socialism (at full maturity that's why people responded) - the human species is fully ready

  • there are 3 stages:

- outrage first (occupy did it in 2 months, MLK in 10 years) - unilateral action - political resolution - to get this out there, DO IT & pay attention to how you do it - just how Laurie, Liam, & Elise do it for example


  • we could also do workshops

- Culture is here, occupy is the culture - Elise mentioned social entrepreneurship and provided resources on it & suggested Boston start something like Mondragon in Boston & a pool of money for social entreprises to start in Boston - Boston Community Fund can help start a Boston Mondragon & see below for options Stacy provided for other sources of funding


  • Stacy speaks:

- ICA group does consulting & some lending - cooperative fund of new england & an equity fund - they have a lot of money that they need to get out (collaterized loans) - Chomsky says that cooperation is inescapable and fundamental in nature, and we don;t have a choice but to give priority cooperation - Ghandi: primary intentions is belief, secondary intention and behavior


  • next steps/goals for next meeting:

- to have people talk about their organizations and businesses for ten minutes like Investor Circle in two sections - one those that are ready: .i.e. Liam, Elise, others to give advice, give feedback, brainstorm - those that are ideas to start 

         o
  • Terra to take a task to find co-ops that need workers & find a way for people that what to offer something, job board


  • education platform (Elise)
  • Stacy has a list of co-ops
  • list resources of books etc, talent matching
  • facilitator for next meeting
  • Terra proposed to get conference room with investors there for people to present or a smaller workshop for co-ops/social business proposals
  • next step: to meet again in 2 weeks for us to talk about our plans or ideas for group feedback
  • set up a doodle poll or email for meeting in 2 weeks
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