Hi,

here are two more websites that you might find helpful to find an organization for the mid-term paper:

http://www.schwabfound.org/sf/index.htm
http://www.skollfoundation.org/

I hope it helps.
Best,

Simon

KIVA working in the US

KIVA expands microlending reach to U.S. businesses

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303738504575568032575697328.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_smallbusiness

Event on Technological Innovation in Developing Countries

Tuesday October 19th
Avery Hall Room 115
11am - 100pm
Organized by Kate Orf

Prof. Smita Srinivas
"Innovation and Developing Countries: Prospects for a shared society
SUSTAINABLE FUTURES
The Earth Institute-GSAPP Joint Forum on the Built Environment

Prof. Smita Srinivas, Urban Planning and Director of the Technological
Change Lab (TCLab) Columbia University, will be speaking at the
Sustainable Futures series, a joint program between the Earth
Institute and the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and
Preservation (GSAPP). Prof. Srinivas's talk will be focusing on how a
different approach to technological innovation in developing countries
could lead us to very different economic and built outcomes for a
shared future. She will begin by discussing standard models on
innovation, alternate economic and institutional lenses to industrial
history, and will then pose an alternate view (see URL below for
paper), discussing examples and issues that professionals should
address."

Link to Paper: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1099492

UN Global Conference on Social Change

For those interested. Looks like an interesting event. I'm sure you should be able to get student discounts by contacting the organizers directly....

http://foundationchange.org/events/united-nations-global-conference-on-social-change/

Guest speakers so far

Some of you have asked for a list of the guest speakers we've had so far. Here you go:

Sept 22: Mike Kubzansky, Global Account Manager at Monitor Inclusive Markets

Sept 22: Alvaro Rodriguez Arregui, Managing Director, Ignia, and Carlos Danel, Co-CEO and Cofounder, Compartamos

Oct 6: Gautam Ivatury, Managing Director, Signal Point Partners

Nov 3: Brian Milder, Managing Director of Strategy & Innovation, Root Capital

Nov 3: Suchitra Shenoy, co-author of the Monitor report we read early in the class, now working on her book about Aravind.

Basic service provision: The economic and political limits of business solutions

One more on Compartamos

Here is the letter that Carlos Danel wrote with his co-founder to address the IPO controversy. It references the CGAP paper we read in the class and is a great articulation of their perspective on how the management team navigated strategic choices to optimize business and development imperatives.