Changing the Way that Charity Changes the World.
Chicago’s newspapers could find a lifeline to solvency and a return to social purpose in a new kind of business structure called an L3C, or low-profit limited liability company.
Why is that?
And, of course, thanks to Robert Lang of the Mary Elizabeth & Gordon B. Mannweiler Foundation for creating the concept of the L3C in the first place!It's easy to be impressed by the innovative approach, but do not dismiss this new proposal as simply a novelty that will fade away. I am very optimistic that the proponents of L3Cs have tapped into something that will experience rapid adoption once its initial roll-out phase is complete. By the end of 2010, I think we'll see some work coming out of the L3C movement that will make us ask ourselves, "Why did it take us nearly 100 years to find an alternative to the 501(c)(3) institution?"
Strap on your helmets, boys and girls. The social sector is speeding up!"The L3C is still in “proof of concept” form, but will be put to the test this year. Because the first L3Cs were formed in 2008, this means 2009 will be the first year that the concept will be tested with the IRS. Hopefully, the IRS will readily accept Foundation investments in L3Cs as valid PRIs. Steve Gunderson, CEO of the Council on Foundations, which supports the L3C approach says “we’re optimistic” that the IRS will also support this approach to PRI investing."
Per my previous post, here are the current members of the List of Change (ranked by their “score,” a composite figure based on the aggregate of their Teechnorati rank, Technorati Inbound Links, Bloglines subscriptions, Alexa rank, Google Pagerank and Yahoo Inbound Links):
Thanks to CRT/tanaka‘s Geoff Livingston for having Thanks to Stacy Caldwell at Dallas Social Venture Partners for connecting me to the Megacommunity Movement:
The megacommunity recognizes the necessity (and power) of business, government, and civil society working together on global issues.
A megacommunity is a new approach to solving problems which span business, government and the communities in which we live.
A megacommunity is:
A megacommunity is not:
The objective for each organization operating in a megacommunity is achieved by optimizing its interests instead of maximizing, all participants gain. Best of all, operating in a megacommunity is not a zero-sum game
The Critical Elements of a Megacommunity
There are five critical elements. The first two, tri-sector engagement and an overlap of vital interests, can be thought of as preconditions.
The other three elements, convergence, structure, and adaptability, are critical features of the megacommunity design. An initiative that takes them into account has a far greater chance of success than an initiative that ignores them.
Click to learn more about my first children's book, which explains incarceration to children with a parent in prison. You can also buy the book on Amazon here.
Click to learn more about the children's book I created for the North Texas Food Bank, which explains food insecurity to children who want to help others. Rather than emphasizing charity, the book integrates a participatory model that demonstrates how to engage those who suffer from hunger in co-creating an equitable community solution to it.
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