The State of Social Entrepreneurship in New Jersey - Part II

Continued from the previous post ....

Social entrepreneurship exists in New Jersey but we should be supporting it better.  I don’t want New Jersey social entrepreneurship and organizations thinking about setting up in New Jersey to have to travel far for the support of their social innovation.  I am particularly concerned that there is no established network of social entrepreneurs that could help facilitate some of these conversations and support these efforts.

So I proposed to The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development that we lead the effort to create a New Jersey Social Entrepreneurship Network by collaborating with like minded individuals to host events and initiatives that raise the visibility of social entrepreneurship and social enterprise in the state.

There are several things planned for 2011 that will bring social entrepreneurs, social innovators and social business owners together to be connected to the leaders in the field, understand the current trends and develop the right connections for the establishment and growth of these ventures.

The first of these events is today at the Rutgers University Camden Campus.  

In collaboration with the Community Foundation of South Jersey and the Rutgers Camden Office of Economic Development, we created the first NJ Social Entrepreneurship Summit.   Today’s summit launches a state-wide initiative led by Rutgers University and its partners to connect resources and build support for social entrepreneurs through workshops, seminars, community-building events and online support.  In order to raise the profile of social entrepreneurship, social innovation and social business in New Jersey,  we will bring current and aspiring social entrepreneurs, supporters of social entrepreneurship, and  interested foundation program officers, social investors, and government officials together to discuss, engage, and collaborate to improve the future of New Jersey.

The goal is to create an infrastructure for social entrepreneurship to flourish in our state. The time is now!

For more information about today's summit go to http://www.communityfoundationsj.org/PublicPages/summit.aspx