Impact Ecosystem Collective - Social Enterprise MSP

Impact Ecosystem Collective

About the Collective

The Impact Ecosystem Collective (IEC) is a series of gatherings supported by the Bush Foundation that builds upon research done by Halcyon Incubator and support from Forge North, the Bush Foundation, and the McKnight Foundation. Community members interested and invested in social impact learn about local social enterprises, and use their collective resources to further the work being done across six impact areas. We will meet six (6) times in person over the course of 2024, with several additional virtual gatherings, and each gathering will highlight one of the impact areas as a theme for our conversation.

Collective Convening
Overview & Calendar

Goals

The main goals of the IEC are for participants to…

Develop partnerships with new connections to further social and environmental impact in our community.
Support and learn more about local social enterprises addressing systemic challenges through tours, panel discussions, and interacting with featured social enterprises.
Build awareness of resources, innovations, support organizations, challenges and opportunities within the impact ecosystem.
Actively engage in collaborative efforts to bolster new and existing initiatives that promote an equitable social economy.

Get Involved

Attend an upcoming IEC gathering

Participants are social entrepreneurs, entrepreneur service providers, educators, and community members who want to leverage collaboration to address complex systems that impact their work and personal lives.

Host a gathering at your space

You would be a great fit if:

Your work supports one or more impact areas.
You are a social enterprise with a great space, and want to share your story; OR
You have a great space and want to help showcase several social enterprises who may not have space to host, but have amazing stories to tell.

Feature your social enterprise

Social enterprises whose work supports the impact area theme are invited to showcase their goods and services.
Opportunities for goods and services to be sponsored for participants to win or try.
Possibility of speaking on a panel.

Sponsor local social enterprises

These gatherings are a way for us to learn from each other, collaborate, and gain awareness of social enterprises using business to address social and environmental challenges. We aim to source as much as we can for these gatherings from social enterprises, and sponsorship dollars help purchase goods and services directly from featured businesses to allow participants to experience them during and after the session.

Email Maggie at maggie.miland@socialenterprisemsp.org to express your interest in being a sponsor, a host, or featured social enterprise at one of our next gatherings.

Impact Area Descriptions

Environment & Consumption:

Social enterprises focusing on solving environmental challenges, and changing either the materials being used in commercial goods, or behaviors associated with consumption.

Economic Development:

Social enterprises working to bring about sustained wealth of individuals, a community, or society at large where injustice and inequity has previously disadvantaged members of the community.

Poverty & Homelessness:

Social enterprises using business as means to address poverty and support people experiencing homelessness or systems that are perpetuating poverty and homelessness.

Gender Equality & Human Rights:

Social enterprises whose initiatives uplift marginalized groups of people who have experienced inequity due to their gender, race, sexuality, ethnicity, religion, and/or ability.

Youth & Education:

Social enterprises and organizations that focus on education and equipping the next generation to be socially and environmentally-conscious leaders

Food & Health:

Social enterprises addressing social or environmental challenges through food and health-based products and/or services.