News on The Edge
Welcome to the Social Edge update! What is a social enterprise? What is (or is not) “social”? At many fora on social innovation, delegates have become quite passionate about new buzzwords. This may explain why “social investment” has become “mission related investment” and may soon become “impact investing.” Rod Schwartz wonders whether such an intense quest for definition may not in fact stifle innovation in the field. His advice: “Let’s spend our time growing the sector and leave it to future generations to decide what to call what we did.” Join the London-based CEO of ClearlySo in the conversation, keeping in mind that he has already hosted several provocative discussions on Social Edge, including Is a social economy really possible?, Do we Really Need More Money?, and of course Are The Only Innovations in Social Entrepreneurship Anglo-Saxon? Also pondering the value of definitions is Lara Vogel who asks “Who is involved in ‘defining’ this discipline? Why do we need to define it?” and Kjerstin Erickson who takes terminology to task in her most recent post: “Social entrepreneur is an oxymoron. This label is ego-flaming at best, and sector-defeating at worst.” Introducing a new term and innovative approach to driving social change is Stephen Goldsmith who explains that “real change requires more than scaling a single organization.” This led him to focus on civic entrepreneurship, which represents both the spirit of change and the spirit of community. Parag Gupta does not concentrate on definitions, but organizational structure, while Dr. O writes about a new platform that may revolutionize your fundraising process. As for Untangled: less is more! And while Jonathan C. Lewis wonders if you have “the edge to be a real social entrepreneur and bend the tools of the marketplace in the service of economic justice,” we know for sure that you have the Edge to make our community one the Best Innovation Blogs on the Web!
Join this Week's Live Discussions  Death by Definitions
Social investment, mission-related investment, or impact investing? Rod Schwartz answers: "Let’s spend our time growing the sector and leave it to future generations to decide what to call what we did." What do you think?
The Fetishization of Metrics
If the value of social entrepreneurship is not reducible to simple quantitative terms, how do we define and capture the impact we are having? Join Charles (Hipbone) Cameron in the conversation. Too Small to Fail: Debt Relief for Social Entrepreneurs
Peter Deitz wonders how we can we build debt relief into the social entrepreneurship ecosystem to ensure the growth and development of world-changing innovations, and the well-being of the social entrepreneurs behind them. Invest in Me, Take my Equity
Three social entrepreneurs (Kjerstin Erickson, Jon Gosier and Saul Garlick) are offering equity in their life’s earnings for an infusion of cash today. Should you invest in their future? Or follow their example? The Social and Commercial Two-Step
Are hybrids really innovative structures or simply stopgap measures? Join Mumbai-based Lindsay Clinton in the conversation. Is a "Social Economy" really possible?
Where are the big success stories, the social sector equivalents of Google or Facebook? Will the funding continue to flow to unsustainable, though eminently worthy, social enterprises? Join Rod Schwartz in a provocative conversation.
Do you have suggestions for Social Edge or for this newsletter? Send us feedback. Hope to see you on The Edge and on Twitter @socialedge! Victor d’Allant
Executive Director, Social Edge
250 University Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301 | 
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