Mike Del Ponte, center, was on his way to priesthood when he realized that the best way to create social change was through entrepreneurship, not volunteerism. So Mike founded Sparkseed, a non-profit that invests in young social entrepreneurs. In 2011 Mobilize.org acquired Sparkseed to help provide even more support to the next generation of entrepreneurs and a greater impact on social entrepreneurship overall.
You can see his latest project, SOMA, on kickstarter HERE
Leila Janah is the founder and CEO of Samasource, a social enterprise that brings dignified, computer-based work to women, youth and refugees living in poverty around the world. In February Samasource received the 2012 Secretary’s Innovation Award for the Empowerment of Women and Girls from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The $500,000 grant has enabled Samasource to expand to East Africa, bringing more digital work to women and youth. Keep on eye on Leila — she’s doing big things!
This post continues our business leaders series focused on social entrepreneurship.
Amir Hemmat is the co-founder, president and CEO of SABEResPODER (SEP), a venture funded Spanish-language media company that provides educational content as well as comprehensive and practical education solutions to the Hispanic community here in the US. SEP is a national multimedia network reaching over eight million unique consumers annually. Amir is also the founder of Catalyst Consulting, a venture management firm focused on social entrepreneurship.
