Top Twelve Popular Podcasts 2018, Emily Hunt Turner, All Square

All Square is a craft grilled cheese restaurant and training institute that breaks down barriers for those with a criminal record. Note: Between now and the end of the year, we’re counting down the top twelve popular podcast interviews of 2018. It is a people’s choice award, determined by the number of downloads. This interview […]
Top Twelve Popular Podcasts 2018, Jeff Ochs, Venn Foundation

The Venn Foundation uses Program-Related Investments in surprising new ways. This week, we’re talking to Jeff Ochs of the Venn Foundation. Jeff is an experienced entrepreneur and investor. He invented and commercialized an educational party game that was licensed by Hasbro. He started a successful nonprofit, Breakthrough Twin Cities. And he was the Executive Director […]
Top Twelve Popular Podcasts 2018, Elizabeth Sarquis

Global Gaming Initiative provides a suite of tools and services to make it easier for game developers and publishers to produce and monetize games for social good. Note: Between now and the end of the year, we’re counting down the top twelve popular podcast interviews of 2018. It is a people’s choice award, determined by […]
The Power of Telling Your Secret, with Aneela Idnani Kumar, HabitAware

HabitAware makes Keen, a smart bracelet to help manage Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs). For 20 years, Aneela Idnani Kumar had a secret. She spent her life in shame and embarrassment. One day, unexpectedly, her secret came to light. This moment transformed her life, and in the process, helped thousands of others. Aneela grew up in […]
Social Entrepreneur Live, Part 2, Danielle Wojdyla, Señoras de Salsa

Señoras de Salsa makes bold, authentic Mexican salsa that generates income for Latina women. Latina women suffer from the largest pay gap of any group. According to the latest report from the US Department of Labor, the average median weekly earnings for a white man is $1,004. In that same period, white women earned $825, […]
Closing the Adult Education Gap for Employers and Employees, with Ned Zimmerman-Bence, GogyUp

GogyUp removes language barriers from the workplace. According to the most recent report from the US Department of Labor, there are currently 6.9 million job openings in the US. In the last month alone, job openings in nondurable goods manufacturing increased by more than 30,000. Businesses are finding it difficult to find qualified employees who […]
Developing Young Entrepreneurs, with Dario Otero, Youth Lens 360

Youth Lens 360 is a for-profit marketing company that works with youth. Youth Lens 360 provides visual communication, product marketing, and branding services through the lens of youth ages 14-24. Dario Otero, the founder of Youth Lens 360, has seen first-hand how the education system does not support, nurture or value entrepreneurial thinking. “I’ve found in […]
Meet the FINNOVATION Fellows, with Katrina Becker

FINNOVATION Fellows are the next wave of social entrepreneurship in the Upper Midwest. Katrina Becker has been quietly working in the background of the social entrepreneurship scene in the Twin Cities. She recently joined the FINNOVATION Lab as the Fellowship Program Manager. The FINNOVATION Fellowship is a nine-month incubator and fellowship program to support impact […]
This Social Entrepreneur is Changing the Story of Human Trafficking, with Stephanie Page, Stories Foundation

Stories Foundation is committed to resourcing the rescue and restoration of human trafficking victims through education, advocacy, and microgrants Between 600,000 and 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every year. 80% are female, and half are children. Can this story be changed? Stephanie Page thinks so. Stephanie grew up in a safe and happy […]
Find Your Funding, Part 1, Jeff Ochs, Venn Foundation

The Venn Foundation uses Program-Related Investments in surprising new ways. This week, we’re kicking off a two-part mini-series how to fund a business that does social good. We did something similar in April 2016 in a series called Founding & Fuding. In May 2017, Ned Tozun generously shared the story of how he and co-founder […]