Do Well by Doing Good - WPI Venture Forum Program December 14, 2010

All entrepreneurs believe their idea and their business will change the future. Social entrepreneurs want their ideas to change the world, and they are establishing and changing organizations in growing numbers to effect sustainable social improvement--doing well by doing good. At the December 14 WPI Venture Forum meeting, keynote speaker John R. Whitman, PhD, lecturer in entrepreneurship at the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College, will address the "triple bottom line" that social entrepreneurs work to impact beyond the financial measures many companies focus on -- expanded measures of how organizational success affects people, our planet and profits.

The case presentation will be Waste2Watts, a company that creates innovative products to meet the growing energy demands of the developing world. Based in Atlanta, the company recycles electronic waste produced by the global economy into a low-cost alternative to back-up power supplies. Their initial product, the Cell Saver, uses recycled computer components and old lead acid batteries to generate power during the frequent power outages experienced in developing countries. The company won second prize in the Dell Social Innovation Prize competition and Georgia Tech's GreenGuard Sustainability Award.

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