Money has been accused of a lot of things over the years, most of them not very pretty. Part of the reason I sold my soul and went to business school after a few years of community organizing was that I recognized the fundamental role money has played in making the world the way it is. I figured if you want to change the world, best to understand one of the most powerful forces shaping it.
What I learned is that money is just a tool, and the root of all evil can sprout more benevolent blossoms. In the hands of a Hub member, for instance, money becomes an accelerator of social change. Here at the Hub we like social change, so we’re offering a workshop designed to get more money in the hands of people like you.
Next Tuesday (July 20), New Resource Bank founder Peter Liu has graciously offered to teach a workshop to Hub members and other green/social entrepreneurs about best practices for raising capital. Peter raised a total of $25M to launch New Resource Bank in 2006, which is one of the largest-ever initial capitalizations for a new bank in Northern California. He serves on several non-profit and foundation boards and was on the clean technology investment advisory boards of the California Public Employees Retirement System. In this interactive workshop, Peter will draw from his extensive experience as an investor and entrepreneur who has raised money from friends and family, angel investors, VCs and banks, to help you figure out when, how, and from whom you are most likely to be successful in finding funding.
Alternatively, if you find yourself on the other side of the spectrum with money to invest, check out Timothy Yee of Green Retirement Plans and Geoff Ashton of Calvert Investments during a brown bag lunch this Friday on using your investments to influence corporate America.
It’s all about the money, people. The sooner we recognize that, the sooner we can focus on the more important things in life.
On Friday, don’t miss a Brown Bag lunch with Jean Russell, curator of Thrivability: A Collaborative Sketch (
