Reviewing 77 entries from around the country, judges representing a mix of venture capitalists, social venture investors and entrepreneurs determined the finalists in the first annual National Social Venture Competition. The competition, a partnership between Columbia Business School, the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Goldman Sachs Foundation, is unique in its requirement that all submissions include an emphasis on the social as well as financial bottom line.Applications to this year’s competition range from a plan to develop heart valves suitable for pediatric surgery to a charter school in the South Bronx to a lead-safe window replacement business.The winners of the 2002 National Social Venture Competition will be announced at a final round of judging at the Haas School on April 4 and 5. Competition winners will be awarded up to $100,000 in prize money and their plans will be circulated to the Investors’ Circle, a network of 150 social investors.
National Social Venture Competition Finalists Announced
Reviewing 77 entries from around the country, judges representing a mix of venture capitalists, social venture investors and entrepreneurs determined the finalists in the first annual National Social Venture Competition. The competition, a partnership between Columbia Business School, the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Goldman Sachs Foundation, is unique in its requirement that all submissions include an emphasis on the social as well as financial bottom line.