Ballard Center News 

At the fourth annual TEDxBYU, held March 21, creative minds from diverse fields will share what drives their ideas.

Creating better work environments in developing countries, helping farmers escape poverty and providing prison inmates with educational opportunities are just a few actions social innovators are taking to alleviate the world’s problems.

The work of BYU student interns and the Ballard Center’s Peery Fellow Jeremi Brewer is featured in the recent Stowaway magazine article, “The Academy for Creating Enterprise: Creating Enterprise and Creating Hope.” The article investigates Brewer’s Microenterprise Education Initiative, a research initiative seeking to build self-reliance around the world. Since 2008 BYU interns working for the Academy for Creating Enterprise, one of MEI’s partners, have helped lift 6,000 individuals out of poverty in Mexico, the Philippines, Brazil, Peru, Zimbabwe and other countries.

Students will learn how to better serve others through social innovation at the opening reception for “Do Good Better,” an exhibit in the Education in Zion Gallery in the Joseph Fielding Smith Building.

Y-Prize is an opportunity for BYU students to serve the Ugandan people without leaving Provo.

Students will have the chance to discuss new ways to eliminate poverty at a book launch for “More than Money: Five Forms of Capital to Create Wealth and Eliminate Poverty,” by Brigham Young University business strategy professor Paul Godfrey.

An upcoming study on intrapreneurship by BYU Ballard Center’s Peery Fellow Jeremi Brewer and BYU Marriott School alum Andrew Scheuermann was featured in Forbes magazine. Their study seeks to help organizations see more success by fostering the atmosphere and attitudes of intrapreneurship—the qualities of employees who implement innovative solutions to add surprising value to their organization. They are currently seeking participants for their study and anticipate the future publication of their results. View the article here.

BYU alum Peter Harris was profiled in Forbes for his work as a social entrepreneur. In the article Harris credits his involvement with the Ballard Center for shaping his career path.

Four Marriott School of Management students co-authored a story in Forbes concerning their experience with the Ballard Center's Social Innovation Projects. All finance majors, the students’ engagement with the Ballard Center led to their internships in the field of impact investing—monetary investments intended to generate substantial social, environmental and financial returns.

The Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance recently hosted the third-annual TEDxBYU event and the Social Innovator of the Year Award banquet as part of its jam-packed Ballard Week.

Sponsored by the Ballard Center, graduate students created innovative solutions for Newman's Own Foundation.

The Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance presented Kushal Chakrabarti, founder and co-chair of Vittana, with the 2013 Social Innovator of the Year Award.

Growing an innovative business idea to help people around the world has never been easier. That’s due to the Social Venture Competition and the Social Venture Academy — two Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance programs specifically designed to guide students in making a positive impact.

The Students for Social Entrepreneurship, a program in The Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance, has joined forces with Vittana — a company that sets up loans for students in developing countries who need a hand up in furthering education.

How can you work smarter and not harder to make large-scale changes in the world? Everyone has limited time and resources. Consider certain questions prior to partnering with an organization that aims to have a positive societal impact.

It's now easier than ever to make a positive impact on the world, thanks to Changemaker Week — an event hosted October 15 – 19 by the Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance.

Brigham Young University has been designated a Changemaker Campus by Ashoka U. Ashoka U, a subset of the international nonprofit organization Ashoka, is an initiative set forth to promote social entrepreneurship in universities. BYU was named for its ability to produce influential students who make a difference on a local and a global stage. Nineteen universities, including BYU, around the world are honored with this status.

The Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance has named Brigham Young University professors Chris Mattson and David Wiley as research fellows in the Peery Social Entrepreneurship program. As fellows, Mattson and Wiley will apply their expertise in research and innovations within the field of social entrepreneurship.

Solving global problems might seem daunting, but the Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance is stepping up to the challenge by providing a way to help experts create breakthroughs in specific fields.

This year's Social Venture Competition attracted students focused on improving lives through sustainable businesses around the world. Sponsored by the Ballard Center for Economic Self-Reliance, the eighth annual competition encouraged participants to enter ventures addressing social problems.