SEEED Summit adds former Clinton adviser to 2014 lineup

PARTICIPANTS AT THE 2013 SEEED Summit share best practices and information on trends in social enterprise. This year's summit will be held April 25-26 at Brown University. / PAINTED FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY/CAT LAINE
PARTICIPANTS AT THE 2013 SEEED Summit share best practices and information on trends in social enterprise. This year's summit will be held April 25-26 at Brown University. / PAINTED FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY/CAT LAINE

PROVIDENCE – The Social Enterprise Ecosystem for Economic Development Summit has added former Clinton policy adviser Ira C. Magaziner to its lineup of keynote speakers for the annual event, to be held this year on April 25-26 at Brown University.

The SEEED Summit draws more than 500 social venture entrepreneurs, social enterprise practitioners, impact investors, students and policymakers from around New England each year for a two-day conference to discuss how to build an effective enterprise ecosystem to drive local economic development.

Magaziner, a Rhode Island native, served as a senior policy adviser to President Bill Clinton from 1993 through 1998, during which time he supervised the development of the administration’s policy for the commercialization of the Internet. He now holds a position as CEO and vice chairman of the Clinton Health Access Initiative, and he is also chairman of the Clinton Climate Initiative and a board member of the Clinton Hunter Development Initiative.

Prior to his White House appointment, Magaziner built two successful consulting firms and worked for Boston Consulting Group in Boston, London and Tokyo, helping major corporations develop business strategies.

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Other keynote speakers planned for the 2014 SEEED Summit include Gina M. Raimondo, R.I. general treasurer and gubernatorial candidate; Christina H. Paxson, president of Brown University; Jim Gibbons, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International; Robert Kaplan, co-chairman of global venture philanthropy firm Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation; and Gar Alperovitz, co-founder of The Democracy Collaborative and professor of political economy at the University of Maryland.

In total, more than 300 speakers are expected to present at the conference. The SEEED Summit also will offer guided panel discussions, one-on-one business coaching for aspiring entrepreneurs, a social enterprise goods marketplace, and an evening social event at The Steel Yard.

“Social enterprise is a rapidly accelerating business model blending social mission, proven business practices, and a focus on sustainable profit to accelerate social change,” said Kelly Ramirez, summit organizer and CEO of Social Enterprise Greenhouse. “For the third year in a row we are proud to offer a forum where current and future social enterprise leaders meet to grow the impact sector.”

The SEEED Summit is a collaboration of Social Enterprise Greenhouse, the Social Innovation Initiative at Brown University, Worldways Social Marketing and the “SEEED at Brown” student group. The 2014 event will explore themes central to the social enterprise sector, the organization said, including impact investing and funding, talent recruitment and best practices.

This is the third year the SEEED Summit has been held at Brown. An earlier version of a Rhode Island social enterprise summit was held at Bryant University in 2009 and 2010.

The cost of registration for the event is $100 for a one-day pass or $150 for both days, plus relevant purchase fees. Students pay a discounted price of $25 for one day or $45 for two days.

To register or for more information about the summit, speakers, workshops and accommodation, visit http://seeed.org/.

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