Investors’ Circle Tapped by Duke University to Provide Critical Component to New Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator
National investor network deepens dedication to global health innovations
November 13, 2012 /3BL Media/ - In a 5-year, funded partnership, Investors’ Circle has been selected to provide access to capital for social entrepreneurs – an area of expertise for the last twenty years – as part of the newly launched Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator at Duke University (SEAD).
SEAD is a development lab for scaling innovations in global health and was officially launched on November 8th this year with a $10M grant from USAID as part of their Higher Education Solutions Network (HESN) initiative — "a new groundbreaking partnership with seven top American and foreign universities designed to develop innovative solutions to global development challenges" (per press release from USAID here) Read the full press release from Duke University about the launch of SEAD here.
“Duke has engaged the world’s leading impact investing network in this initiative,” said Matt Nash, Director of SEAD at Duke University. Investors’ Circle’s network of active investors dedicated to investing in social and environmental entrepreneurs is seen as an ideal asset to this collaborative effort set to tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges.
IC’s focus within SEAD will be to improve innovative health enterprises’ readiness for capital through curricula such as its Getting Ready for Equity™ workshops and webinars. IC will also create a specific Global Health track for the IC network – reflecting sophisticated vetting processes honed over two decades. Included will be two Global Health virtual venture fairs per year and the development pipeline partnerships to facilitate an increase in global health deal flow.
A new advisory board will utilize current tools for online discussion, knowledge sharing, deal sharing and review to cultivate a broader community of investors interested in global health enterprises. “Our network has been investing in health, wellness and biotech opportunities for twenty years, many that address health challenges around the world” says Tom Balderston, Investors’ Circle Board Member. We’re excited to apply this expertise to help scale the most promising innovations emerging in global health.”
“This partnership brings everything entrepreneurs need to scale their innovations – sector-specific business development support, scaling expertise, relationships with corporate partners, and a connection to private capital,” said Bonny Moellenbrock, Executive Director of Investors’ Circle. “We’re honored to be a part of this effort to effectively address the world’s critical health needs, and hope to replicate all this groundbreaking collaboration in other sectors as well."
About Investors' Circle:
Investors’ Circle is the oldest, largest and most successful early-stage impact investing network in the world. Hundreds of angels, venture capitalists, foundations and family offices have joined us to promote the transition to a sustainable economy. IC has propelled $152 million plus $4 billion in follow-on investment into 255 enterprises and funds dedicated to improving the environment, education, health, and community.
About SEAD:
The Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator at Duke (SEAD), in partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), aims to provide social entrepreneurs in global health with the knowledge, systems and networks needed to succeed. SEAD is a joint initiative between the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE) at Duke's Fuqua School of Business, the International Partnership for Innovative Healthcare Delivery (IPIHD) at the School of Medicine, and the Duke Global Health Institute (DGHI), in collaboration with the Developing World Healthcare Technology (DHT-Lab) at Pratt School of Engineering and Durham-based Investors' Circle, the world's oldest, largest and most successful early-stage impact investing network.
