This meeting will focus on Social Enterprise and how this is becoming a major engine for change both in the UK and worldwide. We will be looking at how three organisations have shaped enterprise to help the homeless, the third world and also enabled regeneration of community. How can this model be replicated in a world where enterprising change agents are essential and what leadership is required? Speaking will be,

Shared Interest. Shared Interest is a social enterprise. Their members are more interested in the social impact of their investments than in the financial returns. Shared Interest is a co-operative lending society that aims to reduce poverty in the world by providing fair and just financial services. They work with fair trade businesses all over the world, both producers and buyers, providing credit to help them trade and develop. They see a world where Shared Interest provides finance to disadvantaged communities to enable them to trade their way out of poverty.

Richard Litchfield, Managing Director of Eastside Consulting. In 2004, he founded Eastside on the conviction that the third sector could become more sustainable through enterprise and innovation. One of Richard’s first projects was to assist with the development of a social investment fund for the Big Issue (Big Issue Invest). This fund now provides over £5m to social enterprises. Other highlights include his management of the national social enterprise programme - Spark - that has successfully delivered investment to 14 social enterprises in 2008. Since then Spark has become a cornerstone of the UK Government’s strategy to combat homelessness.

Charlie Lister is the lead on the voluntary sector and social enterprise at The Institute of Leadership and Management. The ILM has launched a new qualification in Understanding Social Enterprise. This is be a short,single-unit award at (new) Level 5 and is designed to support managers working within a social enterprise, who require more detailed knowledge of their particular sector. It is also suitable for business advisers supporting either emerging or established social

UnLtd is a charity, which supports social entrepreneurs - people with vision, drive, commitment and passion who want to change the world for the better. They do this by providing a complete package of funding and support, to help individuals make their ideas a reality. Unltd will join us with one of the social enterprises that they have helped and supported and that have contributed to social change.

Please register at http://www.meetup.com/21stCenturyNetwork/calendar/10723579/