Alumnus Paul Rice, MBA 96, founder and CEO of Fair Trade USA, will talk about the challenges of scaling a social venture from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, at the UC Berkeley Startup Accelerator@Skydeck, a new incubator in downtown Berkeley.
The event will be geared toward anyone interested in growing a startup organization, particularly those which deliver social or environmental outcomes as well as financial returns. Rice will be joined in a discussion with Jennifer Walske, an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship within the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship and faculty director of the Global Social Venture Competition.
Fair Trade USA (originally TransFair USA) promotes a market model that guarantees agricultural producers a fair price for their products, direct trade, and access to credit and support for sustainable agriculture. Since founding Fair Trade USA in 1998 with coffee, Rice has expanded its certification to a range of products, including chocolate, apparel, tea, and honey. Now he is challenging the notion that fair trade should be restricted to only small farmers.
Rice has received several major awards for his work, including Fast Company's Social Capitalist of the Year Award (four-time winner), the Ashoka Fellowship, and the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship
The event is being offered by the East Bay Haas Alumni Network in partnership with the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship, the Center for Responsible Business, and the Center for Nonprofit and Public Leadership. The discussion will take place at Skydeck, located on the top floor of 2150 Shattuck Ave. To register, visitpath-bending-leadership.eventbrite.com.