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The Greater Rome Chamber this morning announced plans to support a new “opportunity to earn a living.” It involves something relatively new, social entrepreneurship or social enterprise.
The chamber on Sept. 28 is bringing Nobel Prize winner Dr. Muhammad Yunus to Rome to discuss social entrepreneurism. Elaina Beeman, the chamber’s vice chair of the Business and Professional and with the Northwest Georgia Housing Authority, outlined the upcoming lecture and some of the works of Yunus..
The idea to bring one of the world’s experts on micro financing came from February’s Confluence event spearheaded by the chamber. Willis Potts helped champion the idea and was among the speakers Thursday morning announcing the Yunus visit. Potts said he met Yunus several years ago.
Potts talked about an encounter Yunus had with Third World workers and what they went through to get financing basically through “loan sharks.” Yunus, says Potts, funded 40 of these workers and from there grew into a bank that embraces micro enterprise financing.
One goal of the September speech, says Potts, is to see how to apply some of the beliefs supported by Yunus and apply them to the Greater Rome community.
The speech is set for 4 p.m. at Rome City Auditorium. The event is not funded by the chamber but from event sponsors and ticket sales. Tickets are $20 for chamber members, $50 for nonmembers and $10 for educators, students and those employed in the social services field. For tickets, contact the chamber at www.romega.com
Chamber news release: Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce Chairman of the Board Anne Kaiser, Georgia Power, is pleased to announce that Nobel Peace Prize recipient Dr. Muhammad Yunus will give a keynote presentation in Rome on Sept. 28 at the Rome City Auditorium. Dr. Muhammad Yunus is an economist, banker, and social entrepreneur from Bangladesh, India who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for pioneering the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. In 1983, Dr. Yunus founded Grameen Bank, which has lent over 8 million microloans to borrowers too poor to qualify for traditional assistance. Approximately 97% of those loans are to women.
Dr. Yunus’ most recent book, “Building Social Business: The New Kind of Capitalism That Serves Humanity’s Most Pressing Needs,” will be the topic of his keynote presentation. Dr. Yunus will discuss what he calls “social business,” also known as social enterprise, in which corporations, entrepreneurs, and outreach organizations establish forprofit commercial enterprises that generate economic impact and direct profits toward solutions that fulfill human needs.
“The Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce is excited to host such a prominent international figure in Rome, Georgia,” said Ms. Kaiser. “The mission of the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce is to promote prosperity in Rome and Floyd County for and through its business membership. The best way to promote prosperity is to provide an opportunity to earn a living. Dr. Yunus’ message will illustrate how any community can promote prosperity by helping individuals build businesses using their personal skills and trades.”
Added Vice Chair of the Business and Professional Division Elaina Beeman of Northwest Georgia Housing Authority: “We were able to connect with Dr. Yunus last year when we approached him regarding the Chamber’s annual Confluence innovation conference (www.confluencerome.org). Dr. Yunus was unavailable at the time but he offered to visit in the future. We are excited that Dr. Yunus will visit Rome in September, and I know that you will be inspired by his message.”
About Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Muhammad Yunus:
“There is a great need for using innovation to address social issues,” added Willis Potts, Temple-Inland, retired, and former Chair of the University System of Georgia Board of Regents. “For this reason, we integrated the theme of social entrepreneurship into Confluence, and we identified Dr. Yunus as the consummate example of the human side of innovation. His concept of microlending is the direct connection among free enterprise and social change.”
In 2013, Dr. Yunus received the inaugural Forbes 400 Lifetime Achievement Award for Social Entrepreneurship. While accepting this award at the Forbes Philanthropy Summit, he received a standing ovation from the audience of high-powered wealthy business leaders after sharing his inspirational story and a message of “help others help themselves.”
About the speech:
The lecture will begin at 4 p.m. in the Rome City Auditorium, followed by a brief question and answer session and a book signing. The event is open to the public. This special event will be paid for by sponsorship and ticket sales. Tickets can be purchased through the Greater Rome Chamber website www.romega.com using the Community Calendar.
Sponsorships are available. Current sponsors include Georgia Highlands College, Georgia Northwestern Technical College, and Logical Systems.
For more information, please contact Lowell Pratt, Director of Entrepreneurship & Innovation, at lpratt@romega.com or 706-291-7663.
About Muhammad Yunus, courtesy of Nobelprize.org: “Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2006 for their work to ‘create economic and social development from below.’ Grameen Bank’s objective since its establishment in 1983 has been to grant poor people small loans on easy terms – so-called micro-credit – and Yunus was the bank’s founder. In 1972, following studies in Bangladesh and the USA, Yunus was appointed professor of economics at the University of Chittagong. When Bangladesh suffered a famine in 1974, he felt that he had to do something more for the poor beyond simply teaching. He decided to give long-term loans to people who wanted to start their own small enterprises. This initiative was extended on a larger scale through Grameen Bank. According to Yunus, poverty means being deprived of all human value. He regards micro-credit both as a human right and as an effective means of emerging from poverty: Lend the poor money in amounts which suit them, teach them a few basic financial principles, and they generally manage on their own, Yunus claims.”
Inaugural Forbes’ honor: Muhammad Yunus accepted the inaugural Forbes 400 Lifetime Achievement Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2013, presented by Steve Forbes.