Deadline: August 3, 2016 | Apply here

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Prize: USD 500-25,000,-

Eligibility: You must be starting or growing a for-profit company whose social, environmental, and/or cultural mission strengthens your financial margins.

The Mentor Capital Network 2016

The Mentor Capital Network supports entrepreneurs who are building for-profit companies that make the world a better place by just existing. Firms that use their social, environmental, and/or cultural mission to strengthen their financial margins.

The Mentor Capital Network 2016 consists of:

Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs building companies that are designed to make the world a better place to live through the success. The MCN supports Entrepreneurs by: – Connecting to mentors, investors, and peers who are solving similar programs in non-competitive markets – Providing extensive feedback from experts who know what it is to build a mission-driven company – Connecting to mentors who want to be connected to them – Supporting without getting in the way of our running our business – (For the top companies in the collaboration program, providing cash and professional services.)

Mentors

Leaders who have built, managed, invested in, or studied social enterprises, who know what it takes to turn a strong mission into a stronger margin. The MCN supports Mentors by: – Connecting to their peers – learning about and from other perspectives on shared challenges – Helping to get to know amazing entrepreneurs in a way that respects our busy schedules – Giving the chance to build long-term relationships with the exciting new entrepreneurs – Apply to be a mentor here.

Investors

Angels and VCs who are looking for companies with strong financial returns, and whose social and/or environmental missions are central to creating those returns. The MCN supports Investors by: – Providing a vetted pipeline of companies in the areas of interest – Giving the access to the expert perspectives on these companies

MCN has engaged over 1,000 Mentors and Investors to provide more than $5 million of Mentor Capital to support the launch and growth of more than 500 companies.

These firms have created thousands of jobs, brought in more than $100 million in sales and investment, and impacted millions of people by providing access to energy, clean water, fair employment, better health systems, sustainable agriculture, and other social and environmental benefits.

2016 Sustainable Business Plan Collaboration Prizes

$25K to Clean Energy Companies

The Mentor Capital Network 2016 is partnering with The 11th Hour Project to provide $25,000 worth of prizes to the top clean energy companies in this year’s Sustainable Business Plan Collaboration program.

For the purposes of these prizes, Clean Energy is defined as energy that comes from the responsible usage of renewable resources such as solar, the wind, and water.

They are interested in advancing renewable energy adoption for multiple reasons: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their power and transportation sectors, to achieve better health outcomes because of lowered air, water, and land pollution, to encourage responsible relationships with natural resources, and to support community energy resilience.

The 11th Hour Project’s Renewable Energy & Climate program has a goal of transitioning to 100% renewable energy by 2030 and supports renewable energy solutions that are distributed and small to mid-scale. They believe that it is not only important to promote renewables over fossil fuels but also to ensure that these renewables help us move away from our current centralised system of energy production, distribution, and ownership.