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The Financial Times website lists a comprehensive report on the economic outlook of Tanzania in 2007 . Although we have achieved solid growth in the last decade and are seen as one of the more-stable countries in Africa, there is much more emphasis that can be put on social business (among corruption, power and other issues). Maybe I'm just saying that because I'm biased towards doing it myself, but if there is someone out there that can prove me wrong, please do. All I read are the positive benefits of social entrepreneurship - and maybe it's becoming a newly-recognized field - but it would he helpful to realise some of the drawbacks. One problem I see with applying business principles to socially-beneficial goods and services is the procurement of resources. Any business needs resources, and while their vision and purpose are noble, their back-office operations may not be taken into full consideration. These back-office operations may affect the environment and economy in...

I found this article on Digg today. Interesting photos.

I think I may like super villains more than the superheros. Whilst reading about the upcoming Wolverine movie (2009) , I began thinking about why I have spent bulks of my life reading Marvel and DC comics, watching their animated series and their movies, and spending even more time speculating about the lives of superheros and their arch rivals. I don't think it's because the superheros are the slick-costumed, quick-witted, amazingly-skilled, bright and rapidly-transported characters they always are. I don't even think its because they are constantly raging on for the survival of humankind. I think it's really the super villains that make them better. I'm not just saying that because Heath Ledger's Joker in The Dark Knight was probably the best enactment of Batman's rival ever. I'm saying that because I've always looked at villains like Skeletor (He-Man), Doc Oc (Spiderman) and Magneto (X-Men) to do the craziest but smartest things to put our heroes...

I started work at Seedco last month, and on my first day, Michael Weinstein from the Robin Hood Foundation came to speak to us about measuring success. Investments in any venture, be it public or private, will be made with a strong emphasis on obtaining tangible results. This makes sense, because before throwing money into something, an investor wants to know (1) if there is going to be a return after a period of x-time, and (2) what the number "x" is (that is, how long will it take these returns to procure). Who the returns are benefiting will depend on what kind of investment it is. For-profit organizations or projects are likely to distribute returns in a different way compared to non-profit, or even hybrid organizations . Still, returns - or projected returns - are looked upon favorably for investments. In short, Michael Weinstein's talk gave me insight into what drives every project that ends up working well: A solid plan for measuring its success. If you cannot ...