ISPN and the Sustainable Connections Institute (Conexsus) are launching the publication Practical Guide for Managing Community-Based Socio-Environmental Impact Businesses.
This publication will guide readers through what Conexsus has termed "Development Pathways," a series of questions organized by fundamental themes for those who manage community-based businesses. By following the roadmap and answering the questions presented, according to the reality of each organization, it will be possible to understand and identify the stages of maturity of the social enterprise: Seed, Seedling, Tree, and Forest. Each of these stages has characteristics that help to elucidate the organization's "life stage."
It is expected that the reflective process proposed in this guide will contribute to dealing with the immense complexity of the reality in which community businesses are embedded, a reality that demands that organizations act on many fronts, going beyond the specific needs for the viability of the business. Knowing how to separate, record, and account for the costs of these actions distinct from the costs of the "community business" generates important evidence for the debate.
