Social Venture Network

Who We Are: Since its inception in 1987, Social Venture Network (SVN, www.svn.org) has been at the forefront of the socially responsible business movement, connecting, leveraging, and promoting a growing community of innovative and influential entrepreneurs who are transforming the way the world does business. Many of the most recognizable social ventures of the last three decades were founded by SVN members, such as The Body Shop, Ben & Jerry's, Clif Bar, Odwalla, Toms of Maine, Birkenstock, Seventh Generation, Stonyfield Farm, and Eileen Fisher. What We Do: Social Venture Network catalyzes collaboration among the worlds leading social entrepreneurs to create transformational innovation, growth and impact. Our mutually supportive culture inspires leaders to generously share their wisdom, passion and resources to promote businesses that better serve humanity and the environment. Twenty-Five Years of Changing the Way the World Does Business: In 1987, the founders of Social Venture Network had a vision for a better business model one that would simultaneously benefit investors, employees, local communities and the planet. SVN became the premiere force for cultivating entrepreneurs dedicated to profit with a purpose. Now, upon the 25th Anniversary of our founding, SVN will bring together values-driven business leaders and impact investors for the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame Celebration, to be held on Tuesday, November 13th at Gotham Hall in New York City. Proceeds from the event benefit SVN's Bridge Project, an effort to expand and diversify the socially responsible business movement by supporting entrepreneurs of color, young business leaders and women entrepreneurs.

SVN 2012 Hall of Fame Celebration

SVN will honor 25 of the most innovative and influential leaders of the socially responsible business movement with the newly-created SVN Impact Award. Each of the honorees has built an enterprise of at least $50 million in annual revenues and/or equivalent measurable positive social or environmental impact. The event kicks off with a green-carpet reception followed by an evening that celebrates the pioneers of socially responsible business. Comedian and documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock will be hosting the event with live video streaming from TakePart TV. The intention of the Hall of Fame is to show the maturity of the impact economy and to bridge the inspiration of the innovators of socially responsible business to the next generation of social entrepreneurs. It is our explicit goal to have at least 50% of the tables at the Hall of Fame filled with entrepreneurs of color, young business leaders and women entrepreneurs. In addition, SVN has invited next-generation entrepreneurs to present each category of honorees with their Impact Award. SVN Bridge Project Just as SVN and its members have successfully paved the way in groundbreaking areas such as socially responsible investing and local living economies, our organization is committed to addressing one of the socially responsible business movements key challenges - its lack of diversity. During the past decade, SVN has worked to shift the demographics of the socially responsible business movement and its community to include more entrepreneurs of color, women entrepreneurs, and young leaders who are transforming the way the world does business.

Social Media @SVNetwork | #SVN25

November 13, 2012 5:00 10:00pm Gotham Hall New York City

For more information, please contact:

Deb Nelson Executive Director Phone: 415.561.6501 ext. 16 Fax: 415.561.6435 Email: debn@svn.org

Erin Roach Director of Marketing & Recruitment Phone: 415.561.6501 ext. 12 Fax: 415.561.6435 Email: erinr@svn.org

Press Contacts
Lance Laytner President Public Good Relations lance@publicgoodrelations.com Celia Sepulveda Vice President, Public Relations Neighbor Agency celia@neighboragency.com

SVN Hall of Fame Host

Morgan Spurlock Warrior Poets
Morgan Spurlock is well known for his extraordinary documentary work, including his Academy Award nominated film, Super Size Me (2003). His latest feature film, Mansome, with executive producers Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Ben Silverman (a hilarious look at mens identity in the 21st century), became a daily web series broadcast on Yahoo.com. As a writer/producer, Spurlock has released over 25 titles ranging from witty TV series to full-length documentary films. Since 2004, Morgan and his producing partner Jeremy Chilnick have produced multiple award-winning films under their New York based production company, Warrior Poets.

SVN Hall of Fame Honorees

Lifetime Achievement Award Winners
Sir Richard Branson Virgin Group
In 1970 at age 20, Sir Richard Branson founded Virgin as a mail order record retailer. Since then, Virgin has become one of the world's most recognized and respected brands with global revenues of $21B. He was awarded a knighthood for services to entrepreneurship in 1999. In 2004, Sir Richard launched Virgin Unite to help revolutionize the way businesses, government and the social sector work together driving business as a force for good. @richardbranson was named Britains most influential person on Twitter.

Dame Anita Roddick The Body Shop

Dame Anita Roddick started The Body Shop in 1976 in Brighton, England. The Body Shop, one of the most widely recognized and respected brands in the world, has over 2,500 stores in over 60 markets worldwide. What distinguished Anita from other global business leaders and entrepreneurs was a core dedication to community trade and human rights causes which she brought to the workplace. Roddick was a key pioneer of socially responsible business, proving that commerce with a conscience is not only a moral imperative but a competitive advantage.

Workplace Champions
Chip Conley Joie de Vivre Chip Conley founded Joie de Vivre (JDV) and, as CEO for two-dozen years, grew it into the second largest boutique hotel company in America. Now the preeminent thought leader at the intersection of business and psychology, he is JDVs strategic advisor, an international speaker and bestselling author. His new book, EMOTIONAL EQUATIONS: Simple Truths for Creating Happiness + Success, leads us from emotional intelligence to emotional fluency and Chip regularly blogs about finding meaning in work and life at www.chipconley.com. Gary Erickson & Kit Crawford Clif Bar
In 1990, Gary Erickson set off on a 175-mile bicycle ride with his buddy, Jay. They packed six energy bars each for the ride. Halfway through the ride, exhausted and hungry, Gary realized that he just couldnt eat another unappetizing, sticky, hard-to-digest energy bar. He had an epiphany and said, I can make a better energy bar. Today, Gary and Kit Crawford serve as co-CEOs of Clif Bar & Company, a family and employee-owned business with a passion for sustainability. Doing business in a different way, Clif Bar operates under Five Aspirations: Sustaining our business, our brands, our people, our community and the planet.

Eileen Fisher EILEEN FISHER, Inc.

Eileen Fisher is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of EILEEN FISHER, Inc. In 1984, motivated by a desire to put design ahead of fashion, she created a new breed of clothing that acts as ago-to system for modern women. As a socially conscious company, EILEEN FISHER is known for its environmental initiatives, human rights leadership and philanthropic support of programs for women and girls. The company has been selected as a Great Place to Work since 2004.

Margot Fraser Birkenstock USA

Margot Fraser is founder and former CEO of Birkenstock USA. She started BIRKENSTOCK out of her home in 1967 and guided this iconic brand to world wide prominence Since her retirement she has served on the board of the Presidio School of Management, the Family Service Agency of San Rafael and has been active speaking budding entrepreneurs. She also co-authored the book Dealing with the Tough Stuff in the SVN series at Berrett Koehler Publishing.

Bruce Poon Tip G Adventures

In 1990, Bruce Poon Tip founded G Adventures in order to deliver authentic experiences to travelers who craved adventures beyond allinclusive resorts. When no bank was willing to provide a loan, he started the company with two credit cards. Since then, G Adventures has grown to become a world leader in adventure travel, with offices around the world, offering small group experiences in over 100 countries, on all seven continents, to more than 100,000 travelers annually.

Environmental Evangelists
Myra & Drew Goodman Earthbound Farm
Drew and Myra Goodman founded Earthbound Farm in 1984 on their 2acre backyard garden in Carmel Valley, California. The self-taught farmers intuitively eschewed handling agricultural chemicals, believing that growing food organically would yield the safest and healthiest food possible. In 1986, Earthbound Farm became the first company to successfully launch pre-washed packaged salads for retail sale, and is widely credited with popularizing spring mix salads. Today, Earthbound Farm is the nations largest grower of organic produce, working with 200 organic farmers on nearly 40,000 acres.

Gary Hirshberg Stonyfield Farm

Gary Hirshberg is Co-Founder and chairman of organic yogurt leader Stonyfield, author of Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Save the World, and co-author of Label It Now: What You Need to Know About Genetically Engineered Foods. During Gary's 28-year tenure as Stonyfield's president and "CE-Yo," the company grew from a seven-cow organic farming school to $360 million in annual sales by consistently producing great-tasting products and using innovative marketing techniques that blended the company's social, environmental and financial missions.

Jeffrey Hollender Seventh Generation

Jeffrey Hollender is the founder of Jeffrey Hollender Partners, a business strategy consulting firm, Adjunct Professor for sustainability and social entrepreneurship at New York University and co-founder of Seventh Generation. Jeffrey is also the Co-Chair of the Greenpeace US; cofounder and Board Chair of the American Sustainable Business Council, a coalition of 140,000 business leaders committed to progressive public policy and the author of his seven books, including The Responsibility Revolution: How the Next Generation of Businesses Will Win.

George Siemon Organic Valley

George Siemon is best known as C-E-I-E-I-O of Organic Valley / CROPP Cooperative, which has grown to become the largest organic farming cooperative in North America. George was instrumental in developing the national standards for organic certification and currently participates on the boards of directors for The Organic Center and Global Animal Partnership. In 2012, George was awarded the Natural Resources Defense Councils Growing Green Award in the Business Leader category.

Visionary Social Entrepreneurs

Ben Cohen & Jerry Greenfield Ben & Jerry's
Childhood friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, started Ben and Jerrys Ice Cream in 1978 in an old gas station on an investment of $8,000. A unique values-led business model, Ben & Jerrys went public and grew to $300 Million before it was acquired by Unilever in 2000. Cohen and Greenfield are the recipients of numerous awards for their commitment to social responsibility, including the U.S. Small Business Award and the James Beard Humanitarians of the year awards. Today Ben is the Head Stamper of StampStampede.org a campaign to amend the constitution to get money out of politics.

Cheryl Dorsey Echoing Green

Cheryl Dorsey is President of Echoing Green, a pioneer global social venture fund. She is also the current Vice Chair for the President's Commission on White House Fellowships. Dorsey serves on several boards including the Harvard Board of Overseers, the SEED Foundation, and Northeast Bank. In 2009, Dorsey was named one of "America's Best Leaders" by US News & World Report. Dorsey received her Bachelor's degree in History and Science magna cum laude with highest honors from Harvard-Radcliffe Colleges, her medical degree from Harvard Medical School, and her Master's in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School.

Bill Drayton Ashoka

Bill Drayton is Chair and CEO of Ashoka. Since 1981, Ashoka has launched and provided support to nearly 3,000 social entrepreneurs -individuals with systems-changing solutions to the worlds most urgent social challenges. Prior to founding Ashoka, Mr. Drayton held positions with McKinsey and Co. and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Drayton is also chair of Youth Venture, Get America Working!, and Community Greens. He is a graduate of Harvard, Balliol College at Oxford University, and Yale Law School.

Linda Mason & Roger Brown Bright Horizons

Linda Mason and Roger Brown are co-founders of Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a network of high quality off work-site child care centers. They are also co-founders of Horizons for Homeless Children, an organization that provides child care for the homeless and helps mothers enter the workforce and find permanent housing. Roger and his wife Linda coauthored Rice, Rivalry, and Politics after having worked in Cambodian famine relief.

Lynne & Bill Twist Pachamama Alliance

Lynne and Bill Twist are the co-founders of The Pachamama Alliance. Pachamama is a non-profit organization based in San Francisco, USA and Quito, Ecuador that works on the preservation of the Amazon rainforest, empowering indigenous peoples, and global social transformation. Bill has been the Chairman of the Board since Pachamamas inception in 1996. In 2010, Bill chose to step into the position of CEO. Lynne Twist is a global activist, consultant, speaker, and award-winning author of The Soul of Money. She is also the founder and president of the Soul of Money Institute.

Fearless Financiers
Amy Domini Domini Social Investments
Amy Domini has helped to pioneer the field of socially responsible investing through authoring several books and numerous articles and by founding Domini Social Investments, a mutual fund family. She writes a regular column for Intelligent Optimist (Ode). Her work in socially responsible investing has been recognized by many notable figures including the Dalai Lama and President Clinton, as Amy was honored at the inaugural meeting of the Clinton Initiative. In 2005, Amy was recognized by Time to be the Time 100 List of the Worlds Most Influential People.

Josh Mailman Serious Change LP

Josh Mailman co-founded SVN with Wayne Silby in 1987. He continues to be an activist philanthropist and private investor helping to create a just society. In addition to ongoing board activities (Museum for African Art, Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, Fund for Global Human Rights, Blacksmith Institute, Culture Project, Women Moving Millions) and sitting on the Sigrid Rausing Trust, U.K. and the Joshua Mailman Foundation, he is also the Managing Director of Serious Change L.P., a $50M dedicated L.P. impact investment vehicle.

Carol Newell & Joel Solomon Renewal Partners

Inspired to ignite large-scale change, Carol Newell and Joel Solomon partnered in 1992 to foster a regional sustainable economy based in Vancouver, Canada. Carols roots in deep ecology and desire to advance businesses that renew rather than deplete, met with Joels business, philanthropic and networking experience, putting Carols discretionary capital to work. Renewal, their family office dedicated to whole-portfolio activation to mission, steered over $60 million to strategic business and social sector regional endeavors; fueling cross-sector collaborations; building leadership and capacity.

Wayne Silby Calvert Investments

Wayne Silby is not only a co-founder of Social Venture Network, he is also regarded as a pioneer of social investing. Silby, along with John Guffey co-founded a mutual fund firm Calvert Investments in 1976, and then in 1982, Silby started the Calvert Social Investment Fund, one of the earliest mutual funds dedicated to socially responsible investments. Today, Calvert Investments is a $12 billion investment management group based in Bethesda, Maryland that is dedicated to maximizing the flow of capital to disadvantaged communities.

Muhammad Yunus Grameen Bank

Professor Muhammad Yunus established the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh in 1983, fuelled by the belief that credit is a fundamental human right. His objective was to help poor people escape poverty by providing loans on terms suitable to them and by teaching them a few sound financial principles so they could help themselves. He is well known for creating the microcredit system. Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

Economic Justice Mavericks

Al Fuller Integrated Packaging Corp.
Albert D. Fuller is CEO and Chairman of Integrated Packaging Corporation (IPC), a corrugated box manufacturer headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. Mr. Fuller established IPC in 1992 and IPC is now one of the nations leading minority owned businesses. Mr. Fuller is a Presidential appointee, currently serving on the Secretary of Commerce's Manufacturing Advisory Council and a Board Member of the Hitachi Foundation which focuses it's efforts on business's role in poverty amelioration; Mr. Fuller strives to improve the lives of impoverished people.

Dolores Huerta United Farm Workers

Dolores Huerta co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, and then served as the first vice president the United Farm Workers. An internationally known community activist and labor leader, she continues to develop community leaders through the Dolores Huerta Foundation, building coalitions with people and organizations fighting for justice and equality. Her work led to improved conditions for farm workers, and was instrumental in the passage of various laws including the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975. A recipient of the 2012 Presidential Medal of Freedom, she also has been inducted to the U.S. Department of Labor Hall of Honor.

Van Jones Rebuild The Dream

Van Jones is a globally recognized, award-winning pioneer in human rights and the clean-energy economy. Van is a co-founder of three successful non-profit organizations: the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Color of Change and Green For All. He is the best-selling author of the definitive book on green jobs: The Green-Collar Economy. He served as the green jobs advisor in the Obama White House in 2009. Van also holds a joint appointment at Princeton University, as a distinguished visiting fellow in both the Center for African American Studies and in the Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

Judy Wicks & Laury Hammel BALLE

In 2001, Judy and Laury co-founded the national organization the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE). Prior to its founding, Judy spearheaded the local living economy movement with the founding of White Dog Cafe in 1983, a landmark Philadelphia cafe pioneering the use of local food. She also founded the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia. Prior to serving as the co-chair of BALLE for its first six years, Laury founded The Longfellow Clubs in Massachusetts in 1980 that are the 49th largest health club business in the US. In 1988, Laury founded the New England Businesses for Social Responsibility. In 1991 he founded the national business group, Business for Social Responsibility.

SVN Hall of Fame Press Releases

The Premiere Event for Values-Driven Business Coming to NYC Social Venture Network announces Hall of Fame inductees MANHATTAN, Mar. 20 /CSRwire/ - Social Venture Network (SVN) just announced the first four of 25 inductees into the SVN Hall of Fame. Honorees will be presented with an award in a ceremony that will pay tribute to best performances in transforming the way the world does business. Eileen Fisher, founder of EILEEN FISHER Inc.; Chip Conley, founder of Joie de Vivre and New York Times best-selling author of Emotional Equations; Margot Fraser, founder of Birkenstock USA; and Bruce Poon Tip, CEO and founder of G Adventures, will all be honored in person at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame celebration taking place at Gotham Hall in Midtown Manhattan on November 13th, 2012. Twenty five years ago, the founders of Social Venture Network (SVN) had a vision for a better business model one that would simultaneously profit investors, employees, local communities and the planet. SVN became the premiere force for cultivating entrepreneurs dedicated to profit with a purpose. Now, upon the 25th Anniversary of the founding of SVN, scores of values-driven business leaders and impact investors will gather at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame gala to celebrate these success stories of the new economy. In 1987, the founding members of Social Venture Network launched a movement that has transformed the way people think about the role of business in the world one that values the needs of all stakeholders, not just shareholders, says Deb Nelson, SVNs Executive Director, It is especially relevant today to recognize the work of these extraordinary entrepreneurs, all of whom have done well by doing good. Each of the honorees has created an enterprise of at least $50 million in annual revenues and/or equivalent measurable positive social or environmental impact. Every award winner was rigorously vetted by a panel of 20 judges representing corporate peers, industry experts, and business and organizational leaders. There are five categories of inductees, and the results will be announced in stages building up to the final Hall of Fame awards ceremony on November 13th. Fisher, Conley, Fraser, and Poon Tip are honorees in the category of Workplace Champions.

A Workplace Champion is an innovative, values-driven leader who is extremely skilled in creating healthy, collaborative and meaningful work environments, defines Deb Nelson. Successful companies are the result of positive company cultures, and these leaders artfully motivate and engage their employees. The inductees in this category came from very different spheres of the business world, but what they share in common is that they all built highly successful companies while also building up their people and empowering them to do their best work.

Values-Based Business Hall of Fame Event Coming to NYC 'Environmental Evangelists' winners announced by Social Venture Network MANHATTAN, May 01 /CSRwire/ -Social Venture Network (SVN) just announced the second group of inductees into the SVN Hall of Fame. Five Environmental Evangelists will be presented with the SVN Impact Award in a ceremony that recognizes outstanding leaders who have transformed the way the world does business. Gary Hirshberg, co-founder and chairman of Stonyfield Farm; George Siemon, founding farmer and CEIEIO (pronounced C-EI-EI-O) of Organic Valley; Myra & Drew Goodman, co-founders of Earthbound Farm; Jeffrey Hollender, co-founder of Seventh Generation, will all be honored in person at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame celebration taking place at Gotham Hall in Midtown Manhattan on November 13th, 2012. These dynamic entrepreneurs set the bar for sustainability, and built industry-leading companies that operate as if every day is Earth Day. When Social Venture Network (SVN) was founded twenty-five years ago, it presented a new vision of business to the world one that would simultaneously profit investors, employees, local communities, and the planet. SVN became the premiere force for cultivating entrepreneurs dedicated to profit with a purpose. Now, upon the 25th Anniversary of the founding of SVN, the most influential valuesdriven business executives and impact investors will gather at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame gala to pay tribute to the leaders that pioneered the new economy. SVN members proved that businesses would be more responsible and successful if they focused on a triple bottom line: people, planet, and profit. says Deb Nelson, Executive Director. These extraordinary entrepreneurs have all done well while doing good. Environmental Evangelists are innovative entrepreneurs who care about all of their stakeholders, not just their shareholders, and created companies that respect and care for the earth and future generations. says Nelson. Each of the honorees has created an enterprise of over $50 million in annual revenue and positively impacted the environment. Their passion and business leadership planted the seeds that have now grown into the modern organic foods and sustainable business movements.

Every SVN Impact Award winner was rigorously vetted by a panel of 20 judges representing corporate peers, industry experts, and business and organizational leaders. There are five categories of inductees, and the results will be announced in stages building up to the final Hall of Fame awards ceremony on November 13th. Hirshberg, Siemon, Hollender, and the Goodmans won in the category of Environmental Evangelists. Previously announced were the Workplace Champions category winners which included Eileen Fisher of EILEEN FISHER, Inc., Margo Fraser of Birkenstock USA, Gary Erikson of Clif Bar, Chip Conley of Joie de Vivre, and Bruce Poon Tip of G Adventures.

Social Innovators Honored at Hall of Fame Event in NYC 'Visionary Social Entrepreneurs' to receive Impact Award from Social Venture Network MANHATTAN, Jun. 06 /CSRwire/ - Social Venture Network (SVN) just announced eight additional inductees into the SVN Hall of Fame: Visionary Social Entrepreneurs. This group of values-driven entrepreneurs will be presented with the SVN Impact Award on November 13th at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame Celebration at Gotham Hall in New York City. This event marks SVNs 25th anniversary and pays tribute to innovators who proved that businesses can succeed while focusing on a triple bottom line: people, profit and planet. Recognized as Visionary Social Entrepreneurs are Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, co-founders of Ben & Jerrys, Linda Mason and Roger Brown, co-founders of Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Bill Drayton, founder of Ashoka, Cheryl Dorsey, president of Echoing Green, and Lynne and Bill Twist, co-founders of Pachamama Alliance. Each entrepreneur created organizations that had no parallel at the time, and paved the way for the next generation of social entrepreneurs. This will be SVNs largest event to date to support their mission of connecting valuesdriven entrepreneurs with the people, ideas, and resources they need to succeed. Deb Nelson, Executive Director of SVN says The focus for this ceremony will be connecting the next generation of social entrepreneurs to the legacy and values of the pioneers of social entrepreneurship. Awards will be presented by past SVN Innovation Award winners, who represent some of the best up-and-coming talent in socially responsible business. The Visionary Social Entrepreneurs created models of social innovation that were very unique at the time of their founding, says Nelson. Honorees were rigorously vetted by a panel of 20 judges representing corporate peers, industry experts, business and organizational leaders. There are five categories of inductees, and the results will be announced in stages building up to the final Hall of Fame awards ceremony in November. Previously announced inductees include Workplace Champions and Environmental Evangelists.

Groundbreaking, Values-Driven Entrepreneurs Recognized by Social Venture Network 'Fearless Financiers' to receive Impact Award at SVNs Hall of Fame Celebration MANHATTAN, Jun. 27 /CSRwire/ - Social Venture Network (SVN) announces the fourth category of inductees into the SVN Hall of Fame: Fearless Financiers. These six socially conscious, forward-thinking honorees will be presented with the SVN Impact Award on November 13th at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame Celebration at Gotham Hall in New York City. This event marks SVNs 25th anniversary and acknowledges those who have broken barriers to create enterprises that benefit investors, employees, local communities and the planet. Those celebrated as Fearless Financiers are Wayne Silby, founder of Calvert Investments, Josh Mailman, founder of Serious Change LP, Amy Domini, founder of Domini Social Investments, Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank, and Joel Solomon & Carol Newell, co-founders of Renewal Partners. Silby and Mailman also founded Social Venture Network. These honorees created their own, unconventional approach to the business of finance. In doing so, they made capital accessible to underserved entrepreneurs and communities, and allowed individuals to make informed, values-driven decisions with their funds. At the Hall of Fame event in New York City, Social Venture Network will celebrate 25 years of connecting, inspiring and supporting influential entrepreneurs who use business to create a just and sustainable world. What began in 1987 as a small group of valuesdriven entrepreneurs is now the leading network of the pioneers of socially responsible business, including 550 influential and innovative social entrepreneurs and impact investors.

Morgan Spurlock to Host Social Venture Networks Hall of Fame Celebration MANHATTAN, August 20 /CSRwire/ - Social Venture Network (SVN) is thrilled to welcome Academy Award nominated documentarian, writer, producer and comedian Morgan Spurlock as its host for the SVN Hall of Fame. The event will be held on November 13th at Gotham Hall in New York City. This momentous celebration marks SVNs 25th anniversary and will recognize 25 of the most innovative and influential leaders of the responsible business movement with the newly created SVN Impact Award. The powerful socio-political undertones in Spurlocks films are in perfect alignment with SVNs member-base of influential entrepreneurs who are using business to solve pressing social and environmental problems. Mr. Spurlock examines some of the most daunting social issues were facing today, and does it with incredible creativity and humor. His brave exploration of our fast food culture (in Super Size Me) and insidious product placement (in The Greatest Movie Ever Sold) represent the kind of commitment to social change that SVN is all about," says Deb Nelson, Executive Director of Social Venture Network. The Hall of Fame Celebration will be an exclusive convening of 700 of the most influential leaders of the sustainable business movement. In an evening dedicated to entrepreneurs who drive innovation and positive social change through business, Spurlock and SVN will be celebrating 25 great business leaders, including Margot Fraser of Birkenstock USA, Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield Farm, Muhammad Yunus of Grameen Bank, Eileen Fisher of EILEEN FISHER, Inc. and Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry's. The Hall of Fame event precedes the SVN Fall Conference, to be held November 14-17th in Rye Brook, NY.

Social Venture Network Announces Final Group of Impact Award Winners Economic Justice Mavericks to be honored at SVNs Hall of Fame Celebration NEW YORK, Sep. 06 /CSRwire/ - Social Venture Network (SVN) announces the fifth and final category of inductees into the SVN Hall of Fame: Economic Justice Mavericks. These five innovative, values-driven leaders will be presented with the SVN Impact Award on November 13th at the Social Venture Network Hall of Fame at Gotham Hall in New York City. This event marks SVNs 25th anniversary and recognizes influential entrepreneurs who have leveraged the power of business to create a more just, sustainable and humane society. The honorees inducted as Economic Justice Mavericks are Van Jones, founder of Rebuild the Dream, Green for All and the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights; Dolores Huerta, co-founder of United Farm Workers; Al Fuller, founder of Integrated Packaging Corp.; and Judy Wicks and Laury Hammel, co-founders of The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE). The Economic Justice Maverick category celebrates leaders of businesses or nonprofits who are working to effect positive social and economic change, and create and support quality jobs that lift Americans out of poverty.