BY LISA LESLIE HENDERSON
Aquasifs distribution progam
New Ways of Thinking
Social Entrepreneurship Succeeds in Sudbury and Beyond
���We can do better for humanity.���
T
J. Elliott. ���Instead we try to blend the best of business with the best
of philanthropy to create sustainable social change.���
hat conviction, combined with the belief that people can and
Clay pots with porous filters that have been impregnated with
will successfully meet their own challenges when given the
ionic silver, combined with small-scale franchises and charitable
opportunity, fueled the birth of Village Forward. This Sudbury-
donations, are at the heart of Village Forward���s success. Here is
based nonprofit successfully combines the efficiency of the market-
how it works: Funded by individuals, corporate donations, and
place with the social impact of philanthropy to deliver safe drinking
foundations, Village Forward helps to identify and train entrepre-
water and economic opportunity to impoverished communities.
neurs in Nepal and India to manufacture and distribute low-cost
���We believe that markets and charity alone cannot solve today���s
water purifiers, or Aquasifs, in their surrounding communities.
most pressing problems,��� explains Village Forward���s founder, David
Using locally available clay, these microfranchise owners manufac-
30 ��� north bridge magazine
���
SPRING/SUMMER 2013
DAVID J. ELLIOT T
business