Starting up a venture... non-profit? i think maybe....

[FirstLight]

Here's part of a rant this morning about poverty. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=230x5057

This constructing community thing ihas been nagging me for a while. I think I may have taken those HR mgmt classes so I could manage my OWN people and projects...but i am a horrible business person and have nothing to offer but my enthusiasm and concepts... silly me.
but i have had this vision coming out of the ashes of my internal funk from this summer...

The "Culturing Community" Project
Like, literally, making a community is like growing a culture in a petrie dish...you have to have the right stuff to make it happen:

organic matter - something to grow IN...hmmmm like a community garden maybe? Permaculture
action - heat, movement, etc.... Like art and music projects with kids and groups? Spiritculture
population - enough live 'things' to create rejuvenation and growth... Like group events, parenting groups, communication classes? Heartculture

so this is the vision.

now what? I have a great ability to 'see' what i wanna build, and lots of ways to start...but the damn details of a business plan, proposed budget, etc stop me like a deer in headlights.

any ideas of how to begin?
anyone know how to draw up a budget?
any links or tutorials?
i'm in CA and have several professionals/folks i could tap that would be my 'board'
i thought 501c3 would be right because there's more $$$$ in grants and i can't get a loan for shit anyway
....

so maybe i can start Be-ing the change... who knows? :shrug:

[OneGrassRoot]

1. If Sanity Claws has time, she is the structural expert...

Otherwise, I recommend starting with your local SBA -- see if there is a Women's Business Center or Minority Business Center close to you. They can help with the nuts-and-bolts details you are seeking.

As always, best wishes to you, FL...:hug:

[FirstLight]

2. there's a retired guy who will give you a business plan starter kit

but it is pages and pages long and there's no support from there forward...
I will be meeting with my welfare-to-work guy tomorrow...and he will probably try to tell me it's a pie in the sky idea...but i can at least try and get some helpful info out of him too...i hope.

[Sanity Claws]

4. Thanks OGR

but I don't consider myself a structural expert. But thanks nevertheless.

[OneGrassRoot]

7. I consider you an expert on many things...

options regarding structure is simply one of them.

:hug:

[Sanity Claws]

3. Community -- great idea to pursue

In another thread, we spoke about a second economy already taking hold. Have you looked at some of the existing communities? Examples include Ecovillage in Ithaca, NY, http://ecovillageithaca.org/evi/ ; and Transition in Santa Cruz, http://www.transitionsc.org/

The latter one may be of particular interest to you because you are in CA.

IMHO, it's useful to start your research with what's out there and use that information to refine your own ideas or simply piggy back onto what they are doing. No sense in reinventing the wheel.

I'd be glad to talk to you about your ideas and see if we can fine tune them so you can move onto presenting them to others.

[FirstLight]

5. aaaahhhh!

I'm feeling the eyes glaze over..! lol


but that's a good idea... i'll start looking and see what i can find. Though the three fold idea is really how i want to structure the whole thing, so finding partnerships in each section would be a good idea.


On edit: the santa cruz group is awesome, has lots of great ideas to implement...cool!.

[Sanity Claws]

6. Keep me in mind if you want to talk

your ideas through.

I have also been giving thought on how to create a community. I see food as the first thing needed. As a result, I've been doing reading and studying on urban agriculture and soil remediation. Let me know if you want some direction in this area.

Second thing needed is a source of energy. Solar and wind are good possibilities. Some grants exist.

A third thing needed is education and care of the children. Education has to be taken away from the mainstream economy where children are not taught how to think and where higher education has left young adults in debt and enslaved to the mainstream economy.

A fourth thing needed is the production of something that can be used for exchange and get things that the community can not provide for itself. This is something that stumps me.

[FirstLight]

8. here's an angle...

If I asked my mentor to gather the people for a board, perhaps they can hire me to do the initialization and setup, grant writing etc...

then the 'job' would qualify for the welfare to work requirements, AND i would get the nuts and bolts started for getting it off the ground...

I think having a borad of directors is a first step in creating a non-profit anyway, they need to incorporate to start the process, THEN i can develop their mission statement, projects and such...