There are two ways of spreading light...
to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.
- Rachel Ramen
The National Institute for Civic Enterprise
We network innovative people interested in speeding up replication
of the best solutions to pressing social problems across the nation.
Visit our discussion forum at http://NICENetwork.ning.comDownload the 2010 Sponsorship Opportunities brochure
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We're taking the Power of One
idea and replicating it!
Debra Berg launched the National Institute for Civic Enterprise (NICE) in 2008. While she was interviewing civic and social entrepreneurs - citizen inventors of social solutions - she discovered a trend, the "New Civic America." In her book, The Power of One, she documents how creative outward-focused individuals are sacrificially tackling major social problems apart from the government. In her research, she also discovered how they typcially become absorbed in developing their missions unaware of others inventing similar initiatives.
Debra made a decision that creating a connecting point for civic entrepreneurs was critical to eliminating duplicative efforts, sharing valuable ideas, and speeding up solutions to help those in need. She determined that the best vehicles to achieve these objectives were the internet and onsite events.
Hear Debra Berg's 3 minute
Sky Radio interview on all
American Airlines flights in March
about the NICENetwork!
The overall mission of NICE is to create connections between civic entrepreneurs and encourage dialogue via the NICENetwork.org site, NICE Community forum, and onsite conferences. Online community dialogue becomes especially valuable since it creates a growing knowledge base available to both new and seasoned civic entrepreneurs. A knowledge base of this type has never been created or catalogued in academia nor on the web.
Upon relocating to Central Florida in 2007, Debra's dream of a web-based platform expanded. The mission found support with the Lake Eustis Institute, the Lake Community Foundation, as well as businesses and human service nonprofits in Lake County. While the NICENetwork's mission holds a national focus, NICE is committed to making a difference in Central Florida where its headquarters is located.
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Who are Civic and Social Entrepreneurs?
Civic entrepreneurs represent individuals of all ages and backgrounds who have sacrified personal lives, incomes, time, and wealth to invent a solution to a community social challenge. Most often their enterprises result in a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation.
Our Vision A nationwide networking environment comprised of civic/social entrepreneurs, business professionals, donors, and volunteers, committed to successfully expediting solutions to the nation's most pressing social challenges.
Our Mission The mission of NICE is to engage and network creative civic and social entrepreneurs for the purpose of sharing successful ideas and replicating their innovative social solutions to communities across the nation. Through a state-of-the-art web-based platform, NICE aims to facilitate regular professional exchange, engage potential business partners, offer access to a well-rounded not-for-profit training network, and compile an ever-growing online knowledge base of proven solutions and techniques that can be replicated both nationally and worldwide. NICE also works to promote civic entrepreneur initiatives in the media, encourage volunteer and donor participation, and provide Florida-based nonprofit training.
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The NICEnetwork represents civic enterprise initiatives of a human service and nonpolitical Background research
You don't have to be big to have a big idea...
... and you don't have to have a big idea to make a difference.
Help us connect and equip the innovators who are turning the corner on the nation's social challenges!
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Who Makes Up the NICEnetwork?
nature. The structure of these enterprises may
reflect for-profit or nonprofit corporations, faith or
non-faith-based initiatives, and mixed revenue source social enterprises.
Initiatives fall under the broad categories of at-risk youth, crime, the disabled, disaster recovery, education, health, housing, neighborhood decay, poverty, and some human service areas of the arts and the environment.
Until the NICENetwork web site is up and running, please reference the http://NICENetwork.ning.com website or the book,The Power of ONE: The Unsung Everyday Heroes Rescuing America's Cities, to learn about the extraordinary successes of civic and social entrepreneurs across the U.S.
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You can be a NICE Hero!
Support the NICENetwork
The NICENetwork is fiscally sponsored by Homes That Change Lives of Boston, a 501c3 nonprofit organization.
Donate!
Call 352-589-5981
If you have any questions about the NICENetwork, please contact us. We'll be more than happy to explain our mission further to you!
We connect and equip social innovators
who are turning the corner on the nation's social challenges.
