CEO Supports Local, Sustainable Enterprise!

Sustainability: meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Sustainability is important. Sustainability of human resources values social responsibilities like working and living conditions of laborers, the needs of rural communities, and consumer health and safety today and tomorrow. Sustainability of land and natural resources involves maintaining or enhancing this important resource base for the long term.

The Center for Economic Options (CEO) is a non profit organization in West Virginia that works with entrepreneurs and innovators who share a commitment to development that is socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.

For nearly 30 years we have supported and encouraged local, sustainable business development. Our enterprise models have a strong focus on facilitating networks and clusters of entrepreneurs and connecting businesses to markets and the resources they need to succeed. We also work to make sure that people understand why local, sustainable businesses matter - to our communities, our economy, and our environment. (CEO has a long history of small scale sustainable business development initiatives).

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Resources for Business Owners

	Whether you have been at it for years, or just getting started, it's as important to work on your business as it is to work in your business. Here is a collection of resources to help you find what you need to take your enterprise to the next level.
	Looking for a job in the emerging green economy? Want to sharpen your skills so employers will look your way? Here are some programs, resources and online tools help in all stages of job and career development.
	It may take money to make money, but the good news is that there are financial resources available to help. Check out this list of programs and services to find resources and sources of capital to help you grow your business.

Sustainable Business Sectors

Connect with resources for education, research, skills building, markets, certification options

	A local food system includes a region's farmers and food producers as well as distributors, marketers, and restaurants, retailers, and institutions that sell and serve food. It also includes customers because local food is produced for local consumption. Grow your business and help make local fresh food available for everyone.
	Generations of artisans have helped make West Virginia a place rich in culture and heritage. This tradition is providing abundant business and job opportunities in the creative economy where craft entrepreneurs like you are finding success in the business of artisanship.
	Business and job opportunities in sustainable building abound - in weatherization, architecture, carpentry, retro-fitting and much more.
	Creative eco-fashion knowledge and skills and/or "environmentally friendly" textile processing methods and supply chain strategies are key to business success in this sector.
	Tourism-related businesses can profit as they minimize negative environmental aspects and enhance the cultural integrity and economic opportunities of local people.
	Harvesting and producing forest products in a sustainable way helps ensure long term viability of forest resources, conserves biodiversity and positions businesses with a growing consumer base that is increasingly looking for products with these attributes.
	Renewable - constantly replenished and will never run out - energy resources constitute a rapidly growing industry sector. Find information on solar, wind, biomass, geo thermal, hydroelectricity and beyond to help your business grow.

 

Upcoming Events

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Think BEFORE you Doze! Deconstruction Workshop

Aug 23-24. A workshop for homeowners, building-material dealers, contractrors, preservationists, municipal leaders, workforce development professionals:  $350/person. Each workshop covers the entire deconstruction process, from project review and bidding, to the shipment of salvaged materials. The workshop is open to virtually everyone—homeowners, designers, public officials, architects and contractors. Registrants receive a shorter version of the contractor training and earn a certificate of completion. Location: Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Charleston, WV. For more information contact Amy at Habitat for Humanity 304.720.0141.

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Small Business Start-up Training Series - Free!

Now registering. Explore how you can successfully start your own small business. Opening Soon, Inc. is a comprehensive8 week series of classes for entrepreneurs to provide the skills and knowledge needed to open a small business. Registration is required.  For more information contact: WVSU Economic Development Center, 1506 Kanawha Boulevard, West, Charleston, WV 304.720.1401.

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Sustainable "Green" Construction Training for Women

September 2010. Sign up now for the next Step Up For Women Sustainable "Green" Construction Training.

West Virginia Women Work has teamed up with green builders to spread sustainabile building practices and to help women get jobs in "green" construction. Registration is underway for the next 11 week training program in Morgantown that will offer hands-on training in construction, electrical, plumbing and solar technology. The green building ideas and techniques offered are specifically targeted tothe job market and union job opportunities in Morgantown's active construction sector. For more information call: 304.598.0114 or email: kristina@wvwomenwork.org. 

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Click on the link below to participate in West Virginia's

Local Food Survey

In November 2009, several organizations including the Center for Economic Options, Natural Capital Investment Fund, and the Collaborative for the 21st Century, co-sponsored a convening on local food entitled "Growing Local Foods: Enhancing the Local Food System for Economic Development in West Virginia". This event was funded by the Benedum Foundation, and was an outcome of a regional local food gathering hosted by the Central Appalachian Network (CAN) in April, 09. CEO is a founding member of CAN, and through this network, is committed to advancing the local food value chain in the state.

The 130 participants at the November gathering identified the need for better communication and information about each other as a priority.

In response, we prepared a survey to gather this information, and to collect baseline data on the local food value chain. The survey results

and contact information was distributed to survey respondents and shared with local food partners including: www.wvfarm2u.org; www.wvagriculture.org; www.pawv.org; and www.wvfarmers.org/buylocalwv.

Since the event, we have focused on broadening the outreach beyond those who attended in November. If you are interested, we would like to have your participation in this survey (click here). Also, if you know of anyone who would like to be part of our network, please refer them to the survey and/or forward contact information to info@economicoptions.org.

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Making the Connections for $$ and Health...

Local Food to Schools

CEO is working collaboratively to build sustainable local food systems. This includes helping to put the pieces in place for schools to include locally grown and processed food in their meal offerings and for local farm entrepreneurs to have incomes from these dependable regional markets.An important part of our work is to offer public information and ideas for consideration, such as the following letter to the editor that CEO sent to the Charleston Daily Mail:

"British chef Jamie Oliver and his “Food Revolution” came to our state to film a reality show about reconnecting people with the food they eat. His focus on increasing fresh foods served in school lunches has sparked debate and has been referenced in both a recent article and commentary.But the conversation started long before Oliver’s plane touched down at Tri-State Airport. Over the past few years, 9,000 schools in 43 states – including West Virginia -- have figured out how to bring fresh, local produce to their students. In Jefferson County in the Eastern Panhandle, and around the country, schools have found that serving fresh local food is possible, it can be affordable, and it is healthier for our children and youth." Read more...

Here is a WV Public Broadcasting article on a forward-looking school system that is leading the way: Jefferson County school cafeterias serve local food

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Working throughout the region

CEO is a founding member of the Central Appalachian Network (CAN) which is a collaboration of seven non-profit organizations working toward environmentally, economically, and socially sound community sustainable development. CAN is moving forward to increase the impact and potential benefits for this regional work.

CEO is actively engaged with the Central Appalachia Community College Alliance for Sustainability - a learning and innovation network that is bringing together community colleges around sustainable development. The Alliance is forging partnerships to provide education about the importance of generatign wealth in ways that produce triple bottome line outcomes - economic, social, and environmental.

Special Initiative: Sustainable Agriculture - Creating a Local Food System

CEO is working collaboratively with our CAN partners to build local food systems in our states and the region.

Growing a Local Food System from the Ground Up.

On April 14-15, 2009 CAN hosted a gathering of small-scale farmers, non profit intermediaries, funders, and consumers in Roanoke, West Virginia to discuss opportunities for developing local food systems in the region. CAN published the proceedings paper that captures the highlights, images and early outcomes of this ground-breaking event:

Growing Healthy Food Systems from the Ground Up

Two other publications - Building Sustainable Economies in a Shrinking World and Building Sustainable Economies in a Shrinking World Proceedings Paper - provide additional information about CEO and CAN.

Alternatives Newsletter - Local Food Special Edition - January 2010   

      

 

CEO's Newsletter Special Issue - Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards

 

CEO Newsletter

Acknowledgements of CEO's work include:

• Presidential Award for Excellence in Microenterprise
• Designation as a Millennium Green Project by The White House Millennium Council
• US Small Business Administration's Regional Small Business Advocate
• US Small Business Administration's Rural Business Advocate
• FIELD MicroMentor Initiative by the Aspen Institute
• Home-based Business Champion of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration
• Celebrate Women Award in the category of Business by the West Virginia Women's Commission
• Private Industry Council's Outstanding Service Provider
• CEO's retail social purpose model - Showcase West Virginia - was a featured site in the National Geographic Map Guide to Appalachia.