The first ever Haas Social Venture Business Plan Competition fits into a whole series of opportunities for students to explore business ethics and socially responsibility through their MBA coursework, extra-curricular activities, and outside lectures. This student-initiated competition enables MBA students from across the country to benefit from the opportunity to think deeply about harnessing the power of business to create a just and equitable society.

• Annual Peterson Lecture on Business Ethics (last year’s speaker was William Reilly, former head of the US Environmental Protection Agency)
• MBA elective entitled Corporate Social Responsibility (last year’s speakers included Jeffrey Swartz, CEO of Timberland; Ray Anderson, CEO of Interface, Inc.; Amory & Hunter Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute; George Zimmer, CEO of Men’s Warehouse; Simon Pestridge of Nike)
• Travel support for MBA’s to Net Impact Annual Conference (enabled 32 students to attend the 1999 conference at University of Michigan, giving Haas the highest representation of all MBA schools)
• Annual Ethics Workshop for MBA students (30-40 students attend each year)
• Haas Public Speaking Competition on Ethics / Socially Responsible Business

• Travel support for MBA’s to annual Nonprofit Case Competition
• Nonprofit Career Consulting Services
• Alumni Dinner linking current MBA’s with Non-profit alumni leaders
• Support for Nonprofit Summer internships

Moving forward, multiple initiatives are proposed to expand this burgeoning program, including a lecture series on philanthropy, a hands-on grant making course and a course in ethics for undergraduates, and expanded funding for current courses.