On April 2nd, Social Enterprise Greenhouse (SEG) will celebrate the 2015 SEG Accelerator graduates and the Grand Opening of the SEG Hub. Join SEG from 5:30PM-8:30PM for a public pitch event, get a sneak peek of some of the region’s new innovative startups, and tour Rhode Island’s first social enterprise co-working and educational space. This event will be held at 10 Davol Square Suite 100 in Providence, the new SEG Hub headquarters developed through a lease and programmatic partnership with ​Brown University.

“SEG is thrilled to have a space where the growing social enterprise community can convene, collide and collaborate. Already, more than 30 leading impact entrepreneurs and ventures are calling the new Hub their home. We could not have made the Hub vision a reality without the generosity of our partners at Brown University. We are so grateful,” said Kelly Ramirez, CEO of SEG.

During the past five years, SEG has served Rhode Island’s social enterprise sector by providing services that support social enterprises at every stage of their venture development, from ideation and start-up to scaling revenue and impact. SEG’s portfolio of more than 150 social enterprises, including Amos House (a large-scale social service agency) and Capital Good Fund (a nonprofit providing financial services to underserved families), have created 750+ jobs and improved thousands of lives with job training, neighborhood development, educational services and more.

The leasing of the space at Davol Square is one of many ways that SEG has partnered with Brown University’s Social Innovation Initiative over the past several years. Each year Brown and SEG co-organize the SEEED Summit, a two-day national social enterprise conference that takes place on the Brown campus.

A student-run organization of over 100 volunteers called SEEED@Brown drives the conference, which brings over 750 social entrepreneurs, practitioners, business leaders, academics, impact investors, students, and policymakers to campus each year. 

In addition, Brown and SEG have teamed up to develop and launch a learning accelerator for potential social entrepreneurs, which offers curriculum on Brown’s online learning platform, as well as face-to-face workshops, coaching and advising through SEG. Sixteen ventures are participating in the current cohort, including two led by Brown students and one by a recent Brown graduate.

Partnering to open this new Jewelry District space, SEG and Brown aim to make the SEG Hub a home for the growing social enterprise movement in Providence.

“Brown congratulates Social Enterprise Greenhouse on this exciting next step of opening the Hub. We are thrilled to be able to provide SEG with a space at 10 Davol Square, as their tenancy complements Brown’s vision of helping to create a vibrant community in the Jewelry District and fostering economic development and social enterprise in Providence,” said Russell Carey, executive vice president for planning and policy.

10 Davol Square is a multi-tenanted commercial property, owned by Brown since 2007. SEG will be adjacent to the recently renovated space for Brown’s TRI-Lab program – an initiative for students, faculty, and community practitioners to work together to inquire and learn, conduct research, and create positive social impact in Providence and Rhode Island. Other major building tenants include Coastal Medical, a leader in the healthcare industry dedicated to improving health and wellness throughout Rhode Island and southeast MA, and The Providence Plan, an organization dedicated to the social and economic well-being of Providence.

“Together, everything is possible,” said Mark Marosits, Co-Founder of Worldways Social Marketing. “That’s why Worldways Social Marketing is opening a satellite office in the new collaboration space developed by Social Enterprise Greenhouse. We’ll have the opportunity to share our 18 years of experience with new entrepreneurs, learn from other thought leaders, and simply enjoy the company of fellow social enterprise passionistas!”

With special remarks from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressman David Cicilline, SEG and Brown University believes the Hub is a game changer for RI’s economy — RSVP now! Food and drink from many of SEG’s new neighbors in the jewelry district will be served.