Ashoka

In Sanskrit, Ashoka means "the active absence of sorrow," and was the name of an Indian emperor from the third century B.C. who was one of the earliest social innovators. With this legacy, Ashoka was founded in 1980 to empower social entrepreneurs with financial backing and networking support. Ashoka's Web site is rich with information about the many initiatives and projects the organization is involved in, from its Small Producers Initiative to its Citizen Base Initiative that promotes "creative resourcing" focusing on local development and funding sources. The site's main strength is its global aspect—it covers Africa, Asia, Central Europe, Latin America, and North America—reporting on developments in social entrepreneurship around the world. A hallmark of Ashoka is the Ashoka Fellows Program—an elite group of 1100 Fellows from 41 countries sponsored by Ashoka to further economic development via social enterprise.