Note: Originally posted at SEE Change Magazine.

With titles, accolades and commitments as seemingly boundless as the 57-year-old’s energy level, Joel Solomon is a visionary, activist, mentor and investor rolled into one. I’m not sure when he finds time to sleep but here’s the current list of involvements: Board chair of Hollyhock, president of Renewal Partners, Chairman of Renewal2 Investment Fund, entrepreneur-in residence at RSF Social Finance in San Francisco and at Vancouver’s Vancity, volunteer board member of Tides Canada and Tides Foundation in the US. And let’s not forget his involvement in civic politics as an adviser and supporter of Vancouver’s green-hued mayor, Gregor Robertson.

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In celebration of its 10-year anniversary, Acumen Fund has published ten of the most important lessons it has learned from the field. The first lesson is, “Dignity is more important to the human spirit than wealth”. It lies at the heart of Acumen Fund’s core message that people seek dignity, not dependence. After reflecting on this, I asked myself if I truly understood what is meant by ‘dignity’. How do we place dignity at the center of development initiatives?

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Upon arrival to Acumen Fund’s 10 year celebration gala in New York City, the shoulders of each guest were adorned with a bright scarf. Such simple, feather-light scarves, yet somehow, mixed with celebratory and inspiring conversations, the result was a powerful embodiment of community.

10 years after Jacqueline Novogratz, CEO and Founder, registered Acumen Fund as a charity in the US, the organization has invested over $69 million in patient capital in 63 enterprises that have created 55,000 jobs and touched the lives of over 86 million people.

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The last few years have seen a proliferation of websites and business models that donate a percentage (typically 2-10%) of your purchase to charity. I call this model “marginal giving”, because the donation is harvested out of the company’s margin on a sale. That is, if a shirt costs $20, and the seller makes $10 on it, they donate a percentage of that $10.

I’m not a big fan of this model, though I started out as one.

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Global Agents for Change is excited to launch the 2011 Global Catalyst Initiative (GCI), continuing our search for some of the world's most promising early stage, market-oriented ventures tackling global poverty. Our goal is to help take high-potential projects from pilot to proof of concept, working with entrepreneurs to improve their models and dramatically increase their ability to garner further support. More information at the bottom for how you or an organization you know may be eligible for one of two $40,000 partnerships to accelerate your idea.

While this entry is mostly about a great opportunity for early stage entrepreneurs tackling global poverty, I wanted to take a moment to discuss the broader problem it serves, and why we think this is important.

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