The founding members of the Haas Social Venture Business Plan Competition at the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley believe in harnessing the potential of business to help create a more just and equitable society. This Competition promotes the development of new business ventures that weave together traditional financial and economic models with innovative solutions to social and environmental problems.

Students at the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley have created the Haas Social Venture Business Plan Competition because we are:

• Excited about the potential impact of "social return on investment" and other cutting-edge business practices on community, culture, and the environment;
• Motivated by the need for the private sector to address societal concerns to sustain its unprecedented growth and to create a more just society;
• Inspired by the extraordinary potential of business to innovate solutions to complex social and environmental issues; and
• Encouraged by the growing recognition that wisely employed socially responsible business practices increase the economic value of businesses.

The Haas Social Venture Business Plan Competition exists to:

• Challenge conventional solutions to pressing social and environmental concerns;
• Inspire business school students and alumni to innovate and apply socially conscious business practices; and
• Encourage the investment community to support new mission-driven business ventures that simultaneously promote social responsibility and profitability.