Crowdfunding Challenge for Social Entrepreneurs launched

 

The Skoll Foundation, in partnership with The Huffington Post, has launched its first fundraising challenge  to support social entrepreneurs raise money through an innovative crowd-funding platform . The Skoll Social Entrepreneurs Challenge  is hosted by actor and activist Edward Norton’s Crowdrise platform and has the potential to leverage up to $1 million  in prize funding from the Skoll Foundation, including $ 250,000 in dedicated prize money through daily and weekly challenges and up to $ 750,000 in additional matching funds to be shared equally by all participants as fundraising thresholds are reached during the campaign. 

The prize funding will go to the groups that raise the most through the Challenge. The top fundraising organization will receive $ 50,000; the runner-up will receive $ 40,000; and the organizations in third place through fifth place will receive $ 30,000, $ 20,000 and $ 10,000 respectively. Plus, an additional $ 100,000 in bonus prizing will be awarded throughout the Challenge.

The initiative is the third such competition run by The Huffington Post and The Skoll Foundation, following the JobRaising Challenge, which leveraged more than $1.2 million in donations for job-focused nonprofits, and the RaiseForWomen Challenge, which brought in more than $1 million in donations for women's causes. 

Organizations participating in the Challenge are recipients of the "Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship" and represent some of the most successful entrepreneurial organizations in the world. 

The Skoll Social Entrepreneurs Challenge will run  through November 22.