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Trifold Feedback Request

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Daniel Greenberg

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In preparation for my upcoming trip to Findhorn, Shanti and I have drafted a trifold brochure we hope you can take a few minutes to look at and offer feedback on.

Please check out the outside and inside and let us know what you find compelling or confusing and if you have any suggested edits.

We need to print this next week, so if you are able to offer any feedback by the end of the weekend, that would be great!

Thanks so much for your help!

1st Update

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Daniel Greenberg

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We are excited to share some recent update about Earth Deeds. If you are short on time and if you can only do one activity, please…

Check out our new web page, submit your email address, and complete the short survey on the Follow-up Page. Thanks!!

Okay, here’s what’s new…

New Video. We made some tweaks and improvements. Please watch and share with others.
Beta-testing. Beta testing started this past week. We are early in development, but if you are interested in helping in this way let us know. It’s fun!
Business Plan. We have a finished draft of a comprehensive Business Plan. If you are an expert with such matters, we would greatly welcome your feedback and suggestions. Let us know if you’d like to check it out.
Piloting. Daniel is working with 4 students in the Sustainable Living Class that he is co-teaching at UMass to measure and manage the carbon footprint of the class and support a campus sustainability project. Very cool!
Facebook. We’re already have over 190 likes. Please engage with us and invite others to Like our page if you can. Thanks!
Operating Agreements. Following our incorporation as an L3C we are now drafting our Operating Agreements.
Holacracy. Shanti will attend a Taster Workshop on 4/19 about this “social technology for purposeful organizations”. Please let us know if you have any experience with this organizational model as we’re considering incorporating their Constitution in our Operating Agreements.
Buckminster Fuller Challenge. We’re excited that we submitted our application this week. Wish us luck!
Mass Challenge. We submitted our application last month and are very hopeful of getting in to the largest business incubator in the world.
Funding. We are beginning to reach out to potential investors. Please let us know if you have any contacts or ideas!

A special thanks to the 100+ folks who voted on our logo design contest, we love our new logo. If you zoom in real close, you can see there are hands holding up the green continents. We dig it.

Thanks again everyone for all your support and insights.

Advisor Business Plan Review #1

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Daniel Greenberg

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Thank you again for being an Earth Deeds advisor, your time and advice means a huge amount to us.

Previously you had expressed interest in reviewing our business plan when the time was right. Well now is the time! We very soon be approaching investors and want to offer them as solid a business plan as possible.

If you can, please review the plan by Monday, April 22nd – Earth Day. Please review it from the lens of an investor, that is who this document is intended for and we want it to be as appealing as possible to socially responsible investors.

It is a GoogleDoc and you should be able to share comments directly on the document, but you’re also welcome to share your thoughts via email, phone, or in the comments section of a large check ;-).

You can access the business plan here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tDpYho7FO1SOmqby-yfKzEaXb9bjpaf5dmn0Ecn1mnU/edit?usp=sharing

If you prefer to have us send you a copy as a PDF, let us know.

Any and all feedback is most welcome … and … here are a few questions we have:

On a scale of 1-10 (10 is best), how would you rate Earth Deeds as an investment? Why?
What do you find most inspiring/intriguing about the plan?
Do you have any concerns about the plan?
What would make the plan better?
What about staffing? Are we missing key positions or can we delay others?
If you were (or are!) a potential investor, how do the Financials look to you?
Investors expect a way they will eventually recoup and profit from their investment. Would you be satisfied by our “Exit Strategy” section? If not, what more would you like to see?
Is there anything you think is missing from this plan?

If you have limited time to review it please skim quickly through the first 32 pages and take a closer look at the personnel plan, financials, exit strategy, and conclusion.

Thanks so very much for your help! Feel free to email us if you have questions about the process and/or would prefer to share your feedback via a call or meeting. And just a reminder, please do not share this plan with others without our explicit consent. Thanks!

Take care and Shanti and I look forward to hearing from you.

Logo Announcement And Update

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Daniel Greenberg

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Shanti and I have been cranking away with Earth Deeds and a lot has happened since our last update. I’m excited to share news, but first, here’s…

A few quick things you can do to help:

Watch and “Like” our 3-minute video pitch (and let us know what you think!)
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, if you use those services

Thanks! And here’s what’s new:

Earth Deeds, L3C. It’s official. We even have a bank account now for lots of money to flow into. 🙂
Logo. Over 100 people offered feedback on our design competition (Thank You if you were among them). We did some further tweaking (adding hands!) and are quite pleased with our new logo, which we will append below the signature.
Competitions. We’ve entered three so far (MassChallenge, Cornell Venture Challenge, and Valley Venture Mentors). We will enter Buckminster Fuller Challenge in a few weeks and three more next fall. Even more than potential prize money, we look forward to the valuable feedback and support these competitions offer.
Beta-testing. Shanti will soon contact those of you who expressed interest in beta-testing and I’m excited to pilot our “Minimal Viable Product” with the Sustainable Living Class I am co-teaching at UMass this Spring. We hope to do further pilots with Living Routes, Gaia Education, Findhorn and others this summer/fall.
Funding. We’re updating our business plan to v.3.0 and are now in active fundraising mode, so let us know if you have links to potential investors.

Thanks again everyone for all your support and insights. Feel free to contact us if you have thoughts or questions.

First Advisors Email

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Daniel Greenberg

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After 13 years with Living Routes, I am answering an inner call to start a new organization and would like to invite you to join its Advisory Committee.

The “big idea” is to help groups “teamfund” resources for sustainability projects based on their collective environmental impacts. I’ve been developing this idea for years as a way for Living Routes to measure and manage its programs’ carbon footprints and support projects within its hosting ecovillages.

I am now working with a friend, Shanti, to develop online tools to make this process simple for other groups and events that want to make a positive difference in the world.

But we can’t do it alone! We need others’ feedback, insights, and help. If you are interested in joining our Advisory Committee, here’s the process:

1) Sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement to say you’re not going to run off with the idea. For years, I wondered why nobody else had done this. Now that I’m “in it”, I’m less worried as I realize how complex a project it is and also that I have a rather unique set of skills and networks to make this happen. Still, I’ve been advised it is wise to ask folks to sign an NDA, just to be safe and we do ask that you take it seriously. Thanks.

2) Once you sign the Non-Disclosure Agreement you will be taken directly to a…

Video Pitch, where I share about the project in approximately 8 minutes. There’s more, but this will at least provide an overview.
Survey, to solicit your initial feedback and suggestions.

That’s it!

Going forward, we will send occasional updates and invites (to take surveys, join beta-testing groups, etc.), and engage with sub-groups based on your interests and skill sets.

Your level of participation is up to you (it’s even okay to lurk), but we’re hoping A.C. members will offer around 1 hour/month to this project (of course, more is always welcome!). This idea is too big to fit inside two heads and hearts. With your help, it can really become what it is meant to be.

Take care and we look forward to hearing from you.