I’ll take my Change grilled, with cheese please

I’ve never met a kid who didn’t love a grilled cheese sandwich . And since, eventually, many of those kids grow up and go off to college, it’s safe to say that the country’s campuses are teeming with young people who like their cheese hot, stacked between two pieces of bread, and fried in a skillet to a buttery brown crisp. In 2004, this little unassuming notion led a couple of college kids to start their own campus organization, a deli selling variations on the down home favorite, to raise funds for the fight against world hunger. Pretty big stuff for this sidekick to tomato soup, right?

Since their launch, FeelGood World has gained 501(c)3 status and operates with 24 chapters nationwide, investing over $1M in global sustainable development. Stateside, proprietors learn the ropes of running their own business/nonprofit, gain community organizing skills, and become grass-roots advocates through the organization’s built-in activist discourse. Their website lists the comprehensive investment criteria that demonstrates a serious commitment to their larger task, despite their modest focus on one of modern fare’s less ambitious culinary contributions.

But it’s in part because of this endearing simplicity that the organization has taken off. I’m sure there are dozens of similar ideas taking root and popping up, and it’s evidence that contributing to social good doesn’t need fancy bells and whistles to guide it, nor are those devices needed to launch your own movement. This team has done a brilliant job with their online presence and branding development, capitalizing – quite literally – on the ‘feel-good’ aspect of charity involvement. But I think this is a trend we will be seeing much more of, similar to the cupcake phenomenon in the for-profit sector, as people respond to the relatively low overhead costs for a hyper-niche retail product requiring little more than a kitchen, some supplies, and maybe a few, cool flourishes of the design wand. (This sort of micro-approach can be seen in contrast with other, broad-scaled attempts at crossing mission-oriented and commercial capital which have recently run into public criticisms.)

The nonprofit as business hybrid is nothing new, but recent developments have proliferated the trend as more nonprofit professionals begin to embrace the principles behind social enterprise. One of the best known and most successful hybrids is of course, 826 National, the youth writing program founded by Dave Eggers, whose operating costs are partially offset through revenue from its “‘street-front’ retail stores” that carry a kitschy trove of treasures. (Space-rocket fuel! And Unicorn Tears!)

Beyond the smiles induced by these creative ventures, they are also reminders that we can take our tasks seriously without taking ourselves seriously. And you’ve got to admit, that feels pretty good.

What’s the future of nonprofit hybrids? Will they need to trend toward micro-retail, grass-roots ventures to stay effective in their missions?

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Tagged: 826 National, college activism, do good, grilled cheese, nonprofits hybrids, world hunger

Posted in: Non Profit & Philanthropy, Social Change, Social Justice