Capital Access Program

Our goal is to build the capacity of key businesses and nonprofit organizations to support, create and scale green jobs in our local communities. We do this by providing tools, like research papers, reference guides and how-to toolkits. By addressing issues regarding employment, procurement and access to capital, we seek to empower our stakeholders -- particularly those constituents coming from historically marginalized areas -- to engage in policy decisions both locally and nationally.

CAP has released five publications that are intended to make green business more accessible and comprehensible. These guides cover a variety of useful topics, and contain a wealth of information for those seeking to either start their own green business, or "green" their existing business.

Check out the reports.

• Business Guide to the Recovery, and the accompanying webinar with officials from the Small Business Administration and the Department of Energy
  

• Business FAQs about the ARRA
• Overview of Urban Farming
• Overview of Green Retail Real Estate
  
• Other helpful resources (links with brief description of how each can help)
  • FedBizOpps: This site is the U.S. Government's one-stop virtual marketplace. Through this single point-of-entry, commercial vendors and government buyers are invited to post, search, and retrieve opportunities solicited by the entire federal contracting community.
  • Minority Business Development Agency: This is the only federal agency dedicated to advancing the establishment and growth of minority-owned firms in the United States. Through a network of minority business centers and strategic partners, MBDA works with minority entrepreneurs who wish to grow their businesses in size, scale and capacity.
  • Environmental Protection Agency "Small Business Gateway": This federal agency provides a gateway to environmental information and contacts for small businesses.

Small businesses provide more than 70 percent of America's jobs. The Capital Access Program is committed to increasing the capacity of these emerging businesses and entrepreneurs -- particularly those owned by women or people of color -- to be leaders in the green economy. Through online and offline content, the Program seeks to improve the business skills, social capital and financial support of green business.

Introductory Entrepreneurship Workshops

Below are links to a wealth of introductory workshops that provide helpful instruction – in English and Spanish – on how to start your own business or social enterprise.  These workshops, provided by SCORE, are tremendous resources that explain the fundamentals of entrepreneurship in a very easy-to-follow manner.  While they admittedly do not address critical issues around eco-equity, it is important to note that any successful green enterprise must first learn and master these principles.  There are also handy tools within each workshop, such as a Worksheets section, which allows participants to apply the teachings to their business idea, and a Glossary, in case anyone does not understand a certain term.  Regardless of where you are in the entrepreneurial process, and whether you’re attempting to start a for-profit or nonprofit social enterprise, each of the 10-15 minute workshops below (listed in no particular order) contains something for you.

• Assessing Your Organization's Financial Needs
• Partners and Investors 
• Developing a Business Plan
• Creating a Strategic Plan
• Building a Website
• Conducting a Market Analysis
• Targeting Your Market
• Determining Your Business Legal Structure
• Promoting Your Business
• Advertising Your Business

CAP is pleased to offer green entrepreneurs business coaching and mentoring support. For early stage start ups, CAP has built a group of professional, certified business coaches who are dedicated to providing select leaders from small businesses and social enterprises with the sort of valuable professional insights that can help their organizations mature and grow.

Learn more about the Business Coaching program »

For entrepreneurs with at least 3 years of operating experience, CAP has partnered with Accenture to launch a business mentorship program for green entrepreneurs. Accenture business mentors will work with entrepreneurs to address challenges in core business competency areas such as financial operations, hiring policies, marketing, and customer service.

Learn more about the Business Mentorship Program »

Applications for both programs are now available and must be submitted by January 1, 2011.

The Capital Access Program (CAP) is partnering with the University of Phoenix to convene a series of Business Academies aimed at supporting green entrepreneurs and small business owners – particularly those coming from low-income communities and communities of color.

Given the historic marginalization of these demographic groups, it is imperative that they be provided with the knowledge and networks necessary to be successful within the emerging green economy. While there are plenty of resources available that explain how to write a business plan, small business owners need to be connected to local organizations and community stakeholders that can collectively help them grow their enterprises.

To date, CAP has organized seven business academies, in Albuquerque, NM, Portland, OR, Denver, CO, Philadelphia, PA, Atlanta, GA, Seattle, WA, and San Jose, CA.

• Read feedback about our first Academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, 
• Find our more about our second event in Portland, Oregon. 
• Our third Academy took place in November 2010 in Denver, CO.
• Our fourth Academy (February 25, 2011) focused on Philadelphia's growing green infrastructure industry.
• Our fifth Academy supported Atlanta green entrepreneurs in April 2011.
• Our sixth Academy focused on Seattle's home performance industry in July 2011.
• Our seventh Academy was held in San Jose, CA, in September, 2011.

Our next Business Academy will take place in Nashville, TN on April 2012. Check out the Nashville RSVP page for more details.