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19-2-2008 id:98

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Distinguished Professor Dr Meena Galliara from NMIMS University, Mumbai, India will deliver an open lecture on "Social Entrepreneurship: The Case of India"

Dr. Meena Galliara, Professor and Chair of Social Entrepreneurship at NMIMS University in Mumbai, India, will be visiting AUEB to give a series of lectures within the framework of the course "The Entrepreneurial Journey" to the International MBA students. In addition to the course lectures, Dr. Galliara will be delivering an open lecture, entitled "Social entrepreneurship: The case of India". Social entrepreneurship refers to a particular point of view of entrepreneurship, focusing on innovative entrepreneurial activities to solve immediate social problems. This can be achieved through a number of ways, from combining management and operations in commercial enterprises with their resulting social impacts, to innovating for social impact or still to catalyzing social transformation well beyond the social problems that are the initial focus of concern.

In India there is a strong belief that all three approaches to social entrepreneurship have considerable utility and India has been recognized internationally for being host of leading social entrepreneurs. These experiences will be illustrated in the presentation with the help of a number of case studies including: a) Excel Industries, a pioneer in the area of crop protection chemicals, whose Environment and Biotech Division is deeply engaged in sustainable management of urban environment and agriculture, b) Agrocel, another chemical company that presents front-line approaches to eco-production and fair trade, and c) Mahila Milan, a citizens' initiative of community organization and micro-entrepreneurship that received award by the United Nations for success in Human Rights initiatives. The cases will specifically focus on social entrepreneurship that have created innovative solutions to immediate social problems, and which have led to mobilization of ideas, capacities, resources and social arrangements required for long-term sustainability. These cases present innovative efforts to solve persistent social problems of poverty and marginalization. To some extent they have been successful in scaling up their impacts for catalyzing social transformation.

Dr. Meena Galliara holds a Master's Degree in Social Welfare Administration from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, and her doctoral research is in the area of Social Responsibility of the Corporate Sector towards Community Development. She is also a recipient of the International Fellowship of the Government of Netherlands. Prior to joining SVKM's NMIMS University, she was a full time faculty member of the Department of Social Welfare Administration, Tata Institute of Social Sciences. In 1999-2000 she received a fellowship from Business and Community Foundation, which is the Indian arm of the Prince of Wales Business Leaders Forum, London. As an outcome of this fellowship she has published a manual titled 'Sahaveeryam': Manual for Managing and Sustaining Sustainable Partnerships amongst Cross Sectors. She is actively involved with the NGO sector in Maharashtra, India, and has also conducted innovative field action action projects in the area of management of rural entrepreneurship through self-help groups. Her major research work has been in the area of political empowerment of women at the grass roots and exploring cross-cultural issues affecting business and community development. In 2004-2005, Dr. Galliara was adjudged as the Best Faculty of NMIMS. In recognition of her efforts in teaching, research, training and consultancy to NGOs, the Bombay Management Association conferred the Best Faculty Award to her in July 2005. In 2007, she designed the Part-Time MBA Program in Social Entrepreneurship for which NMIMS won the prestigious 'Social Innovation Golden Peacock Award' in January 2008.

Dr. Galliara's talk is co-sponsored by the Embassy of India in Greece. The Rector of AUEB, Professor Gregory Prastacos and the Ambassador of India, Mr. Dilip Sinha will be attending the lecture and will be addressing the audience.