NextBillion brings together the community of business leaders, social entrepreneurs, NGOs, policy makers, and academics who want to explore the connection between development and enterprise.
Our Staff Writers and Editors offer insights on the latest news, events, interviews and other happenings from the development through enterprise and base of the pyramid universes
April 2, 2008 — 10:36 am
Though I'm no longer on WRI and NextBillion's staff, I'm glad to announce the release of WRI's latest What Works business case study, CareShop Ghana: Improving access to essential drugs through conversion franchising. This study is authored by Joel Segre (Harvard Business...
January 7, 2008 — 12:49 pm
I'm sad to say it's time for me to sign off as a member of the NextBillion staff. I remember joining World Resources Institute and the NextBillion staff in June 2005. NextBillion had just been up and running for two months. Take a look at this old screenshot and you'll notice the...
October 25, 2007 — 07:25 am
Boston Consulting Group has been conducting extensive primary research into the spending habits and lifestyle of a segment of the population it identifies as the "next billion." The "next billion" are economically better off than the poorest of the poor, but earn just less...
August 24, 2007 — 09:43 pm
In high-income countries, asthma is usually a nuisance, but among the rural BOP, asthma can be a costly and deadly disease for victims who are unable to access treatment locally. Eric Green, a medical student at Stanford University, traveled to Mexico last year as part of a group from his...
July 27, 2007 — 04:49 pm
Note: We were notified that the version of the case study, What Works: Scojo India Foundation, released on 6/20/07 was found to have citation errors. The case study has since undergone revision and is now again available for downloading. The version available here is the authoritative final...
July 20, 2007 — 02:33 pm
I'm happy to introduce our newest staff writer, Ana Escalante, to the NextBillion community. Ana has joined our team as a summer intern. She has a long-held interest in international development, having observed first hand the effects of poverty and inequality in her community in...
July 18, 2007 — 03:35 pm
Ashoka's Changemakers competition, "Disruptive Innovations in Health and Health Care" closed today, and it looks to be a treasure trove of business model innovations that are bringing health solutions to the BOP. There are entries from microinsurance, franchising, direct selling,...
July 11, 2007 — 06:42 pm
I'm very happy to announce the release of the WRI business case study, What Works: Mi Farmacita Nacional, authored by Enrique Coronado ('08), Christina Krettecos ('07), and Yvonne Lu ('07) of Columbia Business School. Mi Farmacita Nacional, a fully for-profit pharmacy...
June 28, 2007 — 06:47 pm
Abhay Clinics in India reaches BOP markets through a business model not yet discussed on NextBillion--product franchising. Whereas business franchisors provide franchisees with a complete business format--from administrative processes to branding and products--manufacturers that run product...
May 14, 2007 — 02:18 pm
I had the good fortune to attend the conference "Mobilizing the Private Sector for Global Health Development," organized by the McLaughlin-Rotman Centre, Program on Life Sciences and Global Health at the University of Toronto, from May 2-4. The food was really good. The conference...
