Activities

Verde's activities are Social Enterprise, and Outreach & Advocacy.

Social Enterprise. The Verde Native Plant Nursery project is a social enterprise; it sells native plant services and materials to support Verde's tax-exempt mission. These sales generate revenue, also known as Earned Income. Verde and other nonprofit organizations develop social enterprises as a way to serve their communities and mission, and also to reduce dependence on grants and public subsidies. Other Portland-area social enterprises include Goodwill, Portland Habilitation Center and Central City Concern.

Verde will create other environmental businesses after the Nursery is sustainably established, partially through an outreach process where community members are encouraged to come forward to express their own employment and entrepreneurial ideas. Verde will work with these individuals to identify and realize environmental business opportunities that correspond to their employment and entrepreneurial ideas.

Outreach & Advocacy. Verde began for two reasons: First, the sustainable development community had not meaningfully engaged the Latino community or other disadvantaged communities. Second, community development efforts, existing efforts to create jobs and businesses for Portland's disadvantaged communities, had not seriously engaged sustainable development. So, we share our experiences with Hacienda CDC's resident community, other disadvantaged communities, Community Development groups, and with Environmental Groups, working with them to build new partnerships and connections