Group+4+Whole+Planet+Foundation

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Case Study Wiki Group 4- Whole Planet Foundation Video: Margaret Madrid, Clint Bucchauser, Casey Rogers, and Brittani Libring Wiki: Elizabeth Locano, Grace Francis, Jamie Reyes, and Jenae Owen

MEET THE WHOLE PLANET FOUNDATION By: Elizabeth Locano

The Whole Planet Foundation is a nonprofit organization that was created by Whole Foods Market—a North American based grocery store “selling the highest quality of natural and organic products” (wholefoodsmarket.com)— in collaboration with Professor Muhammad Tunus and his microfinance organization Grameen Bank. The foundation was established back in October of 2005 when Whole Foods Market sought to extend their cause of giving back to the community by finding a way to empower entrepreneurs in global communities (wholeplantfoundation.org).

With over 270 stores Whole Foods Market now has the capacity to focus on giving back to the global community, and they are doing so by teaming up with microfinance institutions such as Grameen Bank that offer grants and services to low-income countries that source some of Whole Foods’ products and also demonstrate a potential for financial stability in the future. The first Whole Planet grant was issued to Grameen Trust in April of 2006 to go towards a microfinance program in Costa Rica and set the stage for more projects such as their latest efforts in Nicaragua. Furthermore, through global connectivity the Whole Planet foundation works to ignite creativity and energy in the human spirit by giving those poorer countries that they’ve partnered with an opportunity to learn and harness new skills that can help them to rise above poverty (wholeplantfoundation.org).

WHY HELP THOSE WHO HAVE HELPED YOU? By: Grace Francis

Whole Foods was founded on a set of basic values that they use to guide their business practices. Two of them were used as fundamental building blocks for the Whole Planet Foundation. Whole Foods cares about their community and environment by helping organic farmers through their commitment to expanding the market for organic goods. They also strive to create ongoing win-win partnerships by looking for partners who are committed to the idea of “transparency from farm to fork” in respect to creating and supplying products of the best quality possible.

The Whole Planet Foundation came about as an extension of Whole Foods core value to be continuous active participants in the community. Whole Foods understands the importance of giving back to those who have helped them on the road to becoming a successful business. The Whole Planet Foundation is committed to alleviating poverty in the developing countries that supply their marketplaces with product. Whole Foods aims to give back by encouraging energy and creativity in the self-employed poor. Whole Planet is a great opportunity for a successful company to give back to their communities. If you are interested, there are a few ways to join Whole Foods and donate to the Whole Planet Foundation. A donation of any size can be sent in by mail or submitted online at the website. Another way to become a donor is by forming a group of your family members, friends, or even your business and together raising money to be given to an entrepreneur. Whole planet publicizes their efforts through social media sites such as Facebook, where you can see pictures and twitter where you can find updates of their latest grants! For more ways to get involved visit the Whole Planet involvement page [|by clicking here].

WHAT'S BEEN ACCOMPLISHED SO FAR! By: Jamie Reyes Since 1980, Whole Foods Market continues to enforce entrepreneurship, core values, customer and employee satisfaction and community involvement. These values led Fortune to award Whole Foods Market as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” every year since its inception //(Whole Planet Foundation)//.

Whole Planet Foundation was launched to fight poverty in rural areas around the world, which influenced recognition toward the power of micro-financing to alleviate poverty where products were sourced. Since then, Whole Foods Foundation partnered with Nobel Laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Trust to invest over $3 million in microfinance projects in Latin America and India. Whole Planet Foundation’s success plays a critical role in its expansion to include the following MFI organizations: Pro Mujer, Adelante and others working to increase Whole Planet Foundation’s global commitments to over $5 million with an objective to increase the investment each year (//Whole Planet Foundation).// Grants have enabled micro-financing institutions to offer loans to more than 10,000 micro-entrepreneurs and to emancipate their entrepreneurial attitudes.

Whole Planet Foundation and Whole Foods market believe in microcredit as being one of the most entrepreneurial-minded approaches to alleviating global poverty, which led the organization to support microcredit programs and activities that continue to empower entrepreneurs //(Whole Planet Foundation).//

EVALUATING THEIR PROGRESS By: Jenae Owen

The effort of Whole Planet creates a positive brand for the Whole Foods organization. The relationship created by Whole Planet is very important for the company because they receive a large amount of product from the countries involved in their micro lending project. This mission also portrays Whole Foods as a charitable, honest organization overall to the public. Individuals in these benefiting countries will have respect and gratitude for Whole Foods and will want to continue business with them in the future. Whole Foods strives for all of their ingredients to be natural and organic, (wholefoodsmarket.com) and because most of these ingredients are only available in Asia, Africa, and Latin America it is clear how important these countries are to Whole Foods.

Whole Foods and Whole Planet really care about the countries that they are giving microcredit to. The loans given to these countries do not profit the store directly, and there is no collateral involved (wholeplanetfoundation.com). Whole Planet encourages individuals to think as entrepreneurs and to use the innovation to help the overall society. Some challenges Whole Planet might encounter include effectively monitoring what the loans are used for and if the businesses’ are making progress.

The history of poverty and hunger in countries that contribute products to American companies has been an ongoing issue. Companies often take advantage of the fresh products and cheap labor but do not care about the communities. The current impact of Whole Planet is creating a difference in the lives of people living in impoverished countries with micro financing.

WHAT IT ALL COMES DOWN TO By: Grace Francis

Whole Foods and the Whole Planet foundation have worked tirelessly for the past 7 years to stay connected to their community. They encourage everyone to take part in their efforts to help the people who have made their company a success. Through the concept of micro crediting they found an innovative way to increase prosperity and creativity in the developing countries where farmers provide Whole Food markets with products. The reach of Whole Planet’s goodwill is global with most of the lending occurring in the impoverished regions of Africa, Latin America and Asia they have helped over 130,000 clients. It’s important to the Whole Planet foundation that the results of their work are both immense and lasting. The Whole planet foundation is an inspiring organization and a true example of what it means to give back to your community.

References 1). Whole Foods Market IP, L.P.(2011) Values Overview. Retrieved from []  market.com/values/

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2) White Lion (200-2011) Whole Planet Foundation. Retrieved from []  foundation.org/

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">3)Whole Planet Foundation: Facebook. Retrieved October 25, 2011 from [] .com/#!/wholeplanetfoundation 4)Whole Foods Market. (2011). Products Overview. Retrieved from []

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5)Whole Planet Foundation. (2011) Empowering Entrepreneurs in our Global Community. Retrieved from []

Casey Study Wiki Group 4: Whole Planet Foundation <span style="color: #05adad; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: center;">Video: Margaret Madrid, Clint Bucchauser, Brittani Libring, and Casey Rogers  <span style="color: #05adad; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: center;">Wiki: Grace Francis, Elizabeth Locano, Jenae Owen, and Jamie Reyes