Market research into what entrepreneurs need and want in terms of products and services

Impact evaluation, client satisfaction assessment, and monitoring for microfinance institutions

Institutional evaluation of microfinance and microenterprise development institutions

Channeling socially responsible capital for microfinance institutions and fair trade

We provide training, technical assistance, and information services to staff, boards, donors, and other non-profit institutions.

We are celebrating 28 years of service and 17 years of working internationally in this rewarding work.

Some members of the IDEAS team have been working together in community development since 1975. In 1977, Carter Garber founded our US periodical, Southern Communities, and served as an Editor for a decade. Its purpose is to provide information services to those who are doing grassroots development. For more information on our 26-year-old periodical, see our “Newsletters/Publications” page. In 1982, Carter and other leaders incorporated the efforts as a US tax-exempt non-profit, called Southern Neighborhoods Network, Inc. Now doing business under the broader name of IDEAS, we continue the same purpose and services for which we were founded: providing training, technical assistance services, periodicals and information to community economic development efforts in developing communities.

In 1986, some members of the IDEAS team began working together internationally to bring the same types of services to Latin America. Since then our area of services has continued to expand to Africa and Asia. Please see “Our Services” page for more information.