12.04.2007 - 11:30am ET

(CSRwire) NEW YORK - December 4, 2007 – Fast Company magazine and Monitor Group announced today that they have awarded one of their fifth annual Social Capitalist Awards to Seventh Generation, manufacturer of non-toxic household products and a pioneer of corporate responsibility.

This year's awards honor ten unique businesses and a variety of non-profit organizations, all of which have consistently made an unusually large impact on society by using the tools of business to solve the world’s most pressing problems from poor healthcare in developing nations to unequal education access, homelessness, unemployment and environmental degradation in the United States.

"This year we've seen an explosion of diverse experiments, many of them engineered by onetime Wall Street heavies, that attempt to bring new capital - and capital-market dynamics - to the realm of social good," said Fast Company Contributing Writer Keith Hammonds. "Through these deals, social entrepreneurs and businesses are raising the stakes, creating both business and social impact, and changing old-style capitalism as we know it."

Seventh Generation was honored for successfully integrating a wide range of social and environmental concerns into both its business model and bottom line. Now in it's 19th year of operation, the company continues to experience impressive annual growth rates of 40% or more and has leveraged its growing influence to engineer positive change throughout its supply chain from its vendors to its customers. Learn more about Seventh Generation's business model here: http://www.fastcompany.com/multimedia/slideshows/content/profits-purpose_pagen_8.html.

"At our company, making the world a safer, healthier place for all its citizens is as important as making a profit," said Seventh Generation President and Chief Inspired Protagonist Jeffrey Hollender. "We don't really see a difference between the two. If our activities as a business aren't enhancing the world or at least causing it no harm, then we're really just externalizing our own costs of doing business and profiting on the back of the communities we profess to serve. The fact that we've been able to build that idea into our business model without sacrificing profits or growth proves that our company is no longer an experiment. It's the future, and that future works."

For five years, Fast Company has partnered with global consulting firm Monitor Group to identify, evaluate, and celebrate top-performing organizations. The awards for for-profit businesses are offered in recognition of the important fact that companies are increasingly having a measurable positive influence on society and the environment. Organizations are rated on five critical components: social impact, entrepreneurship, innovation, aspiration and growth, and sustainability. Winners are selected by an independent advisory board and will be featured in Fast Company's December/January 2008 issue (on newsstands December 4 - Jan. 22, 2008). They will be recognized at a ceremony in Washington D.C. on Jan. 8, 2008.

2008 Social Capitalist Awards winners:

New York City-Area Winners:
Acumen Fund (NYC)
Civic Builders Inc. (NYC)
Common Ground Community (NYC)
DonorsChoose (NYC)
Endeavor Global (NYC)
New Leaders for New Schools (NYC) - 5-year winner
PeaceWorks Network Foundation (NYC)
Scojo Foundation (NYC)
Teach for America (NYC)
The New Teacher Project (NYC)
WITNESS (Brooklyn, NY)- 5-year winner
Working Today (Brooklyn, NY)

San Francisco, CA-Area Winners:
Aspire Public Schools (Oakland, CA)
Civic Ventures/Experience Corps (San Francisco)
Goodwill Industries of SF (San Francisco) – Rising Star
KickStart (San Francisco)
KIPP (San Francisco)
Raising a Reader (Menlo Park, CA)
Room to Read (San Francisco) - 5-year winner
Rubicon Programs (Richmond, CA) - 5-year winner
TransFair USA (Oakland, CA)

Seattle, WA Winners:
Mercy Corps
PATH - 5-year winner

Chicago, IL Winner:
IFF

Los Angeles Winner:
Green Dot Public Schools - Rising Star

Milwaukee, WI Winner:
Public Allies

Social Profit Winners:
Better World Books (Mishawka, IN)
Developing World Markets (Darien, CT)
Domini Social Investments (NYC)
Equal Exchange (W. Bridgewater, MD)
Herman Miller (Zeeland, MI)
New Leaf Paper (San Francisco)
Organic Valley (Minneapolis, MN)
Seventh Generation (Burlington, VT)
ShoreBank (Chicago)
SustainAbility (Washington, D.C.)

Boston-Area Winners:
ACCION International (Boston) - 5-year winner
BELL (Dorchester, MA)
Ceres Inc. (Boston)
Citizen Schools (Boston)
City Year (Boston) - 5-year winner
Housing Partnership Network (Boston)
Jumpstart (Boston) - Five-year winner
Reach Out and Read (Boston)
Root Capital (Cambridge, MA)
Year Up (Boston)

Washington, D.C.-Area Winners:
Calvert Social Investment Foundation (Bethesda, MD)
College Summit (Washington, D.C.) - 5-year winner
First Book (Washington, D.C.) - 5-year winner
GlobalGiving (Washington, D.C.) - Rising Star
Network for Good (Bethesda, MD)
Population Services International (Washington, D.C.)
RARE (Arlington, VA)
SEED Foundation (Washington, D.C.)

Atlanta-GA Winner:
Hands On Network

Houston, TX Winner:
Prison Entrepreneurship Program – Rising Star

Little Rock, AR Winner:
Heifer International

Minneapolis, MN Winner:
Community Reinvestment Fund

Redmond, WA Winner:
Unitus Inc.

Complete information on this year's Social Capitalist Awards winners, including expanded profiles and links that let you make donations to the groups you find most compelling, can be found online at www.fastcompany.com.

About Seventh Generation

Seventh Generation is the nation's leading brand of household products that protect human and environmental health. As a pioneer in corporate responsibility, Seventh Generation believes in offering people avenues to express their idealism and their commitment to causes larger than themselves.

Distributed to natural food stores and supermarkets throughout North America, Seventh Generation products include chlorine-free paper towels, bathroom and facial tissue, and napkins and paper plates manufactured from 100% recycled fiber; vegetable-based, phosphate-free, biodegradable cleaning and laundry products; chlorine-free, diapers, training pants, and natural lotion baby wipes; chlorine-free organic cotton feminine hygiene products; and trash bags made from recycled plastic. For more information, visit www.seventhgeneration.com.

About Fast Company magazine:

Founded in 1996 and acquired in 2005 by Mansueto Ventures, LLC, award-winning Fast Company magazine (www.FastCompany.com) covers the ideas, trends and visionaries that are sparking change and creating the future of business. With a total paid circulation of 746,161, Fast Company explores the profound innovation, creative breakthroughs, best and "next" practices that are driving the business world.

About Monitor Group:

Monitor Group is a leading global professional services firm working with corporations, governments, and social-sector organizations to help them drive growth. Employing over 1,500 people in 22 countries worldwide Monitor offers a blend of advisory, capability building and capital services. Headquartered in Cambridge, MA, Monitor can be reached at 617.252.2000 or on the web at www.monitor.com

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