The Federal Reserve's most recent economic survey revealed "little or no change from existing low levels of commercial and industrial lending," but one innovative social finance organization continues to make high-impact loans.

Today RSF Social Finance (RSF) announced a $400,000 loan to Workforce, Inc. (WFI) - an Indianapolis-based non-profit that employs former inmates to recycle televisions, computer monitors and other electronic waste. The loan will enable Workforce to acquire sophisticated recycling equipment that will more than double the volume of e-waste it processes. The equipment will create more job opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals while simultaneously boosting the non-profit's earned income.

Workforce, Inc. has a dual mission to help formerly incarcerated individuals successfully transition back into civil society by providing employment supported by a host of social services, and to keep as much waste as possible - especially electronic waste - out of Indiana's landfills. WFI launched its first recycling enterprise in late 2005 with two employees. Since then, WFI has grown to 56 employees and has processed over 8 million pounds of electronic waste. In the process WFI has served more than 370 formerly incarcerated individuals with a recidivism rate of 11%, a dramatic improvement over the local area average of 70%. It was these impressive results that caught RSF's attention. According to Ted Levinson, Senior Lending Manager at RSF, "Workforce is exactly the type of borrower we're looking for. They've created a business model that solves multiple social problems efficiently and affordably."

Operating out of an old RCA Television factory, Workforce manually takes apart electronics such as televisions, computer monitors, old microwaves and stereos. Armed with drills, pliers and wrenches, Workforce staff efficiently deconstruct electronics into their basic components, which are then sold onto metals processors. As Anthony Smith, operations manager for the recycling enterprise, explains, "Essentially, we are miners." On a good day Workforce's television crew can process 200 televisions or computer monitors. The copper wiring and steel is processed by a local metals processor while circuit boards are shipped to Japan, and the cathode ray tubes (containing dangerous levels of lead, mercury and hexavalent chromium) are trucked to Missouri for proper disposal.

With the new equipment scheduled to be operational in late October, Workforce expects its output to increase from 200 units dismantled per day to 200 units per hour. The room-sized system is composed of a shredder, an industrial magnet, three conveyors and a state of the art dust collection system that ensures no harmful chemicals are released into the air. With 250 million analog TVs in the U.S. and 20% of Americans possessing unused, obsolete computer monitors, there is no shortage of raw material for Workforce to recycle. "For all of you who still have that Macintosh Classic in your basement, it is time to recycle it" says Gregg Keesling, founder and president of Workforce.

About RSF Social Finance

Located in San Francisco, CA, RSF Social Finance (RSF) is a non-profit financial services organization dedicated to transforming the way the world works with money. Since 1984 the organization has made over $200 million in loans throughout the U.S. and Canada to non-profits and businesses with a social mission.

RSF's capital comes primarily from one thousand individuals who have invested $1,000 or more in the organization's Social Investment Fund Notes. Investors earn a competitive return on their money comparable to a certificate of deposit while their funds are deployed to businesses and non-profits that work in the areas of food and agriculture, education and the arts, and ecological stewardship. RSF's loan portfolio totals approximately $70 million, and current borrowers include independent schools, organic food companies, and the largest supplier of recycled office paper.

About Workforce, Inc.

Workforce, Inc. (WFI) operates as a social enterprise - a business with a social mission. The mission is two-fold - to become the recycling hub of Marion County, Indiana and to help those returning from prison have immediate, legitimate earnings combined with a broad array of social supports. The Remaking Our Resources project provides transitional jobs for recently released offenders in the emerging electronic waste recycling industry. This program seeks to keep as much electronic waste as possible out of landfills and recover the waste in a way it can be re-used in industry. WFI was the first recycler in the state to complete the stringent registration process for e-waste recycling developed by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The City of Indianapolis contracts with WFI to handle electronic waste collected at "Tox Drop" events and the state sends a portion of its end of life electronics to WFI.

RSF Social Finance

RSF Social Finance

RSF Social Finance is a financial services organization dedicated to transforming the way the world works with money. RSF offers investing, lending, and giving services that generate positive social and environmental impact while fostering community and collaboration among participants. Our growing community of clients is furthering the work of social entrepreneurs in the fields of Food & Agriculture, Education & the Arts, and Ecological Stewardship. Building the field of social finance through community-based economic practices and a productive ecosystem of social finance partners is part of our work toward a human centered culture of finance. Since 1984, RSF has made over $275 million in loans and over $100 million in grants to non-profit and for-profit social enterprises.

More from RSF Social Finance