Social Entrepreneurship Talk

Thursday, October 18 at 7 p.m. in Bellas/Dixon Lecture Hall

This Thursday, October 18, social entrepreneur Alvaro Rodriguez Arregui, a member of Berkshire's Class of 1985, will speak to members of the community at 7 p.m. in Bellas/Dixon Lecture Hall. He will also work with economics classes throughout the day.

Mr. Rodriguez Arregui is currently the co-founder and managing partner of IGNIA, an entity based in Monterrey, Mexico, described as, “an impact investing venture capital fund for Latin America focused on commercial enterprises that serve the base of the pyramid.” For this venture and for other efforts, he has received numerous prizes and awards. Recently, he was selected for Forbes Magazine’s Impact 30 List – a list of the world’s top 30 social entrepreneurs, a term that Forbes defines as “a person who uses business to solve social issues.” And just this summer, he was awarded a SEN (Social Enterprise Network) Sustainability Award for Economic Justice. We are especially fortunate to have Mr. Rodriguez Arregui speak considering Berkshire's commitment to inspiring a community of global citizens.

Mr. Rodriguez Arregui credits Berkshire for sparking his interest in business which began in teacher Rick Bellas's Economics class. Another of his lifelong passions started with his decision to join Berkshire's crew team during the fall of his fifth-form year: He went on to row for the Mexican Olympic team, was a Pan-American rowing medalist in 1991, and placed eighth in the World University Games in 1989. In fact, he’s still competing today and will row in the Head of the Charles this weekend. When he retired from elite rowing after the '92 Olympics, he reports, “I wanted to retire at the Head of the Charles because it was where I began my competitive rowing. So when I retired in 1992, I wore my Berkshire racing shirt.” In another case of life tending to come full circle, we are thrilled to welcome Mr. Rodriguez Arregui back to the Berkshire community this fall.