Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship (SESE) was formed for exclusively charitable, educational, and scientific purposes as specified in Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code, including for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code. Specifically, Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship conducts research in developmental economics, the adverse effects of corporate corruption, and the potential benefits of the presence of multinational corporations in developing economies while also educating the general public on its findings through regular program meetings, a book club, and an annual community forum.
According to statistics published by the National Fraud Center, the costs of economic crime have risen from $5 billion in 1970 to $100 billion in 1990. Economic crime is commonly known as white collar crime and includes crimes such as antitrust fraud, bankruptcy fraud, bribery, computer fraud, credit card fraud, counterfeiting, embezzlement, identity fraud, insider trading, insurance fraud, kickbacks, money laundering, obstruction of justice, perjury, and price fixing. Furthermore, according to statements published by the World Bank in 2001 (the most recent year that data is available from the World Bank), 1.1 billion people in the world had consumption levels of less than $1 per day, a standard of extreme poverty. A total of 2.7 billion people lived on less than $2 a day, a standard of moderate poverty, during the same time period. While these statistics may paint a dismal picture, research published by economist Xavier Sala-i-Martin suggests that world poverty levels are dramatically decreasing due mostly to large, converging economies that have been globally integrated such as China and India. An important issue facing our converging world is how to direct and control the powerful forces of globalization towards productive ends and how to prevent and limit corporate crime in the process.
Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship will fund the research of members in developmental economics. Members of Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship will then publish academic papers with their findings. Research and working papers of current members include the topics such as the effect of microlending and microbusiness development on impoverished areas in developed economies and the effects of the presence of multinational corporations on infrastructure and institutions in developing economies. Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship will also fund special research trips to developing areas of special concern to the United States such as Juarez, Mexico where much of the adverse and positive effects of NAFTA are manifested. Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship has run one previous trip to Juarez, Mexico which consisted of research into the economic development effects of multinational corporations and policies such as NAFTA on both the United States and Mexico. Seven members attended the trip and in addition to conducting research, they participated in the construction of a classroom in Juarez, Mexico. They also mentored and tutored middel-school students in the United States for whom English was a second language in preparation for the trip to Juarez. After the trip was completed, participants lead a community discussion open to the public at the University of Denver on both their research and their experiences in Juarez. Future trips to Juarez and other parts of the world affected by NAFTA, CAFTA, and other similar foreign policy agreements to which the Unite States is tied are planned.
Regular program meetings of Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship occur at least once every quarter at the University of Denver campus through a partnership with the on-campus student organizations, DU Rotaract and Economics Club. Meetings are advertised to the public through flyers and all members of the community are welcome to attend. Presentations and updates on individual research projects is presented and discussed among all attendees at the regular program meetings. Annual community forums are held at the Donald R. Seawell Grand Ballroom centrally located in Denver at the Colorado Convention Center. The venue is rented and paid for by Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship. The event is open to the public and is advertised through leaflets, flyers, and direct mailings. The community forums will consist of presentations made by members of Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship followed by a question answer period, guest speaker presentations, and small discussion groups involving attendees. The event will be recorded and archived using equipment provided by the venue.
Students Engaged in Social Entrepreneurship is run entirely by volunteers. SESE’s office and meeting space, located at the University of Denver, is open to the public during advertised regular program meetings. The space itself is reserved by DU Rotaract and the DU Economics Club, student organizations on the University of Denver campus who are not required to pay for the venue.
