Community Wealth Ventures, a Washington, D.C.-based social sector consulting firm, has announced the launch of an online database of nonprofit social enterprise ventures designed to help nonprofit leaders, foundation executives, and consumers measure and benefit from the growing use of such ventures.

By establishing business ventures, cause-related marketing partnerships, and licensing agreements, entrepreneurial nonprofits are often able to generate unrestricted revenue streams to support their services, create jobs, and expand their offerings. The new database includes hundreds of nonprofits that are supplementing their traditional fundraising revenue with income earned through such endeavors.

"It's a tremendous step forward in identifying social enterprises," commented Suzanne Aisenberg, a program officer with Atlantic Philanthropies, Inc. "This database is an important addition to the resources available to the nonprofit and foundation communities — a central place where the growth of social enterprise can be tracked and measured is greatly needed."

Community Wealth Ventures, a subsidiary of Share Our Strength, is a consulting firm that works to generate new resources for the social sector using business ventures and corporate partnerships.