The document outlines the creation of the Transnational Immigrant Innovation Network (TIIN), which aims to address the financial and social needs of low-income immigrant communities through innovative solutions and partnerships. It discusses various scenarios for leveraging diaspora capital and creating tools such as a transnational index to enhance awareness and opportunities for these communities. The document highlights the organization's mission to foster scalable innovations that improve community systems and their commitment to developing resources for immigrant populations.

1. Knight Foundation Briefing
Transnational Immigrant
Innovation Network
Alvaro Lima & Peter Plastrik
Innovation Network for Communities
(April 2008)

2. What if… (scenario 1)
 Diaspora Capital
 financial entity-driven investment in immigrant
communities
 community financial fitness centers
 remittance-based philanthropy for immigrant
communities
2

3. Low-income Immigrant Needs Versus Financial Offerings
Financial Needs of Low-income Immigrant
Cashing Checks
Paying Bills
Sending Money to
Families Bills Payment
Borrowing ( short
term loans, e.g.
payday loans)
Savings & Loans Small Check Cashing
Savings
Deposit Accounts Money Transfer
Mainstream Financial Institutions Non- Financial Institutions
Source: Alvaro Lima and Peter Plastrik, 2005.
3

4. Full-service Portfolio Structured to Serve the Life-cycle Needs of Immigrants
Insurance and Investments
Financial Education offered throughout the Life Cycle
BUILD • Health, life, auto, and home insurance
WEALTH!! AND • Savings bonds, pensions, other investment options
• Pension plans
GROW • Equity investments & Asset management
• Philanthropic investments
Credit and Loans
• Deposit secured emergency loans
RETAIN • Education Loans
CREDIT
• Flexible small business and home financing
• Enhancing credit history
Savings & Other Asset-building Products
CONVERT • Traditional savings accounts with some non-traditional features
• IDA-like accounts with more flexibility
SAVINGS • Children’s savings accounts
• Credit history building
Transactions & Payments
ATTRACT • Check cashing
INCOME AND • Bills payment
• Money transfer (remittances)
ACQUIRE • Value cards
• Low/No minimum balance deposit accounts
4

5. What if… (scenario 2)
 Digaai.com
 2 million Brazilians around the world:
 communicate home with each other (social
networking)
 register their experience/build unique archives
through video, photos, etc.
 search newspapers, magazines, websites, etc.
 contribute to Brazilian diaspora wiki
 store personal information using private web space
5

6. 6

7. What if… (scenario 3)
 Transnational Index
 What:
 Data and survey-based ranking of communities by their
degree of transnationalism
 Published annually in partnership with national media
 Why:
 create awareness among policy makers of transnational
phenomena
 identify social and commercial innovation opportunities for
transnational immigrant communities
 build consciousness among transnational immigrants of
unique potential 7

8. Designing the Index
8

9. Why We Are Here
 We are creating the Transnational
Immigrant Innovation Network (TIIN)
 We are designing a prototyping 1 st
generation TIIN products
 We are seeking partners and investors for
TIIN (tap into Knight’s knowledge,
connections, and investment)
9

10. Our Track Record
 Pete
 Founder and President of Innovation Network for Communities (INC)
 Founder of University Preparatory Academy, Detroit, 1200 students
 Consultant to Community, Family and Private Foundations
 Grantee of Ford, Kellogg, Barr and Joyce Foundations
 Journalist, Booth Newspapers, Michigan
 State of Michigan, Chief Deputy Director, Department of Commerce
 Co-author of two books on Reinventing Government
 Alvaro
 Managing Director, Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC)
 Economic Development Director, Urban Edge CDC, Roxbury, MA
 Board member & Partner, INC
 Research Director for City of Boston & Advisor to Mayor Menino
 Board Member, Brazilian Immigrant Center, Boston, MA
 Advisor to Senator Jose Sarney, Former President, Brazil
 Board Member, VERITAS Latino Bank, Lawrence, MA
 Advisor for Heron’s Community Investment Index
 Member of the Governor Commission on Immigrants and Refugees
 Director for Economic Development, Ministry of Industry, Mozambique 10

11. The Transnational Lens
Traditional Lenses: Transnational Lenses:
immigration conceptualized as a bipolar relation immigration conceptualized as flows of cross-
between sending and receiving countries (moving border economic, political and social-cultural
from there to here) activities (being here and there)
emigration is the result of individual search for emigration is the result of geopolitical interests,
economic opportunity, political freedom, etc. global linkages, and economic globalization
migrants are assumed to be the poorest of the migrants are not the poorest of the poor nor do
poor they come from the poorest nations
immigrants occupy low-skilled jobs in growth in the service and technology-based jobs
agriculture, construction, and manufacturing create opportunities for low as well as high skilled
migrants
Immigrants steadily shift their contextual focus, After the initial movement, migrants continue to
economic and social activities to receiving maintain ties with their country of origin
country
immigration should not bring about significant immigration creates hybrid societies with a richer
change in the receiving society cultural milieu
11

12. A Transnational Immigrant
Innovation Network
12

13. 1st Generation Innovation Portfolio
Digaai.com
Transnational Index
Diaspora Capital Services
English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
Transnational Fellows
Research Projects (transnational immigrant organizations)
Publications
13

14. Innovation Network for Communities
(Governing Ideas)
Mission:
To develop and spread scalable innovations that transform
the performance of community systems.
Vision:
To establish a national network of innovation development
networks with the capacity to:
Develop next-generation innovations in collaboration with
“laboratory” communities; and
Facilitate importing and exporting of innovations by
communities 14

15. INC Core Hypotheses
 IT’S A DISCIPLINE. The process of social innovation in
communities can be systematized into a replicable
practice at the community level
 SYSTEMS CHANGE REQUIRES INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS.
Systems change at the community level requires the
ability to assemble an “ensemble” of innovations and
integrate them together in a place
 COMPLEX SOCIAL INNOVATIONS REQUIRE SPECIALIZED
CAPACITY. Social innovation at the community level can
be supported and accelerated by a network of well-
capitalized social innovation hubs that specialize in the
design and development of social innovations for
community systems
15

16. Our Partners…
• Council for Adult and • Humboldt Area Foundation
Experiential Learning (CAEL) • Tillotson Trust
• Center for Neighborhood • New Hampshire Charitable
Technology (CNT) Foundation
• I-GO Car Sharing • Northern Forest Center
• Jobs for the Future (JFF) • Detroit Network for Social
• New Urban Learning Innovators
• Aspen Institute • Living Cities
• RW Ventures • YMCA-USA
• Western Union • West Michigan Strategic Alliance
• Continuous Quality • Michigan Economic Development
Improvement Network Corporation
• Sustainable Systems • MI Dept of Labor & Econ Growth
• Corporation for Enterprise • New Urban Learning
Development • ACT
• Shorebank Corporation • Ford Foundation
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17. The Grand Design
Urban Earl
Sustainability Transnational
Community
Innovation y
Communities
Early
Infrastructure
child Childhood
Double
Bottom Line A network of well-capitalized social innovation networks
Family
Investment with a defined innovation agenda for community Empowerment
systems
Civic
Adult Etc., Etc., Etc.
Engagement Urban
Workforce
Education
Development
Distribution systems that efficiently connect communities
with innovation hubs.
Detroit
Northern
Living Cities California
Network Northern New
Hampshire
Pittsburgh A network of communities that are intentionally building
community innovation infrastructures NW Louisiana
Boston Etc., Etc., Etc.
Bay Area West 17
Michigan

18. Detroit Portfolio
Project Partners Stage
More Good Schools New Urban Learning; Henry Ford Learning Prototype
Incubator Institute
Greater Detroit Network John Heiss, Fort St. Presbyterian Church; Prototype
for Social Innovators 10 core NGO partners
Creative Industries Charlene Johnson; Edgar Vann; Brian Tell Design
Strategy
Center for Community Deborah Olson; 25 advisors Design
Based Enterprises
Auto Innovation MEDC; Original Equipment Supplier Start-up
Accelerator Association; Detroit Renaissance; Center
for Automotive Research; Oak Ridge
National Lab
Entrepreneurship Keith Cooley (DLEG Director, INC Board Design
System member)
Remittances Maha Freij, ACCESS Prototype
Development Fund
Double Bottom Line Sustainable Systems (Oakland, CA) Market
Fund Feasibility
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19. Building the Transnational
Immigrant Innovation Network
 Scanning
 Partnering
 Innovation Design and Prototyping
 Capital Raising
 Establish Formal Network
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20. Progress to Date
 Transnational Frame
 Research, articles, presentations and
conferences
 Developing products
 Launching Digaai.com
 Index field research
 Developing partners for Diaspora Capital
 Design ESOL
 Developing the network
 Advisory board
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 Funding partners