Utopia Foundation

The Utopia Foundation was founded in 2007 by Paul Sutherland, along with a dedicated core group of board members committed to helping people express their good intentions in local and international communities by investing in sustainable humanitarian aid projects.

Following thoughtful discussions in 2007, the Board agreed the world did not need yet another new non-profit organization, but would benefit through the support of existing organizations that place a high priority on sustainability.   To take action toward this goal, we decided to target our effort and resources toward organizations that recognize the responsibility of attending to the needs of the current generation, while enhancing the opportunities for future generations, and remain mindful of the economic, social and environmental impact of our initiatives.

Current and Past Initiatives

In 2008-09 the Board members agreed to invest in a unique micro-loan program in northern rural Michigan, in the industry of agriculture and agro-goods.  A prototype Borrowing Group will be developed based on information gathered from focus groups that identify the area of need for this region. The model Group Borrowing  system will consist of individual micro-enterprises, accompanied with a strong educational component, that is based on a very successful program located in a rural agricultural area of Guatemala, that administers micro-loans to over 14,000 sustainable micro-enterprises.

Also in 2008-09, the Board members agreed to invest in a unique micro-loan program in western rural Guatemala.  The Foundation has formed a partnership with a local non-profit organization to implement Borrowing Group and Educational Systems model that assists in building economic, social and environmental sustainability of the individual and the enterprise.  Utopia Foundation is currently sponsoring five Borrowing Groups with micro-loans representing over fifty micro-enterprises in rural Guatemala.   There are twelve more Borrowing Groups in the same geographic area that are awaiting funding and being considered by the Utopia Foundation for this fiscal year.

In 2007-08, the Utopia Foundation Board members focused on EDUCATION by co-hosting a conference highlighting Corporate Leadership and Sustainability Summit. Introducing international experts to the local community, the audience also consisted of leaders from regional corporations, non-profit organizations and charitable foundations, all considering the benefits and power of aiming toward economic, social and environmental sustainability.  The long term advantage of  ‘doing well, by doing good’, was highlighted in current corporate practices, while positively impacting the triple bottom line.

The Utopia Foundation was honored to have collaborated with co-sponsors for the success of this summit with: the Traverse City Chamber of Commerce, and Northwestern Michigan College.