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CEI Development Services (CDS)

Woman
CEI Development Services is an internal program which provides consulting and training to community economic development practitioners and policymakers in the US and abroad.

By drawing on CEI's extensive, multi-faceted experience gained since its founding in 1977, CDS offers practitioner-oriented services as part of its effort to build a stronger, more sustainable field.

CDS works with:

  • Emerging and established community development corporations and CDFIs such as credit unions, microloan funds, and community development banks.
  • Governmental agencies such as regional development authorities and municipalities.
  • Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and foundations.
  • Other organizations, public and private, which seek to alleviate the social and economic distress of diverse communities and populations.

Florence OlebeOur Approach:
CDS has an extensive background in providing strategic advisory services and conducting peer learning exchanges with domestic and international economic development groups. Our unique approach to consulting and training features:

  • Practitioner Orientation: As practitioners, CDS's staff have a commitment to economic and social change and hands-on experience with program development.
  • Peer-to-Peer: As peers, we understand the roles and responsibilities of all participants in designing and implementing projects.
  • Long-Term Partnerships: As partners, we seek to cultivate lasting relationships which result in the creation and development of joint ventures that contribute to our respective organizations, the communities we serve, and to the broader community economic development field.

For more information on consulting and training opportunities, please click here

International Experience:
CDS has served as a training and peer learning site for more than 200 economic development practitioners from 15 countries. We have conducted on-site training and feasibility analyses for CDCs in Africa, and Central and Eastern Europe. Practitioners from Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Slovakia, France, Northern Ireland, Nova Scotia and South Africa have joined us for multi-day programs. CDS activities have been supported by the Ford Foundation, the World Bank, USAID, USIA, The Department of Commerce, German Marshall Fund, Rockefeller Foundation, and many others.

For more information on our international experience, please click here

For more information on CEI Development Services, please contact:

Ronald L. Phillips, President
36 Water Street, PO Box 268
Wiscasset, Maine 04578
207/882-7552; FAX: 207/882-7308
E-mail: rlp@ceimaine.org

or

Ellen F. Golden
Senior Vice President, Development
efg@ceimaine.org
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CEI IN THE NEWS!

U.S. Finance Expert Encourages Banking Investment in Maine Communities
At CEI's 32nd Annual Meeting, Ellen Seidman, Exec. VP of ShoreBank in Chicago, and Sr. Research Fellow with the New America Foundation in Washington, DC, urged Maine bankers and community activists to consider “greater community investment…meeting the actual needs of the community, not just counting dollars invested.” See full speech.

See annual meeting remarks by Ron Phillips, CEO, on triple bottom line investing and the next 5 years for CEI…

See the 12/14/09 article on CEI and the state of investing in communities. It’s where mission happens…

CEI Receives $125 Million in NMTC  Through its subsidiary, CEI Capital Management LLC, CEI will use the allocation to attract private capital investments for primarily rural economic development projects. See press release here.

CEI Receives Investment Funds
In partnership with Manufacturers Association of Maine, CEI will receive $765,000 over from the Federal Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Community Services (OCS), to finance several job-generating small-to-medium enterprises. This funding will create 78 full-time, year-round jobs.  Read press release here. 

Bangor Savings Bank and CEI offer low-interest loans to small and medium-sized enterprises in disadvantaged areas in Maine. Read more here.
BLUETARP - Building a Business in the Building Industry

Brian Rigney Blue Tarp
When Brian Rigney worked on construction jobs during summer vacations while a student at Colby College in Waterville, he saw the inefficiency in the piles of receipts and invoices that accompanied every purchase. As he pursued an MBA, this problem stayed with him, and in 1998 BlueTarp, Inc. was born.

As a growing company, BlueTarp needed capital. CEI Ventures, Inc., one of CEI's two socially responsible venture capital subsidiaries, invested in BlueTarp, because of its potential to generate above average financial returns while meeting social goals, including job creation for low-income people. BlueTarp expects to employ 50 people within the next four years.

36 Water Street, PO Box 268, Wiscasset, ME 04578; Telephone: 207/882-7552; FAX: 207/882-7308; E-mail: cei@ceimaine.org