Camarillo, Calif., Feb. 23, 2010 – Area residents will have the unprecedented opportunity to hear Dr. Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom Winner, speak on Friday, Feb. 26, at 4:00 p.m., at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.

As founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, Dr. Yunus has been instrumental in creating a business model which advances economic and social development through a system of micro loans made to the poorest of the poor. The list of his awards and recognitions is lengthy and the impact of his social business model profound.

As the practice of microfinance evolved over the past 25 years, Dr. Yunus began to engage corporations in joint ventures to invest in social businesses with Grameen Bank. These enterprises, which have addressed economic and social networking for women, and for their families, in third world countries, have brought about dramatic and positive change and are sustainable because they are based on sound business principals rather than philanthropy.

On the morning of Feb. 26, Dr. Yunus will participate in CI’s annual Campus Reading Celebration, leading the discussion of his book, Creating a World without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism, which was chosen as this year’s selection. He will also launch CI’s California Institute for Social Business (CISB) which will be part of CI’s ever expanding curriculum. Yunus will serve as mentor and advisor to the program.

At 4:00 p.m., the general public is invited to join students from CI, Ventura, Moorpark, and Oxnard Colleges at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza to discuss social business and the newfound corporate interest in this type of endeavor.

The general public can purchase tickets by visiting www.ticketmaster.com or the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza box office at www.civicartsplaza.com or 805-449-ARTS.

CSU Channel Islands is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

CSUCI Mission Statement
Placing students at the center of the educational experience, California State University Channel Islands provides undergraduate and graduate education that facilitates learning within and across disciplines through integrative approaches, emphasizes experiential and service learning, and graduates students with multicultural and international perspectives.