Ethics lecture to feature international entrepreneur Tal Dehtiar
Contact: Rene Abadie
Date: April 4, 2013
HAMMOND – International social entrepreneur Tal Dehtiar, named one of Fast Company's Most
Creative Business People for 2012, will present Southeastern Louisiana University's
2013 College of Business Ethics in Business Lecture on Thursday, April 25.
The lecture, titled "Doing Good and Doing Well," is free and open to the public
and will be held in the War Memorial Student Union Theatre.
Dehtiar, 31, is the co-founder of MBAs Without Borders, an international charity
that has engaged hundreds of experienced MBAs from around the world to volunteer and
help build small and social businesses in more than 25 developing countries. In 2009,
he left the nonprofit to launch Oliberté Footwear, the first premium shoe brand manufactured
in sub-Saharan Africa.
Oliberté was not developed as a charity, but as a way of creating stable jobs, Dehtiar
says.
"The last thing I want someone to do is buy our shoes because they feel bad,"
he explains. "If the product didn't sell itself, it wouldn't matter where it was coming
from."
Oliberté's partner factories and main operation is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,
and demonstrate fair and equitable practices for men and women with a goal of contributing
to the development of a thriving middle class. The company is environmentally conscious
in its leather tanning processes and uses crepe rubber instead of toxic, man-made
alternatives.
"Mr. Dehtiar is proving that profitability and social responsibility can go hand
in hand," said Randy Settoon, dean of the College of Business. "He is part of a new
generation of social entrepreneurs who are completely redefining the corporate model.
We are pleased to host him on campus so he can share his thoughts and experiences
with our students."
A native of Canada, Dehtiar is a recipient of the Ontario Global Trader Award
and the Arch Award. He was nominated for the YMCA Peace Award and for Canada's Top
40 under 40 and Ernst & Young's Social Entrepreneur of the Year. In 2007 he was named
one of the International Young Foundation's Young Social Entrepreneurs and was recently
named one of Fast Company's Most Creative Business People for 2012.
Dehtiar received his MBA from McMaster University and holds a bachelors degree
from the University of Western Ontario.