Articles P6970

Social Innovations

Moral Hazard

By Peter Manzo 2

The financial crisis threatens hopes to expand opportunities for underprivileged young people, but we can't afford not to invest in them.

Nonprofits

Robert Sutton - Building a Civilized Workplace

How do you spot an asshole in the workplace—or figure out whether you might be one? Robert Sutton, author of the best-selling book, The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't, provides a sure-fire test and offers tips for keeping your "inner jerk" from rearing its ugly head on the job. Drawing on serious research and analysis, Sutton shows his Stanford 2007 Nonprofit Management Institute audience how managers can eliminate mean-spirited and unproductive behavior.

Sakena Yacoobi - Creating Hope for Afghan Women

During turbulence and social upheaval most people retreat into themselves and focus on only one task—survival. Fortunately for the women and children of Afghanistan, Sakena Yacoobi did more. With only $20,000, Yacoobi formed what is now the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL). Until the fall of the Taliban in 2001, AIL operated underground. AIL now serves 350,000 women and children each year. Yacoobi explains her vision for AIL to Design for Change host Sheela Sethuraman as well as her incredible journey and experiences along the way.

Nonprofits

R U Ready 2 Lead?

By Albert Ruesga

To weather the impending crisis in nonprofit leadership, we must mentor young talent.

Global Issues

Majora Carter - Sustainability and Environmental Justice

In this audio lecture, Majora Carter talks about sustainability and environmental justice. Tracing the development of the South Bronx Greenway, Carter discusses community involvement within a neglected area that generates jobs, strengthens people's community spirit, and creates sustainable industries to meet the future ecological vision for New York City.

Joshua Silver - Bringing Vision to the Masses

In the United States, at least 60% of the population wears corrective lenses. Worldwide, in contrast, only 5% of the population does. Such statistics have led Josh Silver, Oxford atomic physicist, to conclude that more than half the world needs vision correction but doesn't have access to it. In this audio lecture, host of the Center for Social Innovation at Stanford, Silver shares how he decided to "do something useful for the world" by creating specialized, liquid-filled corrective lenses that are now worn by some 26,000 people in developing countries.

The Funding Gap - Thumbnail

The Funding Gap

By Michael Chertok, Jeff Hamaoui, & Eliot Jamison

Social enterprises combine the best of the nonprofit and for-profit worlds, but that very innovation has made it difficult for them to raise money. Philanthropists are reluctant to give grants to profit-making organizations, and commercial investors are wary of investing in organizations that are driven by a social mission. The authors explore the social enterprise capital market and offer short- and long-term solutions to this funding gap.