The beginnings of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) were fraught with uncertainty. Initially surviving entirely on donations, it has since earned back two pennies for every one it has spent on welfare activities, and is today the largest, self-reliant international NGO, employing more than 97,000 people. In this audio lecture, Fazle Hasan Abed reminisces about the organization's humble beginnings and shares the organization's achievements.
Professor Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of Grameen Bank, changes traditional principles of banking by putting poor people's needs first. Today, Grameen Bank is a powerful organization that supports poor people by providing microloans, credits, and banking services. In this audio lecture, Yunus describes the reasons behind his philosophies and how they have led to the launch of new enterprises in various industries in Bangladesh.
If sustainability is to be woven into all human activities, tomorrow's leaders will be required to understand how their organization interacts with its environment. In this audio lecture, Stanford Graduate School Professor Bill Barnett looks at the new leadership challenges facing executives in business, government, and nonprofit organizations with an environmental purpose. Barnett now offers the first of its kind executive education leadership program designed to advance environmental responsibility across sectors.
Based in Silicon Valley, Kiva is an innovative social enterprise that uses the internet to connect lenders with small businesses around the world. In this audio interview, Jessica Flannery talks with Design for Change host Sheela Sethuraman about starting the organization, and reflects on some of the reasons for its rapid growth and success.
The traditional approach among human rights groups in Nigeria had been accusatory: publicize injustices or sue the government. But in January 1998, on the eve of democracy, an NGO called the CLEEN foundation set out to reform law enforcement from within.
In this audio lecture, Michael Pollan and John Mackey take their year-long blog discussion live in front of an audience of Berkeley foodies. In response to Pollan's critiques of Whole Foods' practices, Mackey describes some of agriculture's less savory practices, lays out his vision for a more sustainable and humane food system, and unveils Whole Foods' new consumer-education initiatives.
The answers to a motivated workforce may lie in ancient Greece.
SSIR Academic Editor Jim Phills sat down with former NBA superstar Kevin Johnson to discuss how he's revitalizing his old inner-city neighborhood.
One of the greatest human rights abuses is sex trafficking. Millions of women and girls each year are tricked, trapped, bought, sold, and forced into service in sex industries. In this audio lecture, Dechen Tsering explores the causes of trafficking and the techniques used by traffickers. She advocates a holistic approach to stop this grave violation against women and describes the work Global Fund for Women undertakes in Southeast Asia and around the world toward this end.
