(Photo by iStock/franckreporter)
The 2021 Frontiers of Social Innovation Conference: “People, Power, Resources: Enacting an Equitable Future” featured senior leaders of nonprofit organizations, philanthropy, academia, business, and government addressing how the social innovation community can respond to a world struggling with a global pandemic, continued racial injustices, and assaults on democracy. SSIR's editors recapped the virtual conference and assembled a list of articles related to the sessions.
Skip to a Session Recap
- Session 1: Systems Work Is Not a Thought Experiment, It’s a Continual Practice
- Session 2: Could This Be the Future of Our Economic System? A Discussion on 'Mutualism'
- Session 3: Rapid Talks: Driving Policy Change and the Need for Government
- Session 4: Philanthropy, Healing, and the Journey to Decolonization and Antiracism
- Session 5: Who Owns Poverty? Who Should?
- Session 6: Philanthropy Has Been Wrong About Rural America for Too Long
- Session 7: When the Wall of Exclusion Comes Down, Everybody Benefits: Overcoming Ableism
- Session 8: What Data Makes Possible: Access, Inclusion, and Participation
- Session 9: Power to the People: Creating Social Movements That Have Impact
- Session 10: Valuing Nature in Decisions for Climate and Planetary Security
- Session 11: New Approaches to Global Development
- Session 12: Rapid Talks: Citizen-Led Social Innovation and Societal Platforms in Egypt and India
- Session 13: Youth Activism and the Future of the Global Climate Movement
- Session 14: The World That George Floyd Made: Can Social Innovation Rise to Meet the Moment and Its Demands?
Session 1: Systems Work Is Not a Thought Experiment, It’s a Continual Practice
Francois Bonnici of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, Cynthia Rayner of the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, René Parker of RLabs, Clarita Arboleda of Fundacion Escuela Nueva, and Arbind Singh discussed the concept of “systems work” and its emphasis on the “how to” of systems change.
"The only way to change the world is to change one person's world." —@ReneParker (@RLabs) speaking about systems work at #SSIRFrontiers. pic.twitter.com/Sz7nUe7CUp
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
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Session 2: Could This Be the Future of Our Economic System? A Discussion on 'Mutualism'
Sara Horowitz, founder of the Freelancers Union, former labor lawyer, and former chair of the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and Eric Nee, editor-in-chief of SSIR, discussed an intergenerational approach to developing cooperative, mutually beneficial economic mechanisms within our societies.
“Mutualism: an alternative model of how society can best be organized to meet people’s needs.” A conversation between @Sara_Horowitz (@freelancersu) and @SSIReview EIC Eric Nee (@ericnee) at #SSIRFrontiers pic.twitter.com/tUsFw7p23R
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Democratizing Economic Power to Break the Cycle of American Inequality
- The Entrepreneurial Union
- Private Equity, Public Good
Session 3: Rapid Talks: Driving Policy Change and the Need for Government Transparency
Heather Hurlburt of New Models of Policy Change at New America and Blair Glencorse of Accountability Lab discussed broken norms, policy change, and the need for greater government transparency.
"The key change we're facing now is not polarization but instead is power shifts. We are living through a set of power shifts unprecedented in human history." — @natsecHeather (@NewAmerica) at #SSIRFrontiers on the change we need to prepare for. Read more: https://t.co/15bMQiTNna
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
To address the many forms of inequity "systems change is now imperative" says @blairglencorse (@AccountLab) at #SSIRFrontiers. "At the heart of these problems is governance, the way in which we should manage people, power & resources." More on @AccountLab: https://t.co/Hw8IvPHE1x
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Rebuilding Trust in American Institutions
- Equity, Power-Sharing, and Renewal of Civil Society
- SSIR Guide to Influencing Public Policy
Session 4: Philanthropy, Healing, and the Journey to Decolonization and Antiracism
Edgar Villanueval of Decolonizing Wealth Project and Liberated Capital, and Hilary Pennington of the Ford Foundation discussed how leaders can seek expertise from people of color without being extractive.
“I’m surprised by how welcoming folks are for this conversation, what before was a super uncomfortable conversation.” — @VillanuevaEdgar (@DecolonizWealth) at #SSIRFrontiers. Read his article on decolonizing wealth and "money as medicine": https://t.co/9P7EvSxRPp
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
On transformative grantmaking, @hpennington_ (@FordFoundation) says at #SSIRFrontiers: “Each foundation has to figure out how to disrupt itself. [But] there’s a limit to how far the traditional foundations can go.” Read her and @etzel's related article: https://t.co/CLKFkUNaUo
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 11, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Building Indigenous Power in Philanthropy
- Shifting Power to Communities in Grant Funding
- Time to Reboot Grantmaking
- Retaining Future Spending Power Is the Wrong Priority
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Session 5: Who Owns Poverty? Who Should?
Martín Burt of Fundación Paraguaya discussed popular approaches to poverty reduction, their relative successes (or lack thereof), and why new “bottom-up” models (like the one currently being used by his own Poverty Stoplight) may lead to a new era of success in addressing the issue.
"If we incorporate the poor of the world as active protagonists in their own well-being, we will be in a better position ... When people own the definition of their problem, they're willing to work toward the solution." — @martinburt (@fundaparaguaya) at #SSIRFrontiers pic.twitter.com/3uMC4sg5qN
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 12, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Give a Man a Fish, and You Feed Him for a Day. Give a Family Cash, and You Feed Them for…a While
- Do Financial Inclusion Efforts Really Have an Impact on Poverty?
Session 6: Philanthropy Has Been Wrong About Rural America for Too Long
Kim Syman of New Profit, Wizipan Little Elk of REDCO Ecosystem, Gerry Roll of Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, and Karama Neal of Rural Business-Cooperative Service discussed challenges that philanthropists frequently cite as barriers to funding organizations in rural communities.
“What we know about small towns is that people are looking for permission to be heard, and space to be heard … in our work, 'community' and 'capacity' means an anchor.” — Gerry Roll (@appalachianky) at #SSIRFrontiers pic.twitter.com/7oITa9aLqU
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 12, 2021
Go Deeper:
Session 7: When the Wall of Exclusion Comes Down, Everybody Benefits: Overcoming Ableism
Ryan Easterly of the WITH Foundation, Carol Glazer of the National Organization on Disability, Diana Samarasan of the Disability Rights Fund and the Disability Rights Advocacy Fund, and Haftan Eckholdt of Understood discussed different methods for supporting access and fighting ableism.
"The best example of ableism's outdated views of disability is medical rationing in the early days of COVID, when doctors needing to ration care were allowed to make their decisions based on age or perceived quality of life." — @CarolGlazer (@NOD_ItsAbility) at #SSIRFrontiers. pic.twitter.com/5TsyMokd2l
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 12, 2021
Go Deeper:
Session 8: What Data Makes Possible: Access, Inclusion, and Participation
Cordell Carter of the Socrates Program at the Aspen Institute, Blair Palmer of UNICEF USA, and Stuart Campo of Data Responsibility and the UN OCHA Centre for Humanitarian Data discussed data as a public good and service and the role data plays in advocating for minority communities.
“The concern is that we’re going to see a major blip: a year of K-12 students not achieving what was expected [due to COVID-19]. These equity issues underneath our society are bubbling up … data can tell you what's what.” — @cordellcarterii (@AspenSocrates) at #SSIRFrontiers pic.twitter.com/xRgpEgEypm
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 12, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Education Decision Makers Need More Timely, Actionable Data
- Big Data for Social Innovation
- Fighting COVID-19’s Disproportionate Impact on Black Communities With More Precise Data
- How Philanthropy Can Help Lead on Data Justice
Session 9: Power to the People: Creating Social Movements That Have Impact
Hahrie Han of Johns Hopkins University and Arisha Michelle Hatch of Color Of Change discussed the vital role social movements play in society.
"In 2015, something started to shift. There was this sort of national, global uprising, and ... we began to explore what we could do differently." —@arishahatch (@ColorOfChange) at #SSIRFrontiers. Read her article on criminal justice reform: https://t.co/H7Xo9DCeqh
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 12, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Fixing Democracy Demands the Building and Aligning of People’s Motivation and Authority to Act
- Re-Envisioning the Roles of Prosecutors and Attorneys General to Make the Justice System Work for Everyone
- Grassroots Organizing and Preparing for the Unprecedented
- Book Excerpt: How Technology Shapes Social Movements
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Session 10: Valuing Nature in Decisions for Climate and Planetary Security
Gretchen Daily of the Natural Capital Project discussed green and inclusive development.
"How much nature should we protect? How do we integrate conservation & regeneration of nature with human livelihood for win-win sorts of outcomes? How do we track progress?" — Gretchen Daily @NatCapProject at #SSIRFrontiers shares Qs to ask when making finance & policy decisions. pic.twitter.com/aUxBMSC2om
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
Go Deeper:
- A Social Movement for Conservation
- Want to Make America Prosperous Again? Bet on Nature, Not Fossil Fuels
Session 11: New Approaches to Global Development
Jim Bildner of the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation, Frank Aswani of Africa Venture Philanthropy Alliance, Abby Maxman of Oxfam America, and Jeroo Billimoria of Catalyst 2030 discussed how older aid organizations are changing what they do.
“It's the social entrepreneurs who are at the front line and who are starting to take charge to make the difference.” —@JerooOneFamily (@Catalyst_2030) at #SSIRFrontiers on COVID-19 responses in India. pic.twitter.com/TQbrsoLpQg
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Radically Adapting to the New World
- Lessons From India on Scaling Up Market-Based Solutions
- Demystifying Machine Learning for Global Development
- Doing Development Differently (Learn more about subscribing to SSIR)
Session 12: Rapid Talks: Citizen-Led Social Innovation and Societal Platforms in Egypt and India
Sanjay Purohit of EkStep Foundation and Mona Mowafi of RISE Egypt discussed using shared platforms to engage communities and connecting the right dots to enable systems change.
"In India, more is different. It's not about figuring this out in 10 schools and how can you replicate it." —@SanjayPurohitM (@SocietalPlatfrm) at #SSIRFrontiers on identifying effective education solutions in a complex nation. pic.twitter.com/O9LftS06gJ
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
"Systems change is not just administrative. It is formative and transformative at a human level. ... You can never have a non-inclusive process and end up with an inclusive end." —@MonaMowafi (@RISEEgypt) at #SSIRFrontiers. More on systems change: https://t.co/tUDv3xmX9g
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
Go Deeper:
- A Nonprofit Networked Platform for Global Health
- How NGOs Can Work With Governments to Build Partnerships That Will Scale
- The ‘Thou Shalt Nots’ of Systems Change
Session 13: Youth Activism and the Future of the Global Climate Movement
Dana R. Fisher of the University of Maryland talked with young climate activists: Edgar Sánchez from Mexico, Isao Sakai from Japan, and Sophia Kianni from the United States.
For activists to refine the impact of protests, @zegthekidd at #SSIRFrontiers urges them to "protest for a specific concrete goal" by focusing on particular places, such as a polluting refinery in his native Monterrey. Read about funding protest movements: https://t.co/xiwh8TG2lK
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Protest Movements Need the Funding They Deserve
- Africa’s Climate Activist (Learn more about subscribing to SSIR)
- SSIR’s 2021 Guide to Climate Change Solutions
Session 14: The World That George Floyd Made: Can Social Innovation Rise to Meet the Moment and Its Demands?
Cheryl L. Dorsey of Echoing Green spoke about the social innovation community's response to systemic racism, authoritarianism, power shifts, and other issues shaking the world.
"Social innovation really gives us the permission structure to question and target the status quo." —@cheryldorsey (@echoinggreen) at #SSIRFrontiers. Explore roles to play within a movement for social change: https://t.co/lhZSrnPUBG
— Social Innovation (@SSIReview) May 13, 2021
Go Deeper:
- Should You Agitate, Innovate, or Orchestrate?
- The Struggle to Overcome Racism
- Overcoming the Racial Bias in Philanthropic Funding
- Getting Political Is Good for Everyone
- SSIR Guide to Overcoming Polarization
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