Group of activists with linked arms protesting in streets (Photo by iStock/Halfpoint)

At the intersection of power and social change are questions about using power responsibly, holding individuals and institutions accountable, and addressing power structures that reinforce systems of inequity. Understanding these dynamics will inform the day-to-day work of social sector leaders and help them shape the future of social innovation.

The 2022 Frontiers of Social Innovation conference, “Power at Play in Social Change,” is being convened online March 22-24 and will use power as a lens to examine the strategies and practices commonly used, and still emerging, in the field of social innovation today.

This reading list explores topics related to each session of the conference, including shifts in power, place-based social change, citizen/government collaboration, changes in philanthropy, and public interest technology. If you’re joining the conference, these articles may serve as a foundation for the discussions to come. If you’re unable to attend, we hope they are a valuable resource for conversations happening across the field.

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Power for All: Harnessing Power for Positive Impact

Harvard Professor and co-author of the book Power for All Julie Battilana and SSIR Academic Editor Johanna Mair will discuss the fundamentals of power, debunk the common myths surrounding it, and discuss how to harness power for positive impact in our lives and in the world.

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Redefining Power: The Emerging Field That Puts the Public Interest in Front of Technology

Jenny Toomey of the Ford Foundation, Charlton McIlwain of NYU, and Hana Schank of New America, will explore ways in which public interest technology is making critical contributions to designing systems that are more equitable than those commonly used today and help expose the power dynamics at play in the current tech field.

The Good Lobbying Movement: Reclaiming Lobbying as a Social Innovation Practice

Alberto Alemanno, Jean Monnet Professor of Law & Public Policy at HEC Paris, will discuss today’s negative conception of lobbying in an attempt at unleashing its social change potential.

Trust Between Government and Citizens: The Key to Responsiveness?

Jasmina Haynes of Integrity Action, Arman Azizyan of the Armavir Development Center, and Aidan Eyakuze of Twaweza East Africa will explore how we can scale up citizen/government collaborations from problem-solving within communities to tackling some of the biggest challenges facing societies, such as COVID-19 and climate change—moving from a transactional social contract to a collaborative “social compact.”

Tackling Income and Wealth Inequality: In Conversation With La June Montgomery Tabron

La June Montgomery Tabron, president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and Eric Nee, editor in chief of SSIR, will discuss income and wealth inequality, what interventions are working and what are not, what the Kellogg Foundation is doing to address this problem, and what it has learned that other organizations might benefit from.

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Race to Power: Dismantling Global White Privilege

Chandran Nair, founder and CEO of Global Institute For Tomorrow, will lead this session inspired by his most recent book: Dismantling Global White Privilege: Equity for a Post-Western World. Nair, who resides in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, will discuss white privilege’s pervasive global reach and aims to create a new space for discourse on worldwide racial equality.

Funding BIPOC Communities Through Intermediaries—The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

This session, moderated by Aaron Dorfman of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy, will explore the forces driving the trend to fund communities through intermediaries and dig into the benefits—and the potential disadvantages. Panelists include: Crystal Hayling of The Libra Foundation and Democracy Frontlines Fund, Michael Roberts of the First Nations Development Institute, and Gloria Walton of The Solutions Project.

Shifting Power Through Place-Based, Community-Governed Investments

In this session, presenters Andrea Armeni of Transform Finance, Aditi Vaidya of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Aaron Tanaka of Center for Economic Democracy will showcase community-engaged approaches—ranging from direct democratic voting over investments to having community representatives on boards—and their potential to create social change.

Envisioning an Equitable Future—Sustainable Funding for BIPOC-Led Social Change

In this session, Darren Isom of The Bridgespan Group, Lyell Sakaue of The Bridgespan Group, and Tarik Ward of the ELMA Philanthropies Services will facilitate a group reflection on a future in which BIPOC-led efforts to build racially equitable systems are abundantly resourced and deliver impact for all of us.

How Restorative Economics Can Lead Us Towards a Just Transition

Nwamaka Agbo, CEO of the Kataly Foundation and managing director of the Restorative Economies Fund, will share her restorative economics framework and its origin story as a tool she created to guide her own movement building work.

Trust-Based Philanthropy in Practice: In Conversation With Rohini Nilekani

In conversation with Stanford PACS executive director Priya Shanker, Rohini Nilekani, a noted activist, writer, and philanthropist whose foundation, Nilekani Philanthropies, is located in Bangalore, will share her thinking on the role of trust-based philanthropy in building effective and ethical solutions to social and environmental challenges.

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From Hunger to Health: Democratizing Development With Data

Drawing on data-driven innovations in global health and hunger as a lens for examining broader issues of power and social change across the philanthropic sector, Action Against Hunger Canada CEO Onome Ako will lead this session featuring speakers Hajir Maalim, regional director for the Horn and Eastern Africa; Heather Stobaugh, senior research and learning specialist; and América R. Arias Antón, country director for Peru, Bolivia, and Paraguay.

To Unlock the Power of Data, First Build Trust

Data holds the power to tackle society’s greatest challenges and improve lives across the globe. Ginger Zielinskie of data.org, Rachele Hendricks-Sturrup of the National Alliance Against Disparities in Patient Health, and Rey Faustino of Alluma will share the findings of RECoDE, the Rising Equitable Community Data Ecosystems project. The panelists will discuss the impetus for the project, which reached nearly 500 people through a series of surveys, interviews, and convenings; the thought behind the novel methodology; and the potential impact of their real-world application.

Bolstering Fragile Neighborhoods: How ‘Going Local’ Helps Disadvantaged Americans

Seth Kaplan, professorial lecturer in the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, will moderate this session featuring Geoffrey Canada, president of Harlem Children’s Zone; Othello Meadows, managing director, Portfolio Strategy & Initiatives at the Blue Meridian Partners; and Shirley Franklin, the 58th mayor of the City of Atlanta. They will explore the idea that a “prevention society”—a strong society that supports and advances all its members—is only possible when philanthropists, policymakers, and local leaders collaborate across sectors to catalyze lasting change.

Workplace Democracy Doesn’t Happen by Accident: Collective Bargaining as a Powerful Tool

Sarita Gupta of the Ford Foundation and Erica Smiley of Jobs With Justice will explore case studies and theories around collective bargaining in the workforce, focusing heavily on dismantling white supremacy and gender discrimination culture in the labor force and in approaches to building worker power.

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