Be Nice. Fund Results. Minimize Hassle. Help Out.

By Kevin Starr 6

The word from the trenches on how funders can make life easier for everyone.

A New Approach to India’s Water Sanitation Crisis: Part 2

By Urvashi Prasad & Semonti Basu 2

A two-part series on using systems mapping to predict a city’s capacity for adopting change.

Organizations Need to “Lean In” Too

By Mary Ellen Capek 2

Philanthropic organizations must “lean in” and confront the various ways their collective cultures get in the way.

Building Venture Capital from Within

By Ben Wirz and Juan Martinez 1

Five lessons on creating a venture capital fund inside a foundation—a look at the Knight Enterprise Fund.

Lessons of an SSIR Blogger

By John Brothers

A look back at government regulation, philanthropy, “social blank” movements, and third sector grit.

L3Cs: A Cure in Search of a Disease

By Kelly Kleiman 3

Most social problems now addressed by charities cannot be appropriately addressed by for-profit entities, whether or not those entities pledge to restrict or recycle their profits.

Foundation Collaboration: Keys to Success

By Nancy Soderberg

A look at best practices for the foundation community, drawn from the work of Connect US Fund.

Has Venture Philanthropy Passed Its Peak?

By Joanna Jacobson 4

We keep searching for the next new thing—at the expense of the tried-and-true.

Mind the Gap

By Neil Reeder 1

Stronger ties between academic evaluators and social innovators would hugely benefit both sides.

The Globalization of Giving

By Jane Wales

One of 16 special essays on how the field of social innovation has evolved and what challenges remain ahead.