Stanford Social Innovation Review is part of the Center on Philanthropy & Civil Society at Stanford University (Stanford PACS). The following articles from SSIR are written by scholars affiliated with Stanford PACS, with complimentary access to these articles provided by Stanford PACS. Learn more about subscribing to SSIR.
From Doing Good to Being Good: The Movement for Nonprofit Social Responsibility by Shawn Pope & Patricia Bromley
Nonprofits today are expected to go beyond their missions to adopt a wider set of commitments and values. This movement is remaking the sector in surprising ways.
The Emerging Field of Political Innovation by Johanna Mair, Josefa Kindt & Sébastien Mena
Civil society has attended to social problems for decades while intentionally refraining from overt engagement with politics. But a new field of practice seeks to reinvigorate democracy by emancipating social innovation from this stricture.
Open Social Innovation by Johanna Mair & Thomas Gegenhuber
A new approach to tackling social problems orchestrates the participation of multiple stakeholders in the process from generating ideas to scaling solutions.
Changing Systems? Welcome to the Slow Movement by Christian Seelos
System work is not about solutions; it’s about discovering and steering local pathways for change at a pace appropriate for our ability to learn and for what local communities can enact and absorb.
Innovation Is Not the Holy Grail by Christian Seelos & Johanna Mair
It is time to move from innovation as an ideology to innovation as a process.
Mastering System Change by Christian Seelos & Johanna Mair
Organizations are increasingly turning to system change to tackle big social problems. But systems are complex, and mastering the process requires observation, patience, and reflection. To begin, here are two approaches to pursuing system change.
The Ethics of Designing Digital Infrastructure by Lucy Bernholz & Lyndon Ormond-Parker
Nonprofits face a new era of making considered choices about their digital infrastructure to ensure that it aligns with their mission. The decisions that nonprofit executives and boards will make promise to transform the sector.
Globalizing Philanthropy by Eric Nee
At a time of rising nationalism and cutbacks in foreign aid in countries around the world, philanthropists play a critical role, not just in providing money, but in fostering cooperation and goodwill between people and nations.
When Innovation Goes Wrong by Christian Seelos & Johanna Mair
Efforts by social enterprises to develop novel interventions receive a great deal of attention. Yet these organizations often stumble when it comes to turning innovation into impact. As a result, they fail to achieve their full potential. Here’s a guide to diagnosing and preventing several “pathologies” that underlie this failure.
Innovate and Scale: A Tough Balancing Act by Christian Seelos & Johanna Mair
Organizations need the ability to both scale up successful innovations and create new ones, even those that challenge the status quo.