A look inside the world of social innovation with leaders from business, government, philanthropy, and the nonprofit sector.
Should the internet be regulated? In this audio lecture, Jeffrey Eisenach presents the potential for harm caused by cyberspace while outlining the challenges faced by regulation to the digital economy. In the end, he emphasizes the necessity of global institutions and frameworks to bring order to the online sphere.
In this audio interview, forecaster Paul Saffo covers a range of interesting subjects, including different methodologies for forecasting social trends. Topics he offers predictions about include global warming, the mortgage crisis, and the decline of the nation state.
In a climate resistant to government spending on social causes, the focused donations of billionaire philanthropists may be the greatest force for societal change in our world. So says journalist Matthew Bishop in this Stanford Center for Social Innovation sponsored talk. Discussing his recent book, Philanthrocapitalism, Bishop shares anecdotes, analysis, and profiles of a small group of people who are influencing the lives of many by bringing their success in capitalism to giving, rather than to making money.
What does the ability to resist marshmallows have in common with a successful life? In this fascinating audio lecture, David Brooks of the New York Times talks about neuroscience and sociology, what these seemingly disjointed topics have in common, and why they are important. He explores why some people succeed and why some people don't, and how success fits into the transformation from a global, physical economy to a global, human-capital economy.
In this audio interview, Asia Society President Vishakha N. Desai speaks with Nobel Prize winning economist and globalization "rockstar" Joseph Stiglitz on matters concerning international development. The conversation focuses on Stiglitz's concept of "the economics of information," and his latest book, Making Globalization Work. In this fascinating in-depth interview, Stiglitz discusses intellectual property rights, the shifting global balance of power, challenges facing Africa, and much more.
When huge disasters like Hurricane Katrina strike, who better to help out than the companies that provide many of the goods and services that relief agencies depend on? In this audio interview, Eric Nee, co-host of Social Innovation Conversations, converses with Tom Lehner, manager of the Partnership for Disaster Response, on how business has been providing an organized response to some of the most disruptive natural catastrophes occurring around the world over the past four years.
Vinod Khosla, Silicon Valley venture capitalist, says he used to be an environmentalist, but is now more of a "pragmentalist." In this Stanford Center for Social Innovation sponsored audio lecture, Khosla turns conventional wisdom about what passes for "green technology" on its head. He takes a hard look at how innovations such as hybrid cars and fuel cell buses may, in fact, be exacerbating our problems, and offers concrete, iconoclastic suggestions as to what science, business, and government should be focusing on instead.
In an age of consumer surplus, where people are encouraged to shop as "retail therapy," where does environmental sustainability fit in? In this panel discussion from the Commonwealth Club of California, leaders in business, design and innovation discuss why a deeper understanding of human nature will be central to a successful 21st century business strategy.
America's primary and secondary education lags behind that of other advanced countries. In this panel discussion, hosted by the New Republic, experts argue that improving the quality of education would generate enough economic growth to pay for the entire education system itself. They suggest catching up will require cooperation, national standards, better incentives for teachers, and accountability.
Companies that think about the environment as a social responsibility rather than a business imperative are living in the dark ages, says Carter Roberts, president and CEO of the World Wildlife Fund. In this Stanford Center for Social Innovation audio lecture, Roberts underscores solid business reasons why sustainability is no longer just a nice thing to do, how conservation protects business, and how his organization is addressing the economics, science, and politics of conservation around the world.
Over the last decade, social entrepreneurship has exploded on the international scene, with corresponding interest in setting up funds to support social ventures. While a whole spectrum of services exists to support the financial industry, the same isn't true of the nonprofit sector. In this panel discussion, experts talk about the need for addressing the talent gap in nonprofit managemnt along with ways to lure talented youngsters to bridge this gap.
How does an organization get through the evaluation process and live to tell about it? In this panel, part of the Stanford Social Innovation Review's conference on evaluation, funders and fundees on both sides of the table from a variety of organizations in the areas of education and social services talk about what it was like to be in the trenches of successful evaluation processes. They tease out common success factors, including how to work collaboratively across sectors and with multiple constituents.
Recent fires, floods, and foreclosures may be clear signs that we are caught in twin crises: economic downturn and environmental devastation. In this panel discussion from The Commonwealth Club of California, Van Jones and Darrell Steinberg offer a unique solution to this complex set of problems.
Aid organizations around the world are learning that they can solve their technology and infrastructure problems faster and cheaper together than on their own. Enabling that collaboration is NetHope, a nonprofit information technology consortium helping NGOs establish the technology "ecosystems" they need to serve constituencies in more than 150 countries. Eric Nee interviews Bill Brindley, CEO of NetHope, on how the consortium got started, how it works, and how it is expanding its mission.
Nonprofits tend to collect a great deal of evaluative data but often have no idea how to use it to assess their performance—particularly because doing so properly is a complicated process requiring serious social sciences knowledge. In this panel discussion, part of the Stanford Social Innovation Review's conference on evaluation, two experts talk about how an organization may better use such data—as well as "external" information in the form of theory and advice—to create a "culture of inquiry" focused on learning and improvement.
