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A Model for Restoring the Rust Belt

Deindustrialization hit Chicago's south suburbs hard. Can the Southland Development Authority breathe new life into the area and promote a template for reviving regions?

Changemaker U.

By Nimesh Ghimire

Patrick Awuah launched Ashesi University as an institution of higher learning thoroughly shaped by social innovation. While it began by borrowing ideas, methods, and credibility from elsewhere, it has evolved into a uniquely Ghanaian enterprise that is a model for Africa and the world.

Tolon’s World

By Christian Seelos, Nazik Beishenaly & Johanna Mair

One Kyrgyz entrepreneur had an ambitious vision for transforming his country into a vital, independent nation free from its Soviet past. He reverse-engineered that vision into a stepping-stone strategy that is already having enormous impact in Kyrgyzstan and beyond.

Building an Adaptive Metanetwork to Fight Climate Change

By S. Aqeel Tirmizi & Timothy G. Staub

EcoAmerica has developed a network to inform and coordinate other networks to push for climate action. With a reach of 60 million individuals across the United States, it offers important lessons for other large-scale efforts to overcome wicked problems. | Open access to this article is made possible by ecoAmerica.

Reimagining Conservation at WWF

By Lisa F. Canova & Katherine Tatarinov 1

For 65 years, the WWF has led global conservation efforts in more than 100 countries. But as environmental challenges escalated in recent decades, the organization found its traditional methods falling short. WWF took the radical step of embedding a culture of innovation across its vast network. Could it transform while staying true to its mission?

The Problem With Fair Trade Coffee

By Colleen Haight 29

Fair Trade-certified coffee is growing in sales, but strict certification requirements are resulting in uneven economic advantages for coffee growers and lower quality coffee for consumers.

The Greening of Wal-Mart

By Erica L. Plambeck & Lyn Denend 5

For much of its history, Wal-Mart’s corporate management team toiled inside its “Bentonville Bubble,” narrowly focused on operational efficiency, growth, and profits. But now the world's largest retailer has widened its sights, building networks of employees, nonprofits, government agencies, and suppliers to “green” its supply chains. Here's how and why the world’s largest retailer is using a network approach to decrease its environmental footprint – and to increase its profitability.