5 Quotes To Inspire You To #BeFearless

Make big bets and make history. Experiment early and often. Make failure matter. Reach beyond your bubble. Let urgency conquer fear. These are the five Be Fearless principles that serve as the common thread for groundbreaking, problem-solving success. Nonprofits, philanthropy, individuals, startups and corporations have leveraged these principles to bring forward world changing inventions, to shift our mindsets of what’s possible and to solve persistent social problems.

Our CEO, Jean Case, explained what the principles mean in our initial Be Fearless episode on Facebook Watch. Storytelling is not only a way to bring to life the historical and contemporary Be Fearless champions who have changed the world, but also a way to lift up those undiscovered fearless changemakers that inspire you. Through our Finding Fearless campaign, we’ve heard from people around the world with examples of a wide variety of people and organizations putting the Be Fearless principles into action. The stories we receive will have a chance of being featured in Jean Case’s upcoming book or uplifted by the Case Foundation in our work and we continue to review stories posted on the site on a daily basis.

But stories don’t always need to be long to be impactful. We have seen a single quote inspire changemakers to move to action, to overcome their fears and take the steps needed to start them on the path of transformational change. To inspire you and to remind you of those inspired by #BeFearless, here are some of these quotes.

On making big bets

On experimenting
 

On failure

On reaching beyond your bubble
 

On urgency
 

We hope these words of wisdom from changemakers of all backgrounds and perspectives inspire you to take a fearless approach to your own work. And we hope they inspire you to share a story, whether it’s your own or a story you love. If you’re looking for even more Be Fearless inspiration, check out our show on Facebook Watch, head to our Be Fearless hub, and tweet at us using #FindingFearless.

The Best Newsletters for Inclusive Entrepreneurship News

There’s a lot happening in the world of Inclusive Entrepreneurship, and as the movement gains traction and accelerates more and more every day, it can be hard to keep up with the news in the field. From new rounds of investment in companies driven by women and founders of color, to discussions on how unconscious bias plays a role in venture capital, to inclusive champions who are working to level the playing field—these are the stories that hit our inboxes everyday. And at the Case Foundation, we are sharing stories of founders from different races, places and genders who are challenging the old notions of entrepreneurship.

To help you keep up, we’ve compiled a list of the top newsletters that fill our inboxes with news of the changing face of entrepreneurship. Here’s what should be on your reading list:

  1. RaceAhead by Ellen MgGirt of Fortune talks about culture and diversity in corporate America. Sign up here.
  2. The Broadsheet by Kristen Bellstrom and Valentina Zarya of Fortune reports news on the world’s most powerful women in business and beyond. Sign up here.
  3. ThePLUG by Sherell Dorsey, Tyler Young and Korey Mac has the top news on African Americans in tech and entrepreneurship. Sign up here.
  4. Forward Cities shares the top news in inclusive innovation in up and coming cities across the country. Sign up here.
  5. Circle Up from Circular Board* is a roundup of news on the entrepreneurial ecosystem for women. Sign up here.
  6. Black Enterprise Magazine provides weekly digests with news on business, investing, and wealth-building resources for entrepreneurs of color. Sign up here.
  7. Breaking Good by the Case Foundation is our weekly curation of the top stories in Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Impact Investing and social good. Sign up here.

 Make your inbox do the work for you. With these informative email newsletter options, you’ll be an inclusive entrepreneurship expert in no time. And if you’re interested in impact investing, check out my blog on all the best newsletters for Impact Investing news!

 

*Jean Case is an investor in Circular Board

B Lab 2017 Best for the World Funds Are Featured on the Network Map

As the momentum for Impact Investing grows, we continue to see organizations raise the bar around standards and benchmarks that begin to measure social and financial performance. This week, we celebrate the release of the 2017 Best for the World Funds list. Utilizing the GIIRS Impact Rating system developed by B Lab, funds can evaluate their impact performance against others in the field. Twenty-eight funds are being  honored as 2017 Best for the World Funds for their deep commitment to having this rigorous and transparent third-party review of their impact. By sharing and comparing fund performance that includes social and environmental metrics, these featured funds help empower the companies that aim to do good in the world.

The Case Foundation is proud to partner with B Lab to showcase the profiles of these 28 leading funds on our Impact Investing Network Map as the two efforts are working towards the same goal: accelerating the Impact Investing movement through transparency and open data.  

Check out the BLab press release here, and feel free to explore the Network Map here.

Are the SDGs the North Star for Corporations?

Each September, delegations of public and private sector representatives from almost every country meet at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to discuss how best to work together to solve the world’s most endemic political, economic and security challenges. On the development front, a framework called the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) serves as a collective action agenda, with progress measured against 17 primary goals and 169 targets covering a broad range of issues inclusive of poverty, health, education, hunger, women and girls, city sustainability, climate change and others. Experts estimate that it will take approximately $2 trillion a year—through the expiration date of 2030—to finance the goals. That’s a total need of about $26 trillion. If we can find a way to fund the Goals, we have the potential to end global poverty and hunger, protect the planet from degradation, ensure human beings can enjoy fulfilling lives, and foster peaceful and inclusive societies.

This means we have a lot of work to do. For years, SDG organizers and activists have pushed the private sector to play a more robust role in developing and delivering on the framework. And many corporations have stepped up to the plate in the process, even aligning their own activity with the Goals.

Recent rhetoric around “urgency” and “need” and “responsibility” on the part of private actors has been deafening. For many of these organizations, focusing on the Goals is synonymous with understanding what their company’s future might look like. In a world of increasingly scarce resources, rapid automation, global climate shifts and growing power of a socially conscious customer-base, sitting on the sidelines may mean getting left behind. The imperative to pursue these global mandates can either be to mitigate risk or to truly appreciate the value of profit and purpose. Regardless, the zeal with which corporate leaders and institutions are reaching for the baton feels unprecedented.

Conversations during UNGA week were abuzz with one key question—how can the private sector approach the SDGs in a way that actually achieves our shared global objectives? In response to this, the Global Impact Investing Network, in partnership with The Abraaj Group and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, convened business leaders to discuss what they’ve been doing to meet this goal and what more will be needed.

Inspired by the enthusiasm of the participants—and the ambitious thinking of changemakers in the room, here were some things we heard:

First, we have to start talking about the SDGs as a framework, not a silver bullet.

It was inspiring to hear representatives from Safaricom, Royal Phillips, and LADOL broadly agree that the SDGs create a construct for real conversation. Specifically, the Goals offer an organized way of aligning business activities with delivering impact. The segmentation of goals—and even more importantly, their targets—help businesses understand which of their peers are tackling the same problems and encourage collaboration towards these ends. In our own Impact Investing work, specifically through the Impact Investing Network Map, we’ve seen firsthand that there’s real value in understanding who’s playing in your space. By identifying likely allies, organizations are motivated to work together to achieve better results.

Second, the private sector must be the nexus for change, not an afterthought.

Capital and investment have often powered the wheel of innovation, for better or worse. As our panelists pointed out, businesses are not just a key stakeholder in systems-wide change, but a key organizer. Particularly in emerging markets, they are required to work with local communities, align different sources of capital, and inspire local government to serve the immediate needs of their own supply chain. That’s a unique position to be in. Take healthcare, for example. To revolutionize the healthcare system in emerging markets, as was explained from the mainstage, the solution is not as simple as building one hospital. Businesses need to create relationships with pharmaceutical companies, train doctors and nurses and even improve local transport and infrastructure to facilitate effective treatment. As representatives of Abraaj’s Growth Markets Health Fund, Royal Phillips, PBUCC and the IFC made clear (through their partnership in the Growth Markets Health Fund), even the most catalytic investments or innovative solutions need everyone around the table.

Third, without refreshed norms on how the private sector operates, progress will be stunted.

Even with the best collaboration and innovation, how we measure success needs an update if the goal is to maximize impact alongside profit. And that requires a move from short term wins to long term sustainability. As Amy Jadesimi pointed out from the stage, we’ve allowed the industry to drift dangerously away from what “long term” used to mean in the 70s and 80s. Corporate trailblazers—like Paul Polman of Unilever—continue to urge businesses to rethink how they measure success and with what frequency. But many agree that to do this, we need to first educate those calling the shots, and that extends beyond the C-Suite. Shareholders need to be informed of the value of sustainable thinking and long-term planning. They need to be encouraged to use their voice and to exercise their votes in alignment with what they believe to be fundamental to the success of a company long-term. Financial managers need to be at the helm of product innovation, exploring new mechanisms that leverage both social and financial returns. Stakeholders—every entity or individual affected by a businesses’ core activity—must be engaged holistically. Even across private assets, there’s a role for Limited Partners to play with General Partners and fund managers to actively demand that they work with their portfolio companies to think beyond just the bottom line—for financial and social benefits.

Achieving the SDGs are more of a reality today than ever before. They are integral to the well-being of hundreds of millions of people around the world. Some corporations are ready to move to fulfill this mandate, while others are waiting to be inspired. If we can use the framework of the SDGs to usher in this new way of thinking, acting and partnering—with the private sector as an integral and active participant—we may truly have an opportunity to massively reduce global poverty.

The Best Newsletters for Impact Investing News

There’s a lot happening in the world Impact Investing, and with the movement gaining traction and accelerating more and more every day, it can be hard to keep up with everything being talked about in these fields.

As the field hurdles towards its next phase, many are grappling with issues of measurement and data and ways we can solve the problems holding the industry back. We debuted our Impact Investing Network Map and kicked of a campaign to invite investors to share their data. The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance launched at the end of July to further catalyze the Impact Investing Movement. Momentum is building and the field is changing rapidly.

With all that’s going on in the movement, we get asked how we stay up-to-date on news from the sector. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of newsletters that fill our inboxes and will fill you in on all things Impact Investing.

  1. The Brief from Impact Alpha talks about trends, deals and long term plans in the world of Impact Investing. Sign up here.
  2. On Impact by Cathy Clark is a weekly roundup of global Impact Investing and social innovation news. Sign up here.
  3. Mission Throttle pulls news from around the web on social impact and Impact Investing initiatives. Sign up here.
  4. Green Money Journal has a monthly online journal that news in sustainable business helps people interested in Impact Investing get started. Sign up here.
  5. B The Change shares the top news in B Corps, Benefit Corporations and business for good. Sign up here.
  6. Impact Investing Monthly from SOCAP is a monthly digest of global Impact Investing news from investors, thought leaders and more. Sign up here.
  7. Breaking Good by the Case Foundation is our weekly curation of the top stories in Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Impact Investing and social good. Sign up here.

Make your inbox do the work for you. With these great email newsletter options, you’ll be an Impact Investing expert in no time.