Highlights from Latest Research on Young Americans and the Inaugural Influence Nation Summit

Posted on September 17, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

For the past ten years, a key pillar of our work at the Case Foundation has been focused on understanding and empowering Millennials to act on causes that matter to them. Since 2009, through the Millennial Impact Project, the Case Foundation has worked with researchers to engage more than 100,000 young people to better understand the dynamic between causes and Millennials, with a particular focus on what influences this impactful generation to act for social good.

Building off this work, and guided by both the answers and further questions this research raised, we turned our eye now to how a segment of this generation, Young Americans between 18 and 30, were viewing key issues. Marketers and product developers have long felt that the 18-30 phase of life is when lifelong consumer behaviors are formed, and, therefore, we also explored what influences play a role in social causes for this generation during these formative years.

Highlights from the Influence Nation Summit

With this goal, we supported INFLUENCE | SG to host the Influence Nation Summit. We were delighted to take part in the inaugural Summit this month to share in the discussions on what builds and sustains movements. The summit brought together nearly 400 people to the National Geographic campus here in Washington, DC. Speakers passionately covered many of the key social issues of concern today from climate change and the impact of plastics; to civil rights and issues of race; to gun safety; and LGBTQ rights. Here are only a few of the key moments from the event:

Two National Geographic Explorers—Imogen Napper and Lillygol Sedaghat—who are contributing to the science and telling the story of climate change and the role of individuals and the products we consume. For example, Imogen explained her role in reducing plastics in the environment via the microbeads in face and body washes.

Case Foundation CEO, Jean Case, and Michael Smith—Case Foundation alum, now Executive Director of My Brother’s Keeper, and Director of youth philanthropy at the Obama Foundation—had a powerful discussion on the fearlessness of civil rights leaders and others who have led movements historically and how their work is continued today with efforts like My Brother’s Keeper. This was also an opportunity for us to continue the conversation with Michael that we had begun online, as he was one of the leaders who we invited to participate in a 10-day Instagram Takeover to share a day in their life representing the Millennial generation’s interests on key issues and movements, which you can still see here.

Watch the discussion here!

We were happy to also promote our Be Fearless campaign off-stage in the lounge by inviting attendees to add their picture to a larger mosaic, telling how they too will be fearless and change the world. The lounge came together as a truly inspiring setting where local artists’ paintings, photography and live installations were a great reminder of the power of creatives to influence movements and the influence of movements to inspire the work of artists.

When discussing influential movements today, it is impossible to leave out the leadership of the Stoneman Douglas High Students and the March for Our Lives that continues to influence young activism across the country. It is also impossible to ignore the unfortunate event that led to their social and political activism. We had the opportunity to hear from Fred Guttenberg, the father of Jamie Guttenberg who was sadly killed in the Parkland, FL shootings this February, during the afternoon, when he delivered an impassioned call to individuals to vote to change policies they do not believe in.

Key Findings from the new report Influencing Young America to Act

The issues and movements highlighted at the summit are among the key social issues and movements that young Americans raised in a nationwide survey of 1,100 Americans between the ages of 18-30 that Cause and Social Influence fielded in August. As sponsor of this research, we are excited to share the results of this initial research as it can inform all those who work in the social sector—nonprofits, corporations and government—as well as the media, about the motivations and influences that lead Young Americans to take action on the issues they care about. For example, the leading issues of concern for survey respondents are: civil rights/racial discrmination, gun safety, immigration and climate change, which were all brought to life on stage through robust conversations at the Influence Nation Summit.

Within the full report, there are a number of other valuable findings, including these two important takeaways.

Television news media plays an unexpectedly important role in informing Young Americans about key issues.

In our past work researching the Millennial generation, we, like many others, have noted the powerful role of peer influence when it comes to partaking in donations and volunteerism. Therefore, were were surprised to see that among the 18-30 year-olds surveyed, television news media was cited as the primary way Young Americans became aware of social issues.

To understand the degree of television media’s influence, you have to look at each individual issue:

57 percent of those surveyed who believe immigration is the top issue facing our nation first learned about it via television news media; compared with
47 percent of those who are concerned about gun safety; and,
44 percent of respondents who believe civil rights/racial discrimination is the top issue facing our nation; while,
Only 36 percent of those concerned about climate change cited news on television as central to their becoming aware of the issue.

Meanwhile, social media was still the number one way that they learned about social movements like #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo. The role of TV news media continued to show its power in movement building for this generation as the second most cited source of awareness about major movements and the number one source for the movement #AllLivesMatter.

Young Americans believe their influence can have an impact and state an intention to vote in the November Midterm Elections.

While intending to vote does not always translate into actual voting, 66 percent of respondents said they intend to participate in the midterms this year. Young Americans, to varying degrees across demographics, believe they can best exert their influence on government to create the change they want to see through voting. Specifically:

77 percent of Hispanics believe their vote will lead to desired change, as do
73 percent of Asians,
69 percent of Caucasians, and
55 percent of African Americans.

The research shows a significant interest in exerting influence on government by voting, both because a significant portion of those surveyed do not think the the country is going in the right direction and they have low trust in government to do the right thing. According to the survey, 48 percent of Young Americans think the country is going in the wrong direction. This dissatisfaction outweighed the 27 percent of respondents who thought the country was on the right track.

When it comes to trust, the only institutions that young people find less trustworthy than government are corporations. In order of most trustworthy to least trustworthy, respondents listed key groups as follows:

Myself and people like me
Nonprofit organizations
Social movements
Local government
Federal government

In light of this less than positive outlook on government, it is heartening to see that Young Americans who were surveyed are not intending to sit on the sidelines. They want to do something about the issues that concern them, and we hope to see this interest turn into action and increased voting this November.

As we embark on this extension of our past work and continue to explore not only how 18-30 year-olds in America consider social issues and major movements but what influences their interests and willingness to act, we welcome your comments, insights and voice in sharing this work and its findings. We look forward to continuing this conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram using #CauseInfluence as well as in the Case Foundation’s weekly newsletter, Breaking Good.

Download the report here.

Five Open Source Projects We Love

Posted on August 23, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

The open source community has no shortage of projects devoted to social change and improving lives. Pick a need, and there is likely an open source solution for it, but it is often difficult for projects that have a social good application to get the notice they deserve. This is a shame as the collaborative and transparent nature of open source is a force-multiplier for changemaking efforts and when properly supported, open source software can spark innovation, accelerate social good. Therefore, here are five open source projects that we think show the potential for open source to make a real impact in the non-profit world.

Givesource

The creators of Givesource had a vision that there could be a cheaper and better fundraising platform for nonprofits. Through a partnership between Firespring, a Lincoln, NE-based marketing and software company, and the Jeffrey S. Raikes School of Computer Science and Management, the team built a fundraising tool to power the Lincoln Community Foundation’s Giving Day but with a broader vision of creating a platform that out-performed anything on the market at a far-reduced operating cost. The result is a platform that empowered the Lincoln Community Foundation to set a new record for giving, slashed their processing and platform fees, and attracted the attention of local media. Anyone seeking a best-in-class tool for fundraising can tap into the power of Givesource as it was designed from the outset to be open sourced.

Learn more at Givesource.com

Tidepool

Seeing firsthand how little interoperability there was between diabetes devices and their data, Tidepool founder Howard Look set out to create an open source toolkit that allowed users, both individuals with diabetes and medical professionals, to better combine and analyze data from the multiple devices diabetes patients must use to manage their health. Users of Tidepool’s software can explore their data on a personalized dashboard and easily share that data with their doctor, ending the need for patients to physically go to their doctor’s office to share their data. Similarly, researchers using Tidepool’s platform can share their data in real-time with the research team.

Learn more at Tidepool.org

Code for America

Code for America empowers citizen developers to help their communities using their talents. Salt Lake County was struggling with a solution to notify people for court appearances or for court-ordered treatments. The Code for America Fellowship group approached the problem by starting with extensive research and a user-centered design process which yielded evidence to disprove the commonly-held notion that most individuals simply skip or forget their court dates and other appointments. Instead, their research showed a wide range of reasons individuals missed their dates and there was a need for a better tool for communicating with their case officers at any time. Therefore, Code for America’s team built ClientComm, an open source platform that facilitates easier communication between case officers and their clients by giving the case officer’s a sophisticated management platform to track their clients and gives end-users a simple text-message-based platform that allows them to contact their case officer immediately in any situation.

Learn more at ClientComm.org

Mifos

The Grameen Foundation found a key barrier to their goal of helping the 2 billion poor and unbanked worldwide was the lack of good financial services platforms. To address this problem, they created Mifos, an open source financial services suite that institutions may use to easily offer low or no cost digital banking solutions to their customers. As a totally open platform, banks may use and expand upon the features in Mifos to best serve their customers all while being part of a community of users of the tool who share and collaborate on features. Mifos’s mission now is to spread the use of this platform across the world, starting with developing regions where there is little to no access to banking.

Learn more at Mifos.org

Open Agriculture Initiative

An initiative of the MIT Media Lab, the Open Agriculture Initiative’s works to create healthier, more engaging and more inventive future food systems and drive an ecosystem of open source tools to support transparency and innovation across their work. Some of the many open source projects they support include a set of tools for using technology to optimize conditions for growth. These applications include the Tree Computer for tree growth, the Personal Food Computer for tabletop-sized environments, and the Food Server which manages large-scale hydroponic installations. In addition, the Open Agriculture Initiative supports research to incorporate computer vision and machine learning into their projects to enhance their growth management tools.

Learn more at media.mit.edu/groups/open-agriculture-openag/overview

Whether it is reducing the cost of fundraising for non-profits, improving the lives of patients, making government systems more friendly for citizens or supporting teams that are focusing on the food of the future, each of these projects highlight the benefits that can come from the wide embrace of open source by the non-profit and philanthropic sectors. We tip our hats to each of these organizations who are ensuring that their work is available to all—embodying the Case Foundation’s vision that open source is a form of philanthropy. We look forward to showcasing further examples of open source work being done by individuals, nonprofits, and companies. If you have or know of a project that you believe is fearlessly trying to make change in a community or the world, let us know at opensource@casefoundatdev.wpenginepowered.com/.

SXSW 2019 PanelPicker—Cast Your Vote by August 30!

Posted on August 13, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

Each year, we enjoy getting together with innovators and changemakers at South by Southwest (SXSW) to discuss important and compelling work and share some of our learnings on the SXSW Interactive stage. Last March, members of the Case Foundation team lead four panel discussions with incredible experts about developments in areas such as diversity in entrepreneurship, making movements through user generated content and business journalism. Each provided us with insights and inspiration we have tapped since to inform our ongoing work.

This year, we’ve identified 12 panels to recommend for the 2019 SXSW stage that could bring together engaging panelists and leaders who will bring to life timely topics such as the role fearlessness plays in the work of leaders from all walks of life, what the future of Latinx entrepreneurship looks like, how startups can get their story out, the importance of young voices in our society and at the voting booth and opportunities for organizations to harness the power of data, analytics and open source to increase their impact.

We believe that these will be a valuable addition to the important dialogue that will take place in Austin at SXSW 2019—and we need your help getting these discussions the time they deserve on stage! Below you’ll find information on each panel and how you can vote for them. While casting your vote, don’t forget to spread the word with the social messages below and encourage your friends and networks to vote as well.

See our panels below and be sure to vote before SXSW PanelPicker voting ends August 30th!

Fearless Changemakers Tell All

What does it mean to be fearless? It means experimenting, taking risks, being willing to strike unlikely alliances and accepting the possibility of failure while still pressing forward. Meet the fearless changemakers setting audacious goals and acting urgently and boldly. Jean Case of the Case Foundation sits down with three leaders who explore the extraordinary core qualities of great changemakers and find out how being fearless helped them succeed. They’ll share their stories and strategies to inspire attendees to fearlessly tackle the world’s most pressing issues.

Speakers

Jean Case, CEO, The Case Foundation
Enric Sala, Explorer-in-Residence, National Geographic Society
Jordyn Schara, Founder and Executive Director, HOPE (Helping Our Peers Excel)
Loretta Claiborne, Vice Chair and Chief Inspiration Officer, Special Olympics

Vote Here Tweet Here

How to Tell Your Startup Story

Take a deep dive during this interactive session featuring leading journalists covering startups, venture capital and technology. Seasoned journalists will be moderated in a discussion by the Case Foundation. You’ll learn their tips for founders seeking to break their next big story, what makes an effective and compelling pitch, how to build relationships with reporters and how to make your company stand out. At the session’s conclusion, we will invite attendees to share their pitches with the journalists for feedback in real time. Please come to this session with your media pitch in hand.

Speakers

Jade Floyd, Vice President of Communications, the Case Foundation
Veronica Dagher, Host, WSJ Secrets of Wealthy Women podcast; senior wealth management reporter, Wall Street Journal
Emily Chang, San Francisco-based anchor and executive producer of “Bloomberg Technology”

Vote Here Tweet Here

The Fearless Story Behind José Andrés’ Success

What does it mean to be fearless? It means experimenting, taking risks, being willing to strike unlikely alliances and accepting the possibility of failure while still pressing forward. Meet the fearless changemakers setting audacious goals and acting urgently and boldly. Jean Case of the Case Foundation sits down with chef José Andrés as they explore the core qualities of great changemakers and find out how being fearless led to his success. They’ll share their stories and strategies to inspire attendees to fearlessly tackle the world’s most pressing issues.

Speakers

Jean Case, CEO, The Case Foundation
Jose Andres, Founder, World Central Kitchen

Vote Here Tweet Here

Listen Up! Young American Voices Matter

Marches. Protests. Tweets. Votes. These are just a few of the many ways that young Americans made their voices heard in 2018. With fearless passions and the drive to create meaningful change, they brought a national spotlight to the issues they care about. Now, it’s your turn. Join our workshop, share your story and learn how to elevate your voice from some of today’s most innovative young activists and organizers.

Speakers

Sean Tennerson, Director, Social Innovation, the Case Foundation
Amanda Nguyen, CEO and Founder, Rise
Derrick Feldman, Managing Director, Influence SG

Vote Here Tweet Here

Facebook Watch—a New Tool for Social Movements

At the end of 2017, Facebook rolled out a new feature: a platform to stream shows. Facebook Watch has become a key tool for organizations to tell their stories and bring big issues to light in a new way while reaching a broader audience—with some even going as far as to call it “the new Netflix.” What are the benefits of this new platform and how might it work for your organization? The Case Foundation, ATTN and The Influencer Collective share how organizations with a variety of resources and needs can make Facebook Watch work for them. Together they bring knowledge from working on shows with a wide range of budgets, production levels and audience sizes and will bring high level takeaways on how to get started, evaluate show needs, build a story arc and analyze success.

Speakers

Jessica Zetzman, Senior Director of Marketing and Communications, The Case Foundation
Clare Stein, Creative Director, ATTN:
Jennifer Sherman, Founder and Chief Strategist, Influencer Collective

Vote Here Tweet Here

Making Data and Analytics Work for Your Brand

Data-informed decision making is only as good as an organization’s understanding of the data on hand. Faced with that challenge at the Case Foundation, the team responsible for digital analytics and reporting set out to construct a dashboard that directly and efficiently compiled key data from multiple websites in one place. Using this tool, project and program leaders can see real time performance using key filters like top blog authors, page views, time on page, new users, downloads, top performing pages and posts and email campaign performance. Hear from the team that designed this tool and learn how the organization uses it, their efforts to adapt their work to best fit what the data indicates, and how attendees can launch their own version of the dashboard for free.

Speakers

Jessica Zetzman, Senior Director, Marketing and Communications, Case Foundation
John Jones, VP Interactive Strategies, Case Foundation

Vote Here Tweet Here

How B Corps Are Leading Open Source

In a time when trust in technology is in question, B Corps are finding a way to deliver innovative technology to their customers without sacrificing trust: through open source. By doing so, these companies are not only establishing a stronger level of trust but also democratizing technology for many. Hear from open source leaders, Zach Burke of Exygy, Jason Wilkinson of Firespring, and John Jones of the Case Foundation in a panel moderated by the Case Foundation’s Jade Floyd.

Speakers

John Jones, Vice President of Interactive Strategies, the Case Foundation
Jade Floyd, Vice President of Communications, the Case Foundation
Jason Wilkinson, Chief Technology Officer, Firespring
Zach Berke, Founder and Managing Partner, Exygy

Vote Here Tweet Here

The Overlooked Future of US Entrepreneurs: Latinx

The Latinx community accounts for more than half of the population growth in the US, but Latinx founders represent less than 2% of venture-backed companies. Hear from Latinx entrepreneurs and the investors who back them to understand who they are, what they’re building and why they’re going to make you money. Attendees will learn what funds and resources are available for Latinx entrepreneurs and how you can support more inclusive startup ecosystems.

Speakers

Sarah Koch, VP Social Innovation, Case Foundation
Dyan Gibbens, CEO, Trumbull Unmanned
C’pher Gresham, VP of Communities, SEED SPOT
Marcos Gonzalez, Managing Partner, VamosVentures

Vote Here Tweet Here

Social Impact Meet Up

Join the Case Foundation, Kapor Center for Social Impact and Sunshine Sachs as we unite social sector leaders, entrepreneurs and philanthropy practitioners for a SXSW Meet Up. Connect with fellow changemakers and share new ideas, collaborate and ideate on how you can create meaningful change together. We invite everyone in the social sector—from foundation staff to philanthropists, nonprofit leaders, social entrepreneurs and social impact businesses to gather. Meet those like you who are changing the world.

Speakers

Jade Floyd, Vice President of Communications, the Case Foundation

Vote Here Tweet Here

Is Texas the Silicon Valley 2.0?

Venture capital investments may be focused on the coasts, but some of the largest and most successful companies have been started in middle America in cities like Houston, Dallas and Austin. Learn from the entrepreneurs, investors and supporters who have created bustling startup ecosystems across Texas. Find out what kind of partnerships and resources your city may already have to lead the way for startup growth in your community.

Speakers

Sarah Koch, VP, Social Innovation, Case Foundation
Naji Kelley, Founder & CEO, BLNDED Media
Saleha Khumawala, Professor – Robert Grinaker Professor of Accounting and Founding Director, SURE Program, University of Houston

Vote Here Tweet Here

Philanthropy’s New Role In Open Source

As technology continues to define shifts in society, it is essential that the social sector has access to the best technology. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Case Foundation see a future in this as leaders in creating useful, open source tools for entire sectors to use that open doors for changemakers to unlock innovation, better achieve their missions, and ultimately, change the world. Hear from the Case Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and GitHub on how that’s starting to happen.

Speaker

John Jones, Vice President of Interactive Strategies, the Case Foundation
Kosta Peric, Deputy Director, Financial Services for the Poor, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Admas Kanyagia, Senior Director of Social Impact, GitHub

Vote Here Tweet Here

With your support, we hope we’ll get to take the stage next March in Austin and share our work and insights on these exciting movements. To catch up on our presence at SXSW in 2018, check out our Twitter moments which featured live updates from each of our panels, and watch these video interviews with some of the founders, funders and ecosystem builders in attendance who shared their exciting work with us. We loved getting to make a splash at SXSW this past spring and get wait to get the chance to do it again!

15 Impact Investing Podcasts To Explore

Posted on August 6, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

The past decade of growth in the Impact Investing movement has been impressive. More investors, entrepreneurs, corporations, foundations and nonprofits are investing with the intention of generating both financial and social return than ever before. As the field has expanded, we’ve built a series of tools like the Short Guide to Impact Investing and the 10-year Interactive Timeline to provide information, learnings and insights to those inside the movement as well as those looking to “stick their toe” into Impact Investing.

And others have joined us, with many taking to podcasts to give investors a window into the ins and outs of Impact Investing by showcasing conversations with professionals and leaders in the field. Here’s a rundown of some of our favorites:

Stanford Social Innovation Review Podcast features lectures and talks by leaders in the social change movement. These leaders come from all places and walks of life, but they have one thing in common: they are dedicated to using their businesses and crafts to make a social impact. By telling their own stories, these leaders are able to inspire the listeners to embark on a social impact journey of their own.

Beyond Reports is a monthly podcast that discusses the latest news in the world of sustainability. It features interviews with experts such as Amanda Feldman, Director of the Impact Management Project and Caroline Rees, President of Shift, the leading center of expertise on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. This podcast will bring you the latest on global sustainability from experts in the GRI global community.

Returns on Investment is a podcast from ImpactAlpha. The brief episodes give you the opportunity to quickly learn from leading impact investors. The short tid-bits are a perfect coffee break activity if you’re looking to delve into Impact Investing. The episodes are light, conversational and put things in layman’s terms so anyone can listen in and learn something new.

Next Economy Now, produced by impact consulting firm LIFT Economy, the podcast features pioneering individuals and leaders who are working to use business as a force for good. Highlighting people such as Rose Marcario of Patagonia, John Fullerton of Capital Institute, and Rha Goddess of Move the Crowd, this podcast interviews leaders in a conversational atmosphere that gives them a platform to present how they are working to make a change and how you too can get involved in Impact Investing.

Investing in Impact is a short podcast series produced by The Fletcher Social Investment Group, a student-run organization committed to the study and practice of Impact Investing This group gives students and young entrepreneurs advisory services and information that makes Impact Investing accessible to them. This podcast is an extension of those services that dives deep into the practices of their featured guests, which include investors, organizations, and beneficiaries. Some of these guests include Yigal Kerszenbaum, Senior Program Associate for PRI of The Rockefeller Foundation and Mitchell Strauss, the Special Advisor for Socially Responsible Investment Finance.

The Impact Investing Podcast includes interviews and conversations with leaders in the Impact Investing movement to help build a community of new investors. By interviewing leaders in Impact Investing, it gives listeners an idea of how to begin and how to delve into socially responsible investing themselves. This podcast takes the larger idea of Impact Investing and boils it down to accessible and understandable information for listeners.

The SRIESG Podcast features relatively short episodes that give how-tos on the ins and outs of Impact Investing and socially responsible investing. The host, Bill Holliday, candidly and casually speaks about how you can make an impact in the world with your capital. Holliday highlights a range of topics that make it easy for readers to find their interest area.

Impact on Record is hosted by three Yale students who are interested in educating the public, and especially young adults, about Impact Investing. When encountered with confusion from their peers, Kodjo Adovor, Jenny Chan, and Kristina Whyte created Impact on Record in order to bring Impact Investing to the mainstream. The podcast features interviews with experts in the field who go through the logistics of Impact Investing and make it easy for listeners to learn how they can get involved.

Social Entrepreneur Podcast is hosted former Fortune 500 executive Tony Loyd. He invites changemakers on the show to spotlight individuals who are investing in impactful causes through their own businesses. He makes a point to invite underrepresented voices on the podcast in order to make Impact Investing accessible to everyone. The podcasts consists of cheerful and lively conversations with small business owners that give people a thorough idea of how they can get into Impact Investing. Some of these changemakers include Alicia Wallace of All Across Africa, Junita Flowers of Junita’s Jar, and Aine Mulloy of GirlCrew.

More Than Money focuses on how people can use their conscience to guide their investing. Host Dawn Carpenter created the podcast in order to bring her doctoral research on the responsibilities of wealth to the public. The podcast encourages listeners to use their ethics and values in order to inform investments. Carpenter presents Impact Investing as an alternative approach to asset management through interviews with leading impact investors.

Financing Social Entrepreneurs is a weekly podcast that interviews social innovation leaders like grant providers, impact investors, foundations and even independent individuals. These people share their backgrounds, how they got into their business, their successes, and failures. All this information gives the listener a well rounded image of what Impact Investing looks like, as well as how they can get involved.

The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business hosts a series of podcasts that present the idea of responsible investing that creates a social impact. The different podcasts come together to give the listener a well rounded image of the world of Impact Investing, featuring leaders from the Gates Foundation, the Wharton Social Impact Initiatives and more Impact Investing Leaders. The lively conversations emphasize the importance of using business and investing as a source for good.

Money + Meaning is a new podcast launched by SOCAP hosted by their own Linsday Smalling and Liz Maxwell. This podcast aims to widen the conversation around Impact Investing and the strategies to stimulating social change through finance and partnerships. They come out with new episodes each week filled with relevant and up to date information on Impact Investing today.

The CDC Podcast launched by Development Finance and the CDC, UK’s development finance institution, brings you discussions on the role of development finance firms in the fight against poverty. The podcasts features experts such as Philippe Le Houerou, the CEO of International Finance Corporation and Sir Suma Chakrabarti, president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The Bottom Line, hosted by Drucker Institute’s Rick Wartzman, highlights companies that are advancing social progress. The podcast features conversations with top executives who give insights as to how their companies are fighting against the world’s most pressing problems. Some of these experts include Deloitte Consulting’s U.S. Human Capital leader Erica Volina, as well as Tim O’Reilly, CEO of O’Reilly Media. The conversations with leading changemakers in the world of business will give you the foundation you need to dive headfirst into the Impact Investing world.

We hope these podcasts will help you learn how you can change the the world and invest with impact. Check out our Impact Investing page for more information on the field and to learn how people are joining the movement. Have any other Impact Investing podcasts you think we should keep on our radar? Tweet us @CaseFoundation.

Lisa Hall, Senior Fellow at both the Case Foundation and the Beeck Center, and Monica Pizzo, an intern at the Case Foundation, contributed to this article.

A Clarion Call to #BeFearless

Posted on July 23, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

As summer is in full swing, it’s easy to put graduation season behind us. But as students across the nation now prepare for the next step in their life journeys—many of them with a passion to turn their idealism into action to create a better world—they have a timeless treasure trove of advice heard across campuses and across the country from esteemed leaders whose wisdom could be summed up in two worlds: Be Fearless. Indeed, the messages in the commencement addresses in 2018 can be a clarion call to ANYONE who wants to make a difference in this world, no matter age or stage. Here are some highlights:

Tim Cook at Duke University

Apple CEO Tim Cook challenged Duke University graduates to Be Fearless saying:

Fearlessness means taking the first step, even if you don’t know where it will take you. It means being driven by a higher purpose, rather than by applause. It means knowing that you reveal your character when you stand apart, more than when you stand with the crowd. If you step up, without fear of failure… if you talk and listen to each other, without fear of rejection… if you act with decency and kindness, even when no one is looking, even if it seems small or inconsequential, trust me, the rest will fall into place. More importantly, you’ll be able to tackle the big things when they come your way. It’s in those truly trying moments that the fearless inspire us. Fearless like the students of Parkland, Florida—who refuse to be silent about the epidemic of gun violence, and have rallied millions to their cause. Fearless like the women who say “me, too” and “time’s up”… women who cast light into dark places, and move us toward a more just and equal future. Fearless like those who fight for the rights of immigrants… who understand that our only hopeful future is one that embraces all who want to contribute. Duke graduates, be fearless.

Cook inspired the graduates to stand strong against challenges and stay fearless in their fight for justice, equality and a better world. He ended his speech with fearless words of wisdom from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr: “The time is always right to do right.”

Abby Wambach at Barnard College

Soccer star and activist Amy Wambach gave a widely heralded speech to Barnard College graduates calling on them to make “make failure [their] fuel,” highlighting her own struggles and the struggles of many women coming up against the wage gap—and her vision of overcoming it.

It is well worth watching as Wambach used the Little Red Riding Hood story to weave in a metaphor for fearlessness, urging the women at Barnard to challenge expectations, to fight the “archaic ways of thinking about women, about people of color,” and to seek leadership positions so they could make a greater impact.

Chadwick Boseman at Howard University

When actor Chadwick Boseman spoke at his alma mater, Howard University this year, he spoke candidly about being typecast and asked to play into a racist stereotype for a TV role early in his career. He shared how he stood up to those who were trying to pigeonhole him—a decision that had an immediate impact on his career, yet paved the way for the iconic roles he’s known for today, like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall and T’Challa. And this journey has given him some great insight about overcoming failure:

Sometimes you need to get knocked down to realize what your purpose is.

Boseman punctuated his speech with an important lesson of perseverance, saying:

Sometimes you need to feel the pain and sting of defeat to activate the real passion and purpose that God predestined inside of you.

Jacqueline Novogratz at New York University

Jacqueline Novogratz, the founder and CEO of Acumen, spoke at the New York University’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service 2018 Commencement. She highlighted how in her quest to better the world and philanthropy in her own way, she faced many obstacles where she had to overcome her own fears to persevere.

Novogratz encouraged the graduates to have courage in their own lives. She said,

Remember that each time you practice courage, you gain courage. Think of it is as a muscle you build for when you most need it.

In addition, Novogratz pushed the graduates to become not just professional leaders, but moral leaders, “because we need leaders who care about the world, not just themselves.” In her closing words, she acknowledges the struggle she went through in her endeavors, and invited the graduates to follow. She said,

The work of change is not easy. But you know that already. If you are here, you didn’t sign up for easy.

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah took the stage before the students of the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Oprah focused on the importance of speaking out against hatred and deceit—a truly fearless task facing today’s journalists. She inspired the graduates to be fearless in their endeavors to spread truth, wisdom and justice through journalism, declaring

You will become the new editorial gatekeepers, an ambitious army of truth seekers, who will arm yourselves with the intelligence, the insight, and the facts necessary to strike down deceit.

Speaking to the soon-to-be-journalists, Oprah reminded the graduates of the power they had to give voice to those who otherwise would be without it, encouraging them to use the platforms they have been given to “give voice to people who desperately now need to tell their stories.”

Mindy Kaling

The actress and comedian spoke at Dartmouth’s 2018 Commencement, integrating her funny, lighthearted style with poignant lessons for the recent graduates and calls to be fearless.

She encouraged graduates to go out into the world with fearless confidence.

“You are entering a world which we have toppled like a Jenga tower, and we’re relying on you to rebuild it (…) I’m giving you permission to root for yourself. And while you’re at it, root for those around you too.”

And Kaling called on the graduates to see themselves as change agents:

Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do something, but especially not yourself. Go and conquer the world. Just remember this: Why not you? You made it this far.

In short, she reminded them to Be Fearless.

These leaders told different stories and brought different perspectives, yet they all spoke to the 2018 graduates about being fearless, standing up for what’s right and speaking out about what’s wrong—even when a lot is on the line. As students begin to prepare for the start of another school year and we all look to make a difference, I hope their stories inspire you as much as they inspired me to Be Fearless in pursuit of your audacious goals and ideas.

35 Impact Investing Conferences to Explore

Posted on June 21, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

At the Case Foundation, we hit the road each year to spread the word about Impact Investing movement. We also look to learn about the latest thinking in Impact Investing and work alongside all those who are expanding the world of investors looking for both a financial and social return. Along the way, we are continuously reminded of the impressive global community of impact investors who are dedicated to sharing their discoveries, failures and best practices, and we find these experiences invaluable for our work.

Interested in learning more about Impact Investing? Want to brush up on new opportunities and the latest thinking? Our team has pulled together a list of some of our favorite annual conferences and events where Impact Investing is on the agenda or is a favorite gathering place for those who are committed to investing for impact.

Check out this list of the 35 Impact Investing Conferences to Watch in the coming year and beyond.

Vatican Impact Investing Conference, July 8 – 11, 2018, Rome – Hosted by Catholic Relief Services and the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Impact Investing experts and Catholic leaders from around the world will convene in Rome to share and evaluate blended finance models and investible vehicles to address systemic challenges of great importance to both the Catholic Church and the global community. These challenges include: Climate Change, Health, Migrants and Refugees, and Youth Unemployment.
The Impact Conference at Sustainatopia, July 17-21, 2018, Moscow – This conference gathers leading Global Impact + SRI investors, funds, social entrepreneurs, foundations, nonprofits, B Corporations and policy makers. Attendees from more than 60 countries share their best practices from a global ecosystem of social, financial and environmental sustainability.

Impact Capitalism Summit Nantucket, July 18-19, 2018, Nantucket – Mainstreaming impact and showcasing stewards of capitalism are this year’s themes at the Impact Capitalism Summit run by Big Path Capital in Nantucket. This year’s conference will explore how institutional investors are finding market performance returns by looking at diversity as a potential source of arbitrage.

Endowments & Finance Summit, – September 6-7th, 2018, Washington, D.C. – This summit is a forum at the nexus of philanthropy, finance, investment and policy where C-Suite foundation leaders go to explore the shifting forces in the investment landscape, gain invaluable insights on trends, strategies, and new regulations and have candid conversations about threats to business models.

North American Family Impact Investing Conference, September 26-27, 2018, San Diego – During the two days of this conference, family business, office and foundation owners and executives share experiences of Impact Investing and debate the key opportunities and challenges that they face. Meanwhile, experts in academia and industry discuss the infrastructure and how Impact Investing can be scalable.

Mashable’s Social Good Summit, September 2018, New York – Held annually during the United Nations General Assembly week, the Summit unites a lively community of global citizens and progressive thought leaders around a common theme: #2030NOW. Attendees focus on how we can unlock technology’s potential to make the world a better place. Past speakers have included Jean Case, Shazi Visram of Happy Family, Kathy Calvin of the UN Foundation, Matt Keller of XPRIZE and many more. Watch last year’s summit HERE.

Wealth Management Impact Investing Forum, September 2018, location TBD – The RIA Institute’s Wealth Management Impact Investing Forum gathers an intimate group of senior RIA, multi-family office and single-family office executives together with thought leaders and elite providers for an afternoon of discussion and debate about Impact Investing opportunities and risks for wealth managers. The forum focuses on the most critical Impact Investing trends in the individual investor industry and the specific ways in which wealth managers can incorporate these strategies into their portfolio profitably and with measurable impact.

Impact Investing Forum North, September 12-13, 2018, New York – The Impact Investing Forum North unites top influencers, both public and private experienced investors, money managers, and service providers that are leading the charge in the Impact Investing space. Defining Impact Investing, portfolio construction, asset class opportunities, and the role of the investor are just a few of the stimulating topics to be covered at this event hosted each year by the Opal Group.

Exponent Philanthropy, September 28-30, 2018, Philadelphia – The National conference offers timely and relevant educational content for staff, donors, and trustees at all levels of experience and serving all types of foundations (including community and family foundations) as well as individual donors, donor advised fund holders and managers, philanthropic service professionals, and thought leaders in the field of philanthropy.

Net Impact, October 25-27, Phoenix – For more than 25 years, the Net Impact Annual Conference has inspired and informed attendees on the most cutting edge and impactful ideas to change the world. An annual favorite, this event creates a space for the brightest young impact leaders from around the world. With specific paths mapped out for students, new graduates, emerging leaders, and those changing careers, all attendees will leave with their own map of their path to purpose. The event will explore examples of transformational change that defy traditional expectations.

GSG Impact Summit The SRI Conference, October 8-9, 2018, New Delhi – The Summit unites hundreds of impact leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, philanthropists, corporates, social sector and government leaders and leading market builders. Together they will explore current and future actions by the GSG, the National Advisory Boards and partners to catalyze the impact economies of the future.

High Water Women’s Investing for Impact Symposium, October 17, 2018, New York – High Water Women’s Investing for Impact Symposium has evolved into an important gathering for female impact investors who want to connect with other investors, advisors, and investment professionals. Topics include the practical realities of building an impact portfolio, the opportunities and challenges for acting, the latest developments in Impact Investing and women in the impact investment marketplace.

SOCAP, October 23-26, San Francisco – SOCAP convenes thousands of innovators in finance, entrepreneurship, business, government and philanthropy from across social and environmental issue areas to accelerate the market at the intersection of money and meaning.

GIIN Investor Forum 2018, October 30-31st, Paris – The Forum provides a unique opportunity to gain insights from industry leaders, discuss cutting-edge research, and network with over 1,000 global practitioners. Whether you are currently making impact investments or exploring the opportunities, this is an opportunity to take part in the discussions shaping the future of the market. Speakers include executives from the the Rockefeller Foundation, Bain Capital, Blue Haven Initiative, MacArthur Foundation and Catholic Relief Services, to name a few.

The Fast Company Innovation Festival, November 2019, New York – Each Fall, thousands of attendees convene in New York City for Fast Company’s unique take on the field trip with 100 plus Fast Tracks. Attendees have the rare opportunity to go behind the scenes at New York City’s most innovative companies where they experience talks, workshops, demos, networking, and sponsor activations. The 92Y also host thought-provoking keynote sessions at companies like Charity: Water, Donors Choose, Swell Investing, Ellevest, Global Citizen, Instagram, Rent the Runway and more.

The SRI Conference, November 1–3, 2018, Colorado Springs -The SRI Conference on Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing (formerly SRI in the Rockies) is the annual gathering of investors and investment professionals working to make money and direct the flow of investment capital toward a truly sustainable future. The SRI Conference is the place for professionals interested in responsible investing to learn and network with colleagues, and to grow and deepen their professional understanding of how to make money and make a difference—at the same time.

Social Finance Forum, November 7-8, 2018, Toronto – Now in its 11th year, the Social Finance Forum, organized and convened by the MaRS Centre for Impact Investing, attracts more than 500 investors, entrepreneurs, finance professionals, charity leaders and public service visionaries who are reshaping markets and ensuring that every dollar makes a difference.

Sorenson Winter Innovation Summit, February 6–8, 2019, Salt Lake City – The Winter Innovation Summit is the premier cross-industry event in social impact, innovation and investing. Earlier this year the Summit brought together policy makers, funders, nonprofits, and social entrepreneurs to explore the future of social innovation across the globe. More than 700 guests unite for the latest breakthroughs in social impact, innovation, and investing, skiing the greatest snow on Earth and experiencing the 2018 Sundance Film Festival which takes place the same week.

World-Changing Women’s Summit, February 2019, location TBD – gathers the most successful women in conscious business for conversations on developing yourself as an authentic, conscious leader in the workplace, how to develop a more inclusive workplace culture, best practices for raising capital and how you can scale your company while staying true to your values. Last year’s gathering included female influencers from Google, the Beneficial State Bank, Solstice, SheO, Pipeline Angels, Seed Spot and B Lab.

Economist Impact Investing Forum, February 2019, location TBD – Join Economist editors and 200 financiers, institutional investors, policymakers, academics, impact investors and philanthropists at the second iteration of Investing for Impact: risk, return and the future of the world. This past February speakers included National Geographic Chair and Case Foundation CEO Jean Case, Audrey Choi of Morgan Stanley, Case Foundation board member Sonal Shah of the Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation at Georgetown University, Saadia Madsbjerg of the Rockefeller Foundation, Debra Schwartz of the MacArthur Foundation, Liesel Pritzker Simmons of the Blue Haven Initiative, Amit Bouri of the GIIN and Kesha Cash of Impact America Fund.

The Heart Series, February 14-15, 2019, El Segundo, CA – Explores topics like how your company can make an impact, maintaining your brand promise to your customers and the earth, interactive experiences that promote social change, how to activate Millennials and youth and dreaming up big impact partnerships. On site attendees also have plenty of cool eco inspired perks including wellness shakes, meditation resources and massages. That’s my kind of conference! Speakers include leaders from companies like SOKO, Share Our Strength, CLIP Bar, Nerd Wallet, Blavity and Swipe Out Hunger.

Greenbiz Summit, February 2019, location TBD – Leaders from global brands will meet as they discuss and learn the opportunities at the intersection of business, technology and sustainability. Last year’s speakers included executives from Target, Apple, Bloomberg, and the World Wildlife Fund.

Harvard Social Enterprise Conference (SECON), February 2019, Cambridge – SECON draws almost a thousand practitioners, academics, students, and young professionals. Speakers include influencers and leaders from Omidyar Network, Root Capital, Accion, Mastercard, One Acre Fund, Trillium, Twilio, the Rockefeller Foundation, Accenture and many more.

Duke Conference on Sustainable Business & Social Impact (SBSI), February 2019, Durham – SBSI focuses on the theme of working towards solving our greatest social challenges through innovative methods and cross-sector collaborations. The event has grown to one of the largest conference of its kind in the Southeast, with more 500 people attendees who are making the world a better place while looking to the future of social impact and sustainability.

SXSW Conference, March 8-17, 2019, Austin – Next year marks the 26th Anniversary of SXSW, the world renowned gathering that unites more than 420,000 people from across the globe. Each year SXSW dedicates itself to helping creative people expand their knowledge and have the opportunity to meet fellow innovators on a mission to change the world. Conference goers take a deep dive into innovative ideas that contribute to a better and more equitable world. Browse past social impact sessions HERE.

Confluence Philanthropy’s 9th Annual Practitioners Gathering, March 4-7, 2019, Brooklyn – Confluence Philanthropy’s Annual Practitioners Gathering is a four-day conference where asset owners and their advisors meet at the cutting edge of mission-related investing. This Gathering represents the most advanced foundations, investment managers, and advisors in Impact Investing today. They are distinguished by a commitment to building the field through collaboration, innovation, and their investments. Join us for deep strategic thinking, critical discussion, sharing and most importantly, fun.

Skoll World Forum, April 2019, Oxford – Launched by the Skoll Foundation, the Skoll World Forum accelerates entrepreneurial approaches and solutions to the world’s most pressing problems by uniting social entrepreneurs in a pursuit of learning, leverage and large-scale social change. Past speakers have included president of the World Bank Group, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, Winnie Byanyima of Oxfam International and Hamdi Ulukaya of the yogurt empire Chobani.

Yale Impact Investing Conference, April 2019, New Haven – Impact On Record hosts the Yale’s Impact Investing Conference that includes a day of engaging conversation, presentations and interviews about impact investing. Topics include women and wealth, technology and impact, government and policy, impact funds, emerging markets and faith-based investing.

Milken Global Conference, April 2019, Los Angeles – Each year the Milken Global Conference brings together the strongest minds in business, government, technology, philanthropy, academia and media to examine global challenges and find actionable and collaborative solutions to some of the most important questions of our time. Watch videos from past conference speakers HERE.

Impact Capitalism, April 2019, location TBD – At Impact Capitalism, you will hear from prominent family offices, institutional investors and influential foundations about what is driving their impact investment decision-making and experience an exciting lineup of discussions, debates, and performances across asset classes and impact themes. Over 300 family offices, asset managers and fund managers representing over $150 billion in investable assets take part.

US SIF Annual Conference, May 2019, location TBD – US SIF Annual Conference gives you the opportunity to network with leaders of sustainable, responsible and impactful investing. Hear from leading investors, CEOs and policymakers, and to learn about new approaches, trends and policy developments in the field.

Engage For Good, May 2019, location TBD – If you work at the intersection of cause and commerce, there’s no other event that focuses exclusively on this work and how to engage consumers and employees with social good efforts. Nearly every global brand for good attends include executives from eBay, Fidelity, J.P. Morgan Chase, Omaze, PayPal, REI, Scholastic, The Home Depot Foundation, Univision Communications Inc. and more.

Social Innovation Summit, June 4-6, 2018, San Fransisco – The Social Innovation Summit is an annual event taking place in Silicon Valley which represents a global convening of black swans and wayward thinkers. Where most bring together luminaries to explore the next big idea, they bring together those hungry not just to talk about the next big thing, but to build it.

Mission Investors Exchange National Conference, TBD 2020 – Produced every other year, the conference is one of the most anticipated events for impact investors in philanthropy, offering an action-focused, collaborative, and personal space to renew and build partnerships, experience on-the-ground impact investments, share investment opportunities, meet leading voices in the field, and shape the future of the Impact Investing movement.

Sustainable Brands Conference, multiple dates, Buenos Aires, Vancouver, Detroit, Madrid, Bangkok and more – the events are held throughout the year in cities around the globe. The Sustainable Brands conference provides another welcomed perspective as sustainability and design leaders gather from around the world to share profitable business models that deliver brand purpose. Join business intelligence, finance and sustainability leaders to discover innovative tools, ideas and methodologies that capture tangible business value and translate it into financial performance.

These conferences bring together individuals who are pioneering the Impact Investing movement—and they create a platform for professionals who are committed to making a difference or want to learn more about this rapidly expanding field. We hope that they will bring new light to the importance of investing for financial and social returns and give a space for new people to join the movement!

We hope these suggestions help you take the next steps on your Impact Investing journey—whatever stage of it you’re on. Have a conference you want us to keep on our radar? Share it with us on Twitter @CaseFoundation!

It’s Time for Philanthropy to Open the Door to Open Source

Posted on May 30, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

Innovation is driving technology and change faster than ever before. Yet, when I am asked about technological innovations that have the best chance to make an impact in the future of philanthropy, I often cite a collaborative approach that is closely aligned with the technology world, but can no longer be considered cutting edge: open source.

This may not be the answer that many are expecting, but open source’s collaborative and transparent nature is well suited for philanthropy and its ability to leverage the power of many to do good at minimal cost lends itself to being one of the keys to the next phase in the evolution of philanthropy.

Open source software allows anyone to read, study, modify and redistribute a software’s source code with little restriction other than that free access is maintained. It is often developed in a highly collaborative manner with many people contributing pieces of code and it is found in a wide variety of places – the overwhelming majority of consumer devices include some open source code.

For many philanthropies and non-profits, open source provides the opportunity to save money and time. There is a growing community of coders experimenting openly and sharing ideas and software covering everything from website and app development to artificial intelligence and blockchain. By embracing open source, foundations and nonprofits can tap into this space of bright technologists and innovators for free. In doing so, they will gain access to battle-tested code and ideas, allowing them to focus on their core missions.

For others, it is an opportunity to leverage the time and money they have put into building software and programs so others in the field can use them. In our network of changemakers, we see many organizations producing innovative platforms and technologies that are used to create social change. Why not further that effort by open sourcing that work so that many more can use, improve and share it? Our experience shows that by including open source from the outset of a plan, you reap the benefits of including a community in your work and have a product that can be shared with the larger community with minimal effort. And, frankly, isn’t the act of open sourcing software in line with most philanthropic missions?

Open source has other benefits as well. The collaborative nature of open source can encourage philanthropies to engage with new audiences and to connect technical and nontechnical participants. We have seen that reaching beyond your bubble and forging unlikely alliances between those working to solve the same problem can yield impressive and transformational results.

We’re already seeing philanthropies embrace open source. For example, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation developed an open source platform to drive the adoption of digital financial services in developing countries. Mojaloop, the platform’s name, creates a standard system for banks and other financial service providers to communicate and execute transactions at a lower cost than competitors for the nearly two billion unbanked people in developing regions.

Throughout the Case Foundation’s history, we’ve recognized the value of open source software by both using it in our work and supporting others who are a part of the community. Some of our greatest efforts such as Make It Your Own and America’s Giving Challenge succeeded because open source software enabled us to move quickly and experiment with new ideas without having to start from scratch. We were also early supporters of groups such as Code for America which produces open source software and organizes communities of citizens to also create and contribute open source solutions for their towns and cities.

And we are now building all the software we produce for specific campaigns with an eye on making them open sourced as well. For example, we have provided the open sourcing code from our #FacesofFounders campaign allowing any organization to launch a similar campaign focusing on user-generated content. And this year, we plan to release even more open source projects produced through our broader work here at the Case Foundation. We hope that–along with many others–we can help the social sector see the benefits of open source, spark innovation, accelerate social good and ultimately help change the world.

We hope you will join us.

Social Good in April: Stories You Don’t Want to Miss

Posted on April 30, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

April was full of breaking news in social good, so we’re bringing you another edition of “This Month In Social Good,” rounding up our favorite stories from our Breaking Good newsletter so you don’t miss anything.

Of particular note this month, we saw a lot of great stories across the podcast circuit. Case Foundation CEO Jean Case talked to Wall Street Journal Podcasts about the importance of fearlessness in her journey to spark innovation in the social sector, and our VP of Social Innovation, Sarah Koch, was on Silicon Hills News and EU Now to talk about the need to support women in tech and entrepreneurship. We also revisited our roundup of Seven Fearless Founder Podcasts for those of you looking to brighten your daily commute.

April also brought us stories about industry leaders attaining B Corp certification, local communities embracing Impact Investing and female founders and investors coming together to change the face of entrepreneurship.

B Corps in the news

This month, a major player jumped into the world of B Corps: Danone North America. The certification, which makes them the world’s largest certified B Corp, comes just one year after Danone legally registered as a benefit company as part of their acquisition of WhiteWave. The North American entity is the eighth company under the Danone umbrella to be certified. The company has long been a proponent of corporate social responsibility and socially conscious business and the speed with which this large company achieved certification is a signal to other companies with social-impact goals that B Corp certification is attainable no matter their size. As an added bonus, the company worked with B Lab to create a case study of the steps they took throughout the year so other multinationals could learn from Danone’s experience and, hopefully, follow in their footsteps.

In April, we also got to hear firsthand about how Greyston Bakery, another B Corp, is making waves. For 30 years, Greyston Bakery has been focused on a big bet: to hire anyone, regardless of their background, as they bake gourmet brownies and cookies, including many of the brownies you see in Ben & Jerry’s Brownie Ice Cream, at their for-profit bakery located just north of New York City. On our latest episode of Be Fearless, we talked to CEO Mike Brady and the Greyston team about the success open hiring practices has brought for their company and their community and how they’re helping other companies do the same.

Impact Investing making inroads in local communities

From Atlanta to Lancaster to Baltimore, local foundations and governments are testing the waters with Impact Investing and alternative funding structures. At the beginning of the month, the Lancaster County Community Foundation announced that they would invest $500,000 in two local organizations aiming for both a social and financial return. The recipients were a housing and neighborhood revitalization organization and a financial inclusion organization. The investment is part of an ongoing effort from the foundation to leverage new funding mechanisms to support their community.

In Atlanta, the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta made a splash with a $10 million impact investment fund—the first local Impact Investing fund in the city. The fund, named GoATL will be distributed over the next two to three years and focused on five impact areas: arts, community development, education, nonprofit effectiveness and wellbeing.

Atlanta also is trying out innovative investing models with efforts to raise $12.9 million for an environmental impact bond through Neighborly, the municipal bond broker-dealer. The funds will go toward minimizing flooding and improving drainage. Baltimore is following suit with efforts to raise $6 million for an environmental impact bond aimed at reducing pollution in the Chesapeake Bay.

Seeing communities across the country take on Impact Investing to tackle local but large-scale challenges is a great reminder of the field’s potential to grow and scale globally as it continues to move to the mainstream.

Female founders and the changing face of entrepreneurship in America

In the world of Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Vanity Fair’s April feature gave us both something to celebrate and something to work on. The magazine teamed up with Kathryn Finney and digitalundivided to feature the 26 Black women who have raised $1 million or more in venture funding. And while these groundbreaking women are truly worth celebrating, this was yet another reminder of the need to support all women of color launching business, many more of whom deserve to join the ranks of this “million dollar club.”

Also on the founder side, we heard the stories of inspiring female founders like Maneesha Mukhi, a social entrepreneur who created an online marketplace called ImmiGo to help individuals and businesses find high quality immigration attorneys. We also heard from GirlCrew cofounder, Aine Mulloy, who took to #FacesofFounders to tell the story of launching a platform to connect women across the globe, while fighting for female representation across industries.

Female investors are taking a stand too. April also heralded the launch of AllRaise, a group of 34 women investors—representing over $1 billion in investable capital—who are committed to helping women entrepreneurs raise money. Recognizing that there’s a robust pipeline of female entrepreneurial talent, the group is committed to increasing the percentage of venture funding going to women while doubling the number of female partners at venture firms.

These stories have inspired us and motivated us to get to work this month and beyond—and we hope they’ve inspired you too. To stay up to date on all things social good sign up for our newsletter, Breaking Good. 

Is there anything we missed this month? Tell us about your favorite social good story you saw in April!

7 Fearless Founder Podcasts to Listen To

Posted on March 6, 2018October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

Everyone loves a good success story, and entrepreneurs tend to have especially fascinating ones. The road to success rarely goes in a straight line; rather, most successful people have encountered quite a few failures and obstacles along the way.

Learning from these challenges and failing forward is what often leads to breakthroughs. As our Be Fearless principles state, making big bets, failing forward, trying brave experiments, working with unlikely partners and letting urgency conquer fear can be the keys to success for entrepreneurs.

Being fearless isn’t always easy. But seeing stories of fearless entrepreneurs who have braved the path before can be the inspiration capital needed for aspiring entrepreneurs to begin to build their businesses. That’s why telling the stories of entrepreneurs from all backgrounds, and lifting up role models whose stories are not told as frequently in mainstream entrepreneurship coverage, is so important. Our #FacesofFounders campaign has brought together stories of entrepreneurs across race, place and gender, what they struggle with, what they’re building and why inclusivity makes entrepreneurship even stronger. We also regularly share stories of those changing the narrative of who is and can be entrepreneurs in our weekly newsletter, Breaking Good.

But sometimes hearing—not just reading—stories can be uniquely powerful. So, we asked the Case Foundation team to share some of their favorite stories of entrepreneurship, as told by podcasts. While there are many great stories out there, we compiled a list of nine podcast episodes of entrepreneurs who each stand out in a different way. Read on to learn about some of the founders who inspire us and remind us to Be Fearless.

Spanx—Sara Blakely on NPR’s “How I Built This”

Sara Blakely’s story starts with selling fax machines and ends with her becoming the youngest self-made female billionaire in the US. But her journey to get there may be less well-known. She launched Spanx with the money in her savings after seeing a need for an undergarment that incorporates the control top feature of pantyhose without the legs of pantyhose.

Blakely’s journey gathering support from manufacturers, patent attorneys, buyers and even Oprah is an inspiring one for women founders pitching unique and disruptive products. The story of how she convinced a Neiman Marcus buyer to work with her is also a funny reminder that unconventional methods can sometimes be the most effective ones.

Be Visible—Andrea Guendelman, on Backstage Capital’s “Mission and Values”

As fans of Inclusive Entrepreneurship, we loved hearing about the journey of Andrea Guendelman, who co-founded Be Visible. Recognizing a lack of available professional mentoring and networking resources for Latinx professionals, she built Be Visible as a professional social network for the group.

Throughout the podcast, Andrea breaks down the underlying barriers that separate Latinx professionals from many opportunities available to the wider population. She talks about the group’s unique needs and how Latinx Millennials specifically can be supported and encouraged to be engaged and connected citizens. She also has an interesting backstory that crosses countries and industries before launching Be Visible. Listen through the end to hear about where the platform is going and which big client Be Visible just landed.

**Hamdi Ulukaya—Chobani, on Fast Company’s “Innovators Uncensored”**

For a lesson in humble beginnings, hard work and compassionate leadership, listen to Fast Company editor, Robert Safian’s interview with Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder and CEO of Chobani. Ulukaya’s path to success was untraditional, to say the least. He started in a closed down factory in a small town in upstate New York, working with a team of just five people and had no prior formal business, marketing or managing experience.

What was the first thing his team did after opening the factory? It’s not what you’d expect, but Ulukaya’s story bucks tradition from the beginning and you have to tune into to hear it straight from Ulukaya. After Chobani’s massive success, Ulukaya shares how he didn’t let success go to his head, how he has sought to stay accountable to his employees and how he doesn’t shy away from wider issues, like the refugee crisis. Listen to the interview to hear him tell the story of two refugees (of the 600 he’s hired) who found success working for Chobani. Ulukaya’s story is the story of a leader rebelling against assumptions about how businesses are run and putting purpose at the center of his business.

Capway—Sheena Allen, on “VC Cheat Sheet”

Sheena Allen took a non-traditional route to entrepreneurship, launching Capway, a Financial Tech company, from rural Mississippi. Allen talks about her journey to launching the FinTech company, which serves different groups of financially underserved consumers and talks about the unconscious bias that she had to overcome to succeed.

The ‘aha’ moment that led to her launching Capway came in a grocery store, where she saw a long line of people waiting to cash their checks. Through more research, Allen identified the massive gap in financial services for unbanked and underbanked populations—which leads to people cashing checks at nontraditional financial institutions, like grocery and convenience stores. Despite there being a huge market to serve this community, gaining support from investors was a challenge. Allen shares how she’s been able to find success and find the right investors to work with. And she holds nothing back, giving very direct advice to women and other underrepresented entrepreneurs looking to build support and sharing her advice on how to ask for help the right way. Listen to her story for insight into the experience of an entrepreneur building support for a service for underrepresented consumers.

Radio One—Cathy Hughes, on NPR’s “How I Built This”

For some serious entrepreneurial inspiration, you’ll want to listen to Cathy Hughes’ journey to radio success, which involves a fair share of bumps in the road along the way. As a young, single mom, Hughes moved from Omaha, Nebraska to Washington, DC to help launch the radio station at Howard University. She found success there by creating shows that catered to underrepresented communities in DC, but her journey didn’t stop there.

Hughes’s path to becoming a media mogul takes unexpected twists and turns, including a stint of living with her son in the young, struggling radio station she bought. Her story of navigating entrepreneurship, motherhood, success and expansion as a female founder of color is interesting for so many reasons; from the creative to the financial to the personal.

Coss Marte—ConBody, on Gimlet Media’s “Start Up”

Part 1 and Part 2
This is a story about second chances. Coss Marte is an ex-convict who spent four years in prison for selling drugs. Fast forward to today and he’s running a successful fitness business, ConBody.

The inspiration for the company came while Marte was still in prison. Dealing with health problems and the confinement of prison, Marte developed his own workout routines that could be done in small spaces and without weights, and he helped other inmates do the same. In the podcast, Marte shares his story building up a customer base, battling negative perceptions and making sure to hire fellow ex-convicts, who struggle to get jobs after leaving incarceration. The podcast begins and ends with Marte and his cofounder, Jenn Shaw going to a pitch competition where they’re starkly reminded how much they stand out; he being Latino and Shaw being a woman among a crowd of mostly white, Ivy league grads. The story of his journey there, and the results of the pitch competition, will inspire and surprise you.

Mariam Naficy—Minted, on “Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman”

Mariam Naficy is a two-time founder who launched both her companies in uncertain times. She started with Eve.com, the first major online cosmetics seller, which she launched in the late 90’s, a time when the future of the internet was unclear. In fact, to obtain the domain name, she actually had to make a deal with a very powerful five-year-old by the same name. From there, Eve.com raised $26 million in its first year and continued to scale rapidly until she sold the company in 2000.

After moving on from Eve, Naficy moved on to her next venture, Minted, an online stationary store. In this episode, she shares her challenges raising venture capital as a mom entrepreneur, and launching a company in 2008, at the height of a financial crisis. Minted would go on to raise $89 million in Venture Capital and ship to 70 million households, but along the way, Naficy faced a lot of teachable failures, which she shares with listeners.

We hope these podcasts inspire you as much as they have our team. For some more #BeFearless inspiration, check out our Be Fearless hub, and to learn more about how we’re championing entrepreneurship for all through inspiration capital and more, check out our Inclusive Entrepreneurship page and #FacesofFounders series.

Be Fearless Spotlight: Foster America

Posted on November 10, 2017October 25, 2018 by Case Foundation

This Spotlight is a part of a special blog series curated by the Case Foundation featuring Be Fearless stories from the field. Follow along with us as we meet people and learn about organizations that are taking risks, being bold and failing forward in their efforts to create transformative change in the social sector. This Spotlight is authored by Emily Ente, Director of Strategy and Partnerships at Foster America.

At least one in eight children in America is abused or neglected by the time she or he turns 18. When this happens, the U.S. child welfare system—a network of federal, state, local and nonprofit agencies—provides services to keep children safe in their homes, and, in the worst cases, places them in foster care. But across all key measures, our country is failing these most vulnerable kids. For example, among older youth leaving foster care, only half graduate from high school, one-third experience homelessness, and four out of five young men in this group are arrested. Unfortunately, the child welfare system is stretched beyond its capacity and expertise to change the odds for these kids. We can and must act with urgency to do better.

Sherry Lachman, Founder and Executive Director of Foster America, knows from both personal and professional experience about the challenges that kids face in the child welfare system. Between the ages of six and eight, she was placed in three different foster homes. As Sherry explains, “Ultimately I feel very lucky. Instead of allowing me to view myself as a victim, my fourth-grade English teacher Ms. Owen convinced me that I could someday use the trauma I had experienced to help other vulnerable kids. Ms. Owen’s message changed my life.”

Motivated by her experience and wanting to improve outcomes for other kids in the system, Sherry took a risk in late 2015 and left her job as domestic policy advisor to Vice President Biden to found Foster America, an organization devoted to improving the child welfare system. Sherry first interviewed over 100 experts in the field about critical pain points in the child welfare system and why it has been so slow to evolve. She recalls, “One of the major themes that emerged from these interviews is that there is a shortage of reform-minded leaders in the field with the diverse skills needed to drive change.”

To address this critical gap, Foster America launched a fellowship program, reaching beyond its bubble to build a pipeline of extraordinary leaders with the diverse skills, bringing these seemingly unlikely partners together to tackle the major challenges in the child welfare system. The Foster America program recruits and prepares talented mid-career professionals from business, technology, health and education backgrounds for high-impact fellowship roles at child welfare agencies.

In the short run, Foster America fellows lead reform projects at these agencies, leveraging their professional expertise to develop new approaches to child welfare problems. For example, fellows with expertise in marketing and user-centered design can help child welfare agencies improve the recruitment and retention of high-quality foster families. Fellows with data expertise can develop predictive analytics models that enable agencies to predict and prevent negative outcomes such as child abuse or neglect. Each fellowship project is designed to have a lasting local impact while also informing scalable solutions for the child welfare sector.

In the long run, Foster America’s aim is to build a national movement of fellowship alumni who will move on to higher levels of child welfare leadership and help transform the child welfare system. Foster America is making a big bet and setting an audacious goal: within five years, Foster America intends to recruit more than 100 new leaders, who will reach more than 75 percent of children in foster care. Given the relatively small scale of the child welfare field in the U.S., 100 new leaders can have a major impact on outcomes for kids and families nationwide.

Progress is already underway. Foster America launched a pilot fellowship cohort in Fall 2016. In the process, the organization confirmed there is a high level of demand for the program from both child welfare agencies and prospective candidates. Leaders at 13 child welfare agencies expressed an interest in participating in the pilot and the Foster America team chose three: New York City, Allegheny County (Pittsburgh) and Rhode Island. During the pilot, agency partners invested about $800,000 in the fellows’ salary and benefits, which further signaled their commitment and strengthened the organization’s sustainability and scalability. More than 250 candidates applied for eight fellowship spots in the pilot cohort, resulting in an acceptance rate of only three percent.

In 2018, Foster America will continue to support the first cohort of fellows, who are already making significant contributions on the ground, and add new fellows to the original partner sites. The program will also post fellows in four additional sites, including the child welfare agencies of Washington, DC, Minnesota, Missouri and Washington State. Overall, the organization is committed to fearlessly continuing to bring together nontraditional partners from across sectors and challenging the status quo. This bold experiment, coupled with an organizational culture of continuous experimentation, learning and improvement, positions Foster America, along with its partners in child welfare, to fundamentally transform outcomes for kids and families.

Visit www.foster-america.org to learn more about Foster America and how you can partner with the organization as a fellow, volunteer, donor or corporate partner. If you have any additional questions about how to get involved, contact me, Emily Ente, Foster America’s Director of Strategy and Partnerships, at Emily.ente@foster-america.org.

Feeling inspired? If you’re ready to begin your own Be Fearless journey start by downloading our free Be Fearless Action Guide and Case Studies.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Highlights from the Influence Nation Summit

Key Findings from the new report Influencing Young America to Act

Television news media plays an unexpectedly important role in informing Young Americans about key issues.

Young Americans believe their influence can have an impact and state an intention to vote in the November Midterm Elections.

Download the report here.

Givesource

Tidepool

Code for America

Mifos

Open Agriculture Initiative

Fearless Changemakers Tell All

How to Tell Your Startup Story

The Fearless Story Behind José Andrés’ Success

Listen Up! Young American Voices Matter

Facebook Watch—a New Tool for Social Movements

Making Data and Analytics Work for Your Brand

How B Corps Are Leading Open Source

The Overlooked Future of US Entrepreneurs: Latinx

Social Impact Meet Up

Is Texas the Silicon Valley 2.0?

Philanthropy’s New Role In Open Source

Tim Cook at Duke University

Abby Wambach at Barnard College

Chadwick Boseman at Howard University

Jacqueline Novogratz at New York University

Oprah Winfrey

Mindy Kaling

B Corps in the news

Impact Investing making inroads in local communities

Female founders and the changing face of entrepreneurship in America

Coss Marte—ConBody, on Gimlet Media’s “Start Up”

Build Your BE FEARLESS Style On ReadBeFearless.com