2016 Conferences On Our Radar

Posted on January 15, 2016October 30, 2018 by Case Foundation

What are your resolutions this year? Do you want to sharpen your professional skills; network more within the philanthropic and social innovation sector; or take an idea to the stage and hone your public speaking skills? Perhaps you want to ramp up your presence on social media to stay engaged and share with your peers? There is no better time than the present to accomplish one or all of these goals in 2016.

Where and how can you get started? Look no further than one of the many conferences and events taking place across the globe. Members of the Case Foundation team speak and attend conferences throughout the year, using the time as an opportunity to share our learnings in the philanthropic sector, lift up the entrepreneurial ecosystem and ignite civic engagement. From gatherings like SXSW and Nonprofit Technology Conference to Independent Sector and the Millennial Impact Conference, check out this short list of where you need to be in 2016.

SXSW Interactive – Austin, TX – March 10-15, 2016: Since 1986, SXSW has united hundreds of thousands of social innovators, nonprofits, storytellers and digital creative to explore big ideas, showcase brands and mobilize movements. We invite you to join the Case Foundation at one of our many talks on stage:
- Our Chairman, Steve Case, will take the main stage for an engaging discussion on the re-emergence of entrepreneurship as an American imperative, including an update on the “Rise of the Rest” tour on March 14at 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. More details HERE.
- Our CEO, Jean Case, takes the stage at #SXGood on March 14 for a conversation and lab on Inclusive Entrepreneurship. We’ll also be hosting a special happy hour with SXGood. Follow us on social media for updates on these events and sessions hosted by the Case Foundation at the #SXGood stage.
- Join me for a discussion on “#Movements: When a Hashtag Breaks the News” with Atlantic Media Strategies, the Pew Research Center and Al Jazeera’s AJ+ on Saturday, March 12from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. More details HERE.

National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) 2016 Annual Conference – Washington, DC – March 16-19, 2016: NCRC explores “Creating a Just Economy” with nonprofit leaders and policymakers. Learn more HERE.

Nonprofit Technology Conference (NTEN) – San Jose, CA – March 23-25, 2016: Share learnings on new technologies, best digital strategies and new online approaches to solving pressing social issues with the best and brightest nonprofit professionals and tech minds from around the world. Learn more HERE.

Council on Foundations “2016 Annual Conference” – Washington, DC – April 8-12, 2016: The 2016 gathering on the “The Future of Community – Identity. Purpose. Place.” will unite sector leaders for three days as they explore justice reform, climate change, rural communities and regions, and impact investing. Learn more HERE.

“Do Good Data 2016″ hosted by Data Analysts for Social Good – Chicago, IL – April 27-29, 2016: Can data help make the world a better place? The Do Good Data network says yes! Learn how to use data analysis and data visualization to better serve the nonprofit and social innovation sectors. More details HERE.

Social Innovation Summit – Washington, DC – June 7-8, 2016: The Social Innovation Summit is a twice-annual event taking place in Washington, DC and Silicon Valley. The convening brings together luminaries to “explore the next big idea” and leave with the tools to build it. More details HERE.

Cause Marketing Forum – Chicago, IL – June 1-2, 2016: Join professionals dedicated to “doing well by doing good.” Be sure to check out their workshop on overcoming challenges to blending purpose and profit, and other sessions on communicating transparency, authenticity and impact. Learn more HERE.

Sustainable Brands Conference – San Diego, CA – June 6-9, 2016: This gathering of global sustainability and brand professionals will focus on understanding and leveraging the role of brands in shaping our future. Details HERE.

Millennial Impact Conference (MCON) – Washington, DC – June 21-23, 2016: Hosted by the Case Foundation and Achieve, MCON comes to National Geographic’s campus this year for this three-day gathering, attracting more than 40,000 livestream viewers each year with 700 social changemakers gathering in person. This dynamic hub for next gen talent is the only conference event that unites the next generation of leaders in social good, nonprofit practitioners and corporate social responsibility professionals. Learn more HERE.

CEO’s for Cities National Meeting – Columbus, OH – September 27-29, 2016: Want to change the world? Start locally. Hundreds of urban leaders, architects and social advocates come together to address pressing community issues and exchange the smartest ideas for making progress happen at the local level. Join the conversation and learn more HERE.

American Marketing Association Nonprofit Marketing Conference – Orlando, FL – October 5–7, 2016: Unite with nonprofit marketers for discussions on motivating the next generations, building compelling storytelling platforms and making cause marketing a part of your integrated communications strategy within your nonprofit. Learn more HERE.

Communications Network 2016 Annual Meeting – Detroit, MI – September 28-30, 2016: This is THE premier global leadership gathering of foundation and nonprofit communications leaders committed to building a better world through the smart and deliberate use of strategic communications. More than 500 PR professionals come together to connect, learn and share. Details HERE.

Independent Sector 2016 Annual Meeting – Washington, DC – November 16-18, 2016: Leaders from across the nonprofit and philanthropic community will venture to D.C. to examine pressing issues facing the communities we serve. This year’s event will also include a CEO Track with peer-to-peer exchanges and an NGen segment on “Moving Nonprofit Leaders from Next to Now.” More information HERE.

This is just a smattering of the hundreds of worthwhile events for you to consider attending this year. Check out our run-down of conferences from last year HERE and be on the look out for new dates announced for those gatherings. We hope to see many of you at these events and invite you to share with us any conferences that are on your radar for 2016. Tweet us @CaseFoundation to share with #CFBlog.

Business as a Force for Social Good

Posted on June 29, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by J.D. Brady on behalf of the Case Foundation:

At the Case Foundation, we believe impact investing is an excellent example of how business and philanthropy can work hand-in-hand to drive social change. We applaud the work of for-profit enterprises that deliver both a financial and social return, and we encourage investors to support the growth of these companies.

J.P. Morgan’s Nicholas Tedesco is doing just that–creating a bridge between for-profit and non-profit worlds. He joined us at MCON 2015—our annual event that brings together thought leaders from across sectors to explore new ideas regarding engagement with the Millennial generation. As a Senior Philanthropic Advisor in the J.P. Morgan Philanthropy Centre, Nicholas helps clients achieve their philanthropic goals. Before joining J.P. Morgan, Nicholas was with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In that role, Nicholas helped launch the Giving Pledge, an undertaking that encourages the world’s wealthiest people to dedicate the majority of their wealth to philanthropic endeavors. To date, nearly 200 philanthropists have signed the pledge.

The Case Foundation sat down with Nicholas to discuss the Millennial generation’s approach to investing, where the impact investing sector is headed and what challenges leaders in the philanthropic space.

CF: How do you see Millennials engaging in philanthropy?

NT: It has been widely talked about that we are in the midst of the greatest wealth transfer in history–-the next generation will inherit an estimated $59 trillion over the next 40 years and are positioned to be some of the most influential donors in history. We are seeing some interesting trends among Millennials with respect to their giving. It is starting earlier: wealth is being made at a much earlier age and on a much larger scale than ever before. And people are looking to give back much earlier. They are taking a venture approach–-they are looking to address large-scale social problems with a more hands-on and results-oriented approach. They are also willing to experiment and test new approaches and are more apt to employ nontraditional methods like impact investing.

CF: What is the most interesting thing that you’ve seen in the last year regarding impact investing?

NT: One of the most interesting things I have seen in the last year is the rise in popularity of social impact bonds. Although they are still largely in their infancy, social impact bonds are gaining traction. Utah is spearheading a program that will bring a lot of attention to the “pay for success” model, as are California and Oregon. Although the model will likely never be widely adopted due to its reliance on the government, it is shedding light on the importance of impact metrics.

CF: Is the impact investing movement growing? Do you think we’re at a tipping point?

NT: I absolutely believe that the impact investing movement is growing–-particularly on the west coast. Its core tenants appeal to younger donors who are eager to tackle longstanding social issues with a multipronged approach. We are also seeing an increased awareness among the business community that social and economic returns do not have to be mutually exclusive and decoupled. I do not think we are at a tipping point (yet). We need a few more years to allow more deals to surface, investments to mature, and thought leaders (like Jean and Steve Case) to inform the general public. Impact investing is still a largely unknown and young movement and people are reluctant to be a pioneer.

CF: What are the greatest challenges philanthropic leaders are addressing today?

NT: One of the greatest challenges philanthropy–-as a discipline–-is facing is how to define and measure impact. Americans gave a record $335 billion to charitable causes in 2013, yet it is hard to quantify the impact of those gifts. There are very few philanthropists who are equipped to adequately assess the yield of their grants–-with a large number of donors simply trusting their grantees to execute a successful strategy. However, we are seeing an increased focus on measurement and evaluation from philanthropists at all levels, and as a result, we are seeing donors who are much more engaged with the organizations that they choose to fund.

This is the fourth in a series of blog posts featuring speakers from MCON 2015. Check back to learn about more innovators and leaders from the private, nonprofit and public sectors. Also, be sure to check out the 2015 Millennial Impact Report.

Reinventing Civic Engagement: A Conversation With Carol Coletta

Posted on June 23, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by J.D. Brady on behalf of the Case Foundation:

The Millennial Generation is tech savvy, entrepreneurial and eager to make a positive impact in the world—just like the team at the Knight Foundation. The Knight Foundation works to revolutionize philanthropy each day as they support of quality journalism, engage local communities and ignite media innovation. They believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. This month the foundation released a study focused on Millennial voters and found three-quarters of Millennials cited the biggest obstacle to local voting was a lack of information.

Carol Coletta, Vice President of Community and National Initiatives at the Knight Foundation, understands the importance of informed communities and increasing Millennials engagement. An expert on the development of cities, Carol shared with the Case Foundation her insights on leadership, trends shaping cities and challenges civic leaders face today. We are truly excited to learn even more from Carol during her talk at MCON 2015.

CF: The organization has embarked on several “city learning tours” that expose leaders from Knight to communities. What have you learned from these tours and the cities themselves?

CC: First, leadership in communities can come from unexpected places. There is no longer a leadership formula that is title-bound. You don’t have to have a certain title, including CEO, to shape your city’s future. Leadership is all about who can muster followers. Second, leaders with new ideas shouldn’t fly solo. It’s hard to get anything done. Therefore, we take groups of leaders from a single city on these trips so that they learn together and can reinforce each other when they go home. Typically, too, these leaders are not from a single organization. We like to mix it up with representation across sectors. Leaders from various cities are eager to learn from one another. People get new ideas from their peers in other cities, and then they form their own exchanges.

CF: How can cities increase civic engagement with Millennials in their communities?

CC: Accepting that Millennials are generally not going to engage on institutional terms is key. They aren’t going to show up every Wednesday to pledge allegiance and hear a speaker. So we have to accept that Millennials will reinvent civic engagement on their terms. It will be more informal and more episodic with more immediate and tangible results. We need to do all we can to make it easy for them to engage, including reviewing a lot of out-of-date rules and ways that discourage the kind of action they want to put their energies behind. On the other hand, we need to keep pushing them to turn their episodic efforts into transformational change and not ignore the hard work of governing.

CF: How do you see Millennials engaging in the philanthropic and community development space?

CC: One of the most encouraging trends I see is the move by Millennials back to cities — specifically to the heart of the city. And when they get there, they aren’t content to leave things as they are. They are taking over the streets with bike advocacy and parklets, starting charter schools, fixing up old building, hacking government data, opening small businesses, reinventing gathering spaces. You see it everywhere. For a lot of millennials, philanthropy and community development have mashed up into one thing.

This is the third post in a series of blogs featuring speakers from MCON 2015. Check back to learn about more innovators and leaders from the private, nonprofit and public sectors. Also, be sure to tune in to the livestream of MCON on June 24th and 25.

Millennial Employees & The Power Of Influence

Posted on June 22, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by Derrick Feldmann on behalf of the Case Foundation:

Who will you influence?

If you’ve ever had the experience of managing other employees, you understand just how influential (for better or worse) your words and actions can be.

Of course, your colleagues have lives and relationships outside of work, but we spend a significant portion of the day with our co-workers. As supervisors, we yield tremendous potential to influence employees, learn their passions and leverage them to cultivate a more engaged workforce. The question is whether or not we will recognize and use this influence for the benefit of social good.

Last year, I moderated a discussion on corporate social responsibility and Millennial engagement for an event at a large telecommunications company. On stage, I led a panel that included a Millennial employee who had been at the company for two years and her direct supervisor. During the discussion, it became clear to me that the Millennial employee was looking for her supervisor’s approval and encouragement to participate in the company’s cause work. However, the employee’s direct supervisor maintained a passive stance during their responses.

These dynamics made me wonder: Who influences a Millennial employee to participate in a company-wide day of service? What inspires Millennials and their managers to donate through company-sponsored giving? How does the manager’s views on company cause work influence the employees? And what about the CEO?

In last year’s study, we learned that Millennials look to their employer to be active in social good and that company-sponsored cause work helps cultivate a well-rounded, motivated work culture. But we still wanted to know who encourages participation in company cause work. What inspires Millennial employees to move from the point of interest to a place of action?

The purpose of this year’s 2015 Millennial Impact Report is to understand the relationships between Millennial employees and their managers. The average American employee spends 47 hours a week in the workplace. As Millennials increasingly make up the majority of many companies, we have to shape cultures that empower this generation of “do-gooders.”

In our first phase of research, we’ve found that Millennial employees are essentially disrupting the traditional hierarchy of influence. Most companies are modeled on the premise that the highest ranking employee (the CEO) influences participation and culture the most, followed by other executives, managers and then peers. However, our research shows that for Millennials, their managers or direct supervisors influence participation and culture the most when it comes to corporate social responsibility and company cause work.

In fact, peers and direct co-workers are the most likely individuals to influence Millennial employees to participate in company cause work. Managers also influence participation, and direct managers carry much more influence than higher-level executive employees. Over 27 percent of Millennial employees said they are more likely to donate to a cause if their supervisor does; while 46 percent of employees are likely to donate if a co-worker asks them to. Interestingly, only 21percent of Millennial employees said they are more likely to make a donation if the CEO or a top-ranking executive asks them to.

Today, we see influence growing more at the bottom of the hierarchy. A manager’s personal involvement with causes directly impacts engagement for the employees they supervise. Basically, corporate culture and CSR engagement still require executive-level buy-in, but grassroots support is vital all the way down to the peer level if you want to see true involvement.

To get the full report and recommendations from this year’s study, download the 2015 Millennial Impact Report, which will be available for free on Wednesday, June 24.

You can get an advanced copy of the report buy purchasing an in-person Premium Ticket to MCON 2015, happening June 24-25 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Can’t make it to Chicago? Sign up to watch MCON online for free.

Derrick Feldmann is the producer of MCON, the nation’s premier conference on Millennials and causes. He leads the research efforts for The Millennial Impact Project and serves as president of Achieve, a research and creative agency for causes.

Making Media Matter: A Conversation with Upworthy’s Peter Koechley

Posted on June 17, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by J.D. Brady on behalf of the Case Foundation:

Read any article penned on Upworthy and you are left with an important takeaway: what’s popular can also be what matters. Curators at the publication scour the web each day to find compelling stories about equality, justice, health and more to share with their community. By spreading digital content that educates and inspires users, Upworthy brings massive amounts of attention to critical and complex issues facing society. To date, their community has dedicated nearly 2 billion minutes of attention to stories that matter.

Like Upworthy, the Case Foundation believes in the power of media and technology to mobilize communities and facilitate social change. We were thrilled to have the chance to speak with Peter Koechley, Co-Founder of Upworthy, about his strategies to spread messages that matter and engage with the millennial generation.

CF: Upworthy grew to a massive scale incredibly quickly. What is in your secret sauce?”

PK: We created Upworthy to draw massive amounts of attention to things that matter. And since the most important things are often challenging, complex and confusing, we focus extra-hard on figuring out how to tell those stories in a compelling, emotionally resonant way — so that people want to engage with them – and come back to learn more the next day, too. There’s also so much depressing, disempowering news in the world (see: your nightly newscast) that there’s a real hunger for grounded, hopeful stories about things getting better.

CF: What tactics do you use at Upworthy to engage with audiences, especially Millennials?

PK: The Millennial generation is spending lots of their time on mobile devices and social networks. We believe that it’s crucial to reach people where they are already are, as the battle for attention is increasingly spread across more devices and platforms. So we’ve put a lot of effort into making sure Upworthy’s 100 percent native experience is on your phone, passed along to you by one of your friends.

CF: Have you seen a shift in the media’s role in social causes? Where do you think the media’s engagement in the social impact space is heading?

PK: I’m a big fan of people writing authentically about what they believe in, rather than acting as if they had no personal take on anything important. It’s been great to see space for that open up over the past decade.

And then on a larger level, I believe media is, and should be, a powerful force for nurturing empathy within a society. Empathy is caring about people other than yourself, and treating their wants and needs as seriously as you treat your own — and it’s a necessary pre-condition for so much of the social change we need.

Media can play a transformational role by extending the empathy that lurks within us all. After all, caring for yourself and your own family is innate. Caring about people you already know comes naturally. What’s really hard is sitting in London and caring about a protester in Hong Kong. Or being a straight Christian man in Alabama and caring about a lesbian couple in Oregon. Yet, that is the hard work that stands between us and the global society we all aspire to create. Media can spread that empathy through powerful storytelling, which can now travel farther and faster than ever before.

CF: How do you respond to critics’ assertion that Upworthy promotes “slacktivism”? What do you hope to happen after an audience member views a piece on Upworthy?

PK: I’ve always found the “slacktivism” charge pretty misplaced, not just in our case but generally. I think that objection is based on a concept of a world that just doesn’t exist, where there are millions of people who were just about to take to the streets or start a nonprofit or run for office themselves, and then right at that moment, they saw a petition to sign or a video to share and so they did that instead.

That’s not, in my experience, how humans work. In reality, giving people a simple first step to take towards meaningful action allows them to go from 0 to 1—from doing nothing at all on a pressing issue to doing something. And once people have done anything at all related to a cause, they’re much more likely to keep going and do a whole lot more.

This is the second in a series of blog posts featuring speakers from MCON 2015. Check back to learn about more innovators and leaders from the private, nonprofit and public sectors. Also, be sure to tune in to the live stream of MCON on June 24th and 25th at www.mcon.events.

It’s In Our Jeans: How One Clothing Brand Conquered Fear

Posted on June 11, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by J.D. Brady on behalf of the Case Foundation:

Few changemakers embody the Be Fearless mantra quite like Levi Strauss & Co. and its Foundation. For more than 160 years, the brand has implemented a unique approach to investing in causes. As a company, they have always strived to go first. In fact, they were one of the first brands to help fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic; their work force was racially integrated years before Civil Rights legislation was implemented; and the company was one of the first to offer domestic partner benefits. Levi Strauss & Co. developed “the code that launched a thousand codes” when it became one of the first companies to create a “code of conduct” determining how contractors must treat workers and the expectation of contractors to produce a quality environment in which to work.

Just last year the Case Foundation featured the Foundation as a Be Fearless case study. Led by executive director Daniel Jae-Won Lee, the Foundation makes big bets and causes they are invested in and was one of the first to set aside dedicated funds for an experimental, “innovation” portfolio. Each year roughly 15 to 20 percent of their budget is directed to potentially transformative projects and their leaders with great ideas.

In advance of MCON this month, Daniel shares his lessons learned at the helm of the foundation and how his team has worked to solve some of society’s most pressing social issues. We look forward to hearing him share his insights at MCON 2015.

CF: Part of your emphasis as an organization is improving worker well-being at apparel companies located in communities where your products are made. Tell us more about these efforts and what impact you have made.

DL: We have a longstanding commitment to improve the well-being and rights of people who make our products. Levi Strauss & Co. has invested more than $10 million in the past fifteen years on factory-based programs to enhance the health, financial security, life skills and awareness of apparel workers. But here’s the catch: when we asked how many of these terrific initiatives were sustained in the factory beyond our initial funding, the answer was resounding — zilch.

Out of this came a new business approach: Improving Worker Well-being. Our foundation is supporting efforts by Levi Strauss & Co. to foster the ownership and sustainability of these programs among key vendors in the supply chain, based on the premise that what is good for workers is also good for business. We recognize a lynchpin to factory ownership is measuring the social and business impact of these worker programs. Studies have shown that for every dollar invested in women’s health on the factory floor, there are three or four dollars of return in terms of improved productivity and reduced absenteeism. It won’t be turnkey or overnight success, but the company is committed to working with its key suppliers over the next five years to generating this business and social value – and making Improving Worker Well-being a way of doing business.

CF: What are the greatest challenges facing communities today? What are some ways the Levi Strauss Foundation is addressing these challenges?

DL: In the United States and across the globe, the rise of income inequality is one of the most critical issues of our time. It is striking to see both Democrats and Republicans speaking on this topic in the prelude to the 2016 Presidential election. The Levi Strauss Foundation has invested $7.5 million in asset building programs since 2007. These allow low-income people not merely to gain an income but also generate savings and invest in long-term assets like education or a home. More recently we joined SF Gives, a collaborative effort spearheaded by the anti-poverty champion, Tipping Point, and Marc Benioff, founder and CEO of Salesforce. The initiative takes a full-circle approach by bringing together companies from across the Bay Area – including many new players from the technology sector – to leverage their support, employees and influence to address poverty in the Bay Area.

CF: What is one of the biggest bets that the Levi Strauss Foundation has made since its inception?

DL: In 1982, Levi Strauss & Co. was among the first corporations to respond to HIV/AIDS (even before it had a name, when it emerged a mysterious and deadly virus) due to its impact on our employees. One year later, our foundation was the first to help fund the fight against the epidemic. More than 30 years later, this global epidemic is expanding in key markets like Russia, China, India, South Africa and the United States. Due to stigma and discrimination, those people and groups who bear the brunt of this epidemic are viewed as not worthy of having rights.

In the early days of the epidemic, our funding helped seed and grow many incredible organizations – first in San Francisco and eventually in over thirty countries around the globe. Today, the Levi Strauss Foundation is proudly supporting the human rights response to this global epidemic, an approach that receives less than one percent of total HIV/AIDS funding. Only by changing discriminatory laws, bad public health policies and stigmatizing cultural practices – and cultivating those groups most impacted by HIV/AIDS as advocates and agents of change – can we claim victory over this disease and cultivate an AIDS-free generation.

This is the first in a series of blog posts featuring speakers from MCON 2015. Check back to learn about more innovators and leaders from the private, nonprofit and public sectors. Also, be sure to tune in to the live stream of MCON on June 24th and 25th!

The Power of Influence: Get Ready for MCON 2015

Posted on May 21, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by Derrick Feldmann on behalf of the Case Foundation:

In 2010, Achieve and the Case Foundation began an effort to understand the dynamics between organizations and a new generation of donors and activists. Together, we established the Millennial Impact Project to fill a knowledge gap that existed in the field: How does the Millennial generation connect, involve and support causes?

This research has helped thousands of organizations and companies reach and activate this generation of do-gooders, but we didn’t want our findings to stay just on paper; we wanted to cultivate a learning experience. That is why we launched MCON in 2012, and it has since grown into the nation’s premier conference on the movements that are improving our world and how the next generation is shaping the work we do in communities across the country.

Year after year, MCON proves to be an unforgettable experience for every online and in-person attendee. Participants come from across the country to discover how the next generation is influencing their world and the way they operate within it. MCON provides the foundation for understanding today’s cause movements and how to move interest in a cause into action for a cause.

In that spirit, MCON 2015 will focus on the concept of influence. Specifically, we will explore the power of influence through “art, media business and place.” In today’s super connected world, we are constantly being influenced to act. This year, we want to understand how these four industries influence people to ‘do good’ and act on behalf of an issue. We will discuss ways to bring people together, activate the next generation and create company and organizational cultures that establish openness, accessibility and transparency.

To help the audience understand the power of influence, we’re gathering an incredible lineup of entrepreneurs, activists, artists and visionaries who are influencing others to ‘do good’.

Daniel Lubetzky, founder of KIND Snacks, will headline the first night of this two-day conference. Daniel is a pioneering social entrepreneur known in the international community for developing business models that integrate social objectives with sustainable market-driven forces. He founded KIND Healthy Snacks in 2004 with the mission of making the world a little kinder, one snack and act at a time. Today, KIND is available at more than 150,000 retailers and is the fastest-growing snack company in the U.S., and the KIND Movement has inspired nearly a million acts of kindness among its community.

In the art section, we’re highlighting designers and artists whose projects have increased awareness and inspired change. Sarah Urist Green is the creator and curator of The Art Assignment, an educational video series produced by PBS Digital Studios that introduces us to the most innovative minds in art today, practicing alternative approaches to art-making. Designer Stephen Kenn will also present on some of the ideas and works that have made him one of the most sought-after artists of our time.

This year, MCON also features several journalists and media professionals who are experts in highlighting social issues. Peter Koechley, for example, served as an editor for The Onion before co-founding Upworthy. To date, the Upworthy community has dedicated nearly 2 billion minutes of attention to important stories for a better world, ranging from the criminal justice system reform to advertising’s adverse effects on body image to clean energy.

The business session will include social entrepreneurs, companies and leaders who are transforming business models to influence social change. One speaker in this session, Daniel Jae-Won Lee, Executive Director of the Levi Strauss Foundation, will present on how his organization advances pioneering social change in the areas of HIV/AIDS, worker rights and well being, asset building and social justice in communities touched by Levi Strauss & Co.’s business.

The place session features civic and cause activists who are driving community and cultural change. Fagan Harris, CEO and President of Baltimore Corps, an organization dedicated to building a stronger Baltimore by mobilizing a new generation of leaders focused on urban renewal. We’ll also hear from the co-founder and president of the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative, Tyson Gersh. Tyson uses urban agriculture as a platform to promote education, sustainability and community to solve some of the social issues currently facing Detroit.

That just scratches what will happen at MCON this year.

You’ll want to attend MCON if you are a:

Cause leader seeking to change the culture of your organization and better engage a new generation of cause enthusiast.
Cause marketer looking to build an effective platform to move individuals from cause enthusiasm to action.
Cause enthusiast looking to embark on a new personal journey of social good that you haven’t yet defined.

Join us at MCON June 24-25 and discover the power of influence. There are two ways to experience this year’s event. Attend in person at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, or you can watch both days of speaker presentations online. Learn more and register at mcon.events.

2015 Conferences On Our Radar

Posted on February 18, 2015October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by Jade Floyd and Anna Windsor on behalf of the Case Foundation:

Networking with people we admire, making new connections, and learning from organizations that inspire us: those are just a few reasons we love attending conferences and convenings in the social sector and beyond that help us advance our efforts to revolutionize philanthropy, unleash entrepreneurship and ignite civic engagement. While we wish we could find a way to easily clone ourselves and make it to all of the incredible gatherings there are to choose from, here are the few we’ll be attending (and in some cases hosting panels, dinners and other discussions) in 2015:

Opportunity Nation Summit, February 25 – 26, Washington, D.C.

The National Opportunity Summit unites a bipartisan, cross-sector group of business leaders, nonprofits, elected officials and young people working together to address the crisis of youth unemployment and its impact on opportunity in America. Join the Case Foundation for a panel on the “Power of Entrepreneurship on Youth Unemployment.” More details HERE.

Nonprofit Technology Conference (NTEN), March 4 – 6, Austin, TX

The Nonprofit Technology Conference highlights the latest technologies and best strategies to address pressing issues in the nonprofit sectors. Be sure to check out our own Elyse Greenberg on March 6th as she joins a panel of social media professionals for a lively conversation around engagement. They will explore how better engagement can lead to stronger programs, higher returns and greater impact for you and your initiatives. More details HERE.

SXSW Interactive, March 13 – 17, Austin, TX

The SXSW Interactive Festival is an incubator for cutting-edge technologies and digital creativity that tens of thousands flock to each year in Austin. Be sure to pop over to the many events hosted by the Case Foundation, including:

Our CEO, Jean Case will lead a lively “Impact Investing Rumble,” where champions of impact investing will take on the nay sayers in a tag-team style debate to fight it out over whether or not one can really invest and receive financial returns. More details HERE.
A Be Fearless Breakout Session where you can explore how you and your organization can integrate strategies and tactics to create greater impact and more meaningful social change. More details HERE.
A session on How Potato Salad Killed/Saved Crowdfunding moderated by our own Allyson Burns with Gary Wohlfeill from Crowdrise; Ryan Grepper who created the Coolest Cooler which was one of the most popular campaigns on Kickstarter; and Zack Brown, the “potato salad guy” from from Kickstarter. Together they will explore the future of crowdfunding for nonprofits, for-profits and individuals and what this shift in crowdfunding means for the future of the sector. More details HERE.
Join us in the convention center for a featured presentation on the future of entrepreneurship by our Chairman, Steve Case, including a fireside chat Catherine Rampell from the Washington Post. More details HERE.
Later, Steve will join fellow judges Troy Carter and Sallie Krawcheck for the Rise of the Rest pitch competition. Join us as they showcase emerging startup ecosystems across the U.S. Five companies will have five minutes to pitch and the winning startup will receive a $100,000 investment. More details HERE.
Pop over to the “Startup Oasis” produced by UP Global and the Kauffman Foundation from March 14-16th. Steve will join other entrepreneurs and startups at sessions and happy hours focused on women, fintech and education. Sign up HERE.

Skoll World Forum, April 15-17, Oxford, England

Every year in Oxford more than 1,000 thought leaders from the social, financial, private and public sectors convene to innovate, accelerate and scale solutions to the world’s greatest social issues. More details HERE. Council on Foundations Annual Meeting, April 26 – 28, San Francisco, CA The Council on Foundations’ Annual Meeting brings together global leaders from across philanthropy to develop the ideas and strategies that will shape the future. More details HERE.

Milken Institute Global Conference, April 26 – 29, Los Angeles, CA

The four-day conference in Los Angeles unites attendees as they devise solutions to today’s most pressing challenges. Stay tuned for more on events hosted by the Case Foundation to be announced in the coming weeks. More details HERE. Do Good Data, April 30 – May 1, Chicago, IL Do Good Data features innovative leaders who weigh in on how data is creating a more effective and efficient sector. More details HERE.

Forward Cities, date TBD

Forward Cities is a multi-city, national learning collaborative between New Orleans, Detroit, Cleveland and Durham. Over the next two years, leaders and local innovators from each of these cities are convening to connect with one another as they work to increase entrepreneurial activity and connectivity in disconnected communities. The Case Foundation is looking forward to supporting several of their upcoming meetings in Detroit and Cleveland this year so stay tuned for more!

EPIP National Conference, May 12 – 14, New Orleans, LA

The Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy National Conference aims to develop leaders who are better equipped to advance social change. The theme for this year’s conference is “Emerging Voices, Empowering Communities” and will unite attendees as they address social disparities and discuss best practices to advance social change. More details HERE.

The Millennial Impact – MCON 2015, June 24-25, Chicago, IL

Each year the Case Foundation hosts MCON, a two-day experience for corporate, nonprofit and public leaders who create and build movements for causes by engaging the Millennial generation. MCON will be an especially enriching experience for cause marketers, and cause enthusiasts and cause leaders seeking to change the culture of their organizations. More details HERE.

Mashable Social Good Summit, September 27 th- 28th, New York, NY

The Mashable Social Good Summit is a conference examining the impact of technology and new media on social good initiates around the world. The summit is held during UN Week in New York City and unites a community of global leaders and grassroots activists. This year’s theme will be #2030NOW, asking the question, “What type of world do I want to live in by the year 2030?” More details HERE.

SOCAP, October 6 – 9, San Francisco, CA

SOCAP 15 (Social Capital Markets) will unite innovators in business, tech, the sharing economy, health and philanthropy to advance environmental and social causes through impact investing and social enterprise. More details HERE.

Independent Sector, October 27 – 29, Miami, FL

The Independent Sector Conference uses innovative formats to share the expertise of staff and board members from nonprofits, foundations and corporate philanthropy programs. The conference also features special programs including like NGen: Moving Nonprofit Leaders from Next to Now, as well as the Public Policy Action Institute. More details HERE.

2015 BoardSource Leadership Forum, November 9 – 10, New Orleans, LA

The BoardSource Leadership Forum is one of the largest annual gatherings of nonprofit board leaders. At this convening, attendees will discuss the latest trends and best practices in nonprofit governance to help guide their organizations toward greater impact. More details HERE.

We hope to see you at one or more of these gatherings, and look forward to sharing more about our learnings. We’ll check in later this year with an update on new gatherings that we’ve added to our calendar.

Have a conference not listed here that should be on our radar? Tweet us @CaseFoundation to share with #CFBlog.

Lessons from MCON14

Posted on August 18, 2014October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

This post was written by Derrick Feldmann on behalf of the Case Foundation:

As the song says, we’ve come so far.

Five years ago, Achieve and the Case Foundation foresaw the influence that the generation dubbed “Millennials” would have on our way of life. We also realized that powered by the strongest desire to safeguard and strengthen the world we’ve seen in modern times, this influence would have astounding results.

We decided to help make sure everyone was ready.

This year was MCON14, our fourth conference to present what we know, and how individuals and companies have successfully engaged with Millennials and causes.

Our 2014 Millennial Impact Report, released at MCON, addressed Millennials as employees. So we sought a variety of speakers from the business world – entrepreneurs who are or work with Millennials, corporations with giving campaigns open to Millennial workers, nonprofits founded by or involving Millennials, and related retailers, journalists, funders, filmmakers, social networkers, and political partisans – to let our audience hear about their efforts firsthand.

The engagement that the information received surpassed all of our (already high) expectations. We received 126 million media impressions and we trended on Twitter four times! Check out our infographic for more evidence of the impact we had both on and offline.

mcon 2014 infographic

I loved it all, of course, but here are a few notable takeaways I experienced or heard about:

Large and small companies have giving campaigns the public barely even knows about. This means they’re doing it not to “look good,” but to actually do good. Corporations like AT&T and Allstate are finding out how much employees care about working for an organization with an authentic CSR program.

The answer is usually simpler than you think. Kohl Crecelius went to Uganda looking for a big solution to the cycle of poverty, and the answer kept coming back to two things:

Keep it simple. For him, that meant teaching people to crochet. His global business built from there.
Whatever it is you’re waiting for – permission, the perfect plan, “enough” training/schooling/money – stop waiting. Just start.

Creatives need to know how to code. And it’s OK to turn down the president. Mike McGee convinced me that by learning computer code, you gain the power to build and share your own creative ideas. And that saying “no” to an offer from President Obama to concentrate on your biggest idea is brilliant.

We should start as a “minimum viable product.” Don’t stress if you’re not following a career path. Martin Edlund says take a career hack: Go out into the world, learn the skills you need at the time, and start applying them.

The government wants staff to bond over coffee. Some federal agencies are letting employees have Google+ Hangouts to get to know each other so they can work together better together. That’s just way more cutting-edge than I thought the government was capable of.

Tumblr and karaoke are equally fun. I think every MCON speaker made a GIF in the Tumblr room, and we have gained a new audience at MCONideas.Tumblr.com. And I’ve said all I’m going to say about the karaoke.

Our hope after every MCON is that people like you will be inspired to go back to your employer, friends, family, social networks or wherever else you spend time and apply something you learned at the conference. If you do, we’d love to hear about how it goes.

How we select MCON speakers

Recap: Aine McGlynn, Timeraiser

Recap: Dale Knoop, RAZ Mobile

Derrick Feldmann is the President of Achieve – the creative research agency behind The Millennial Impact Project to understand how Millennials connect, involve, and give to causes. He is the coauthor of Cause for Change: The Why and How of Nonprofit Millennial Engagement published by Jossey Bass, a Wiley Imprint.

5 Tips for Better Millennial Engagement in 140 Characters or Less

Posted on July 7, 2014October 31, 2018 by Case Foundation

MCON14, the Millennial Engagement Conference hosted by Achieve and sponsored by the Case Foundation, reached a new milestone this month with the completion of a two-day convening in Chicago that continues to shape the social sector’s understanding of the next generation.

More than 40 leaders from the media, corporate and nonprofit space took the stage to share their advice on how to embrace the Millennial generation in the workplace and through cause work.

Here are some of our favorite insights from the gathering:

Millennial Engagement Network for Good Tweet

Millennial Engagement Susan McPherson Tweet

Millennial Engagement Case Foundation Tweet

Millennial Engagement Benevolent Tweet

Millennial Engagement Derrick Feldmann Tweet

Looking for some tips and best practices that offer a little more detail? Check out these thought pieces highlighting findings from the Millennial Impact Project:

The Business of Doing Good: How Millennials Are Changing The Corporate Sector By Jean Case in Forbes

Millennials and the Social Sector: What’s Next By Derrick Feldmann and Emily Yu in SSIR

Want to Attract Millennials to Your Company? Engage Them in Causes By Ariel Schwartz in Fast Co

Have your own resource or tip to share? Tell us on Twitter @CaseFoundation.

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