Center for Social Innovation

For Love or Lucre

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Spring 2011

A veteran social entrepreneur provides a guide to those who are thinking through the thorny question of whether to create a nonprofit, a for-profit, or something in between.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

A New Type of Hybrid

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Spring 2011

Social entrepreneurs have taken the hybrid model to a new level, crafting it into what is in effect a single structure that can operate as both a for-profit and a nonprofit.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

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Better Vision for the Poor

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Spring 2011

Several social enterprises are attempting to provide eyeglasses to the 500 million to 1 billion poor people in the world who need them. Some enterprises see the provision of trained optometrists as the key to solving the problem; others are focused on cost reduction; others still are focused on technological innovations. Why haven’t any of these approaches succeeded on a large scale?

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

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Green Tech Must First Make Economic Sense, Says Vinod Khosla

Zero emission buildings and hybrid vehicles have broad appeal, but any climate change solution must first make economic sense in order to truly be effective, venture capitalist Vinod Khosla, MBA ’80, told a business school audience during the 2008 von Gugelberg Memorial Lecture.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Corporate Social Responsibility, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Innovative Partnership Models: Harnessing the Power of Your Network

A panel discusses the need to use innovative and collaborative thinking processes when modifying supply chains to address prominent social and environmental problems. In addition to encouraging collaboration with members of one's network, they also recommend seeking feedback from unlikely stakeholders to include new perspectives.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Economic Development, Healthcare, Social Entrepreneurship

Trip Studies India's Rural Health Issues

MBA students reflect on their service learning trip to India, where they met an extraordinary group of rural women who have changed the face of their village. These women helped to eradicate preventable disease while empowering themselves as major stakeholders in a community-driven revolution that has become more pervasive throughout the subcontinent.

Resource: News Article

Topic :

Economic Development, Nonprofit Management, Social Entrepreneurship

Actress-Activist Natalie Portman Urges Students to Help Alleviate Poverty

With a presentation on microfinance, actress-turned-activist Natalie Portman kicked off the Social Innovators Speaker Series launched by the Center for Social Innovation at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She also called on students to take social action to alleviate poverty.

Resource: News Article

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Stanford Business School Conference Makes Case for Socially Responsible and Environmentally Sustainable Supply Chains

A conference at the Stanford Graduate School of Business made the business case for environmentally sustainable and socially responsible supply chain networks. The conference gathered executives, academics, NGOs, and government leaders to share best practices and insights. It is one of several new initiatives related to environmental sustainability at the Business School.

Resource: News Article

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What’s Next: Here Comes the Neighborhood

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Winter 2011

Social network and professional network combined: a low-income neighborhood works together to meet the needs of the community in an environmentally responsible way.

Business, Nonprofits, Social Enterprises, Socially Responsible Business, Social Entrepreneurship

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

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Big Business Matters

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

Social intrapreneurs—change agents already working deep within business—are the answer for business’s woes.

Business, Nonprofits, Social Enterprises, Social Entrepreneurship

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Monk, Architect, Diplomat

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

Three types of leadership are needed to build a successful organization.

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

Topic :

Global Issues, Nonprofits, Social Innovations, Education, Government, Social Entrepreneurship

Innovating Public Systems

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

With these seven levers, social entrepreneurs can foster change in everything from affordable housing to child welfare to poverty alleviation.

Global Issues, Nonprofits, Human Rights, Social Entrepreneurship

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

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What’s Next: Drowning Out Hate

Stanford Social Innovation Review: Fall 2010

Throughout history, acts of hatred have plagued communities and dominated media attention. The website Not In Our Town is working to combat that by broadcasting anti-hate stories and campaigns.

Corporate Social Responsibility, Economic Development, Social Entrepreneurship

Resource: Stanford Social Innovation Review Article

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A New Way to Respond to Natural Disasters

Better practices in disaster relief involve market-orientated nonprofit organizations, or social-mission-orientated, for-profit companies, playing a more prominent role.

Resource: Blog Post

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Micro-Innovation: Bringing Billions into the Conversation

How do you assess the ability and willingness of the poor to pay for products and services that do not already exist, and how do you convince companies to take a risk on such a vast and fragmented market?

Resource: Blog Post

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Government, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Children’s Crusades

Let’s keep holding the government accountable.

Resource: Blog Post

Topic :

Economic Development, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

MicroEnergy Credits Corporation: Catalyzing Clean Energy for the BoP

Using existing microfinance institutions and recent developments in the carbon credit markets on the supply side to facilitate the adoption of clean energy for the very poor.

Resource: Blog Post

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Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Startup Funding in One Business Week?

Foundations, listen up: Venture capital firms are making it easier than ever for entrepreneurs to get seed money.

Resource: Blog Post

Video/Audio : All | Audio | Video

Topic:

Schools Hit the Big Screen

An Inconvenient Truth sparked national attention to global warming, as did the film Food, Inc. to food issues. Now, three new films, including Academy Award winning director David Guggenheim's Waiting for "Superman", focus on education reform, bringing the United State's school system into the hearts and minds of the American public. Panelists involved in these films gather at the 2010 NewSchools Summit, and speak on how these powerful films can inspire action and advocacy from the broader audience.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Educational Entrepreneurship

Educational entrepreneurs have made great strides, but they still have a long way to go. In this panel discussion from the NewSchools Summit 2010 conference, several prominent educational reformers, both local and national, share their wisdom. They discuss the radical change in education in New Orleans post-Katrina, the investment strategy and results of the NewSchools Venture Fund, and why it's important to have a political strategy to match your educational goals.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Closing Achievement Gaps

Closing achievement gaps in public education is one of the most important civil rights issues of the century. In this panel discussion at the NewSchools Summit 2010 conference, education experts consider how activists and entrepreneurs may draw on lessons from the civil rights movement to address this critical social justice concern.

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Resource: Audio

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The Dragonfly Effect and Social Enterprise

How can you leverage the power of design thinking and psychological research with practical tools and strategies to get your social enterprise off the ground? In this university podcast, sponsored by the Stanford Center for Social Innovation, Stanford Graduate School of Business marketing professor Jennifer Aaker introduces the "dragonfly effect" model to illustrate how technology can be used to support business and social missions.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Using Twitter for Social Change

Twitter may be based in San Francisco, but it's used by folks in nearly every country in the world. In this university podcast, sponsored by the Stanford Center for Social Innovation, author Sarah Milstein shows you the ins and outs of how to use this real-time information network for your personal or business advantage. She offers tips on searching, posting, and making an impact on the world with your ideas.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Economic Development, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Reducing Global Poverty

From disease control to global climate change, innovative business people are designing sustainable solutions to promote international development and reduce global poverty. Hear how this is happening from leaders in the field.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Value Creation

The nonprofit sector delivers social value and the for-profit sector delivers economic value, right? Wrong! Jed Emerson argues that value is nondivisible, whole, and blended. He invites us to think beyond philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, social enterprise, and other limiting mindsets.

Resource: Video

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Evaluating Social Venture Ideas

Three social-venture experts share the process and tools they use to evaluate the impact and viability of aspiring change-makers' ideas. A must hear for anyone planning to start a social or environmental enterprise.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Social Entrepreneurs Invent the Future

Can businesses deliver strong returns to shareholders while also promoting the health of people and the planet? Gary Hirshberg, the phenomenally successful pioneer of the organic foods industry, utters a resounding yes.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Healthcare, Social Entrepreneurship

From Demoralization to Living Community

In the year 2000 DaVita, the largest independent provider of dialysis services in the United States, was being investigated by the SEC and sued by shareholders. Kent Thiry explains how building community bumped DaVita's market capitalization to $3 billion and turned it into a leader in its field.

Resource: Video

Topic:

Corporate Social Responsibility, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Name Your Price!

Giving things away for the prize people are willing to pay sounds like corporate suicide. In this audio lecture sponsored by the Center for Social Innovation at Stanford, Leif Nelson shows it's a pathway to corporate citizenship, increased revenue, and an enhanced company image. He walks us through field experiments he conducted at major theme parks manipulating various aspects of the purchasing experience for souvenir action photos.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Social Enterprise in Food Supply Chains

In the arena of social enterprise, a California collaboration is creating a high yield. In this university podcast, executives Diane Del Signore and Maisie Greenwalt share how Community Alliance with Family Farmers and Bon Appétit Management Company have partnered to create a local distribution system to get locally grown products into institutional settings. They also talk about efforts to help farmers become more organic.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Using Technology to Achieve Ambitious Goals

Technological progress has fostered new opportunities for teaching and learning, inside and outside of the classroom. From Sesame Street to netbooks to social networks, the students of today are using technology in numerous ways to enrich their learning experience and prepare them for the challenges of tomorrow. This panel of educational entrepreneurs from the NewSchools Summit explores the ideas, outcomes, and possibilities that result from technology-enabled solutions that transform a student's approach to learning.

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Resource: Audio

Topic:

Schools Hit the Big Screen

An Inconvenient Truth sparked national attention to global warming, as did the film Food, Inc. to food issues. Now, three new films, including Academy Award winning director David Guggenheim's Waiting for "Superman", focus on education reform, bringing the United State's school system into the hearts and minds of the American public. Panelists involved in these films gather at the 2010 NewSchools Summit, and speak on how these powerful films can inspire action and advocacy from the broader audience.

You are missing some Flash content that should appear here! Perhaps your browser cannot display it, or maybe it did not initialize correctly.

Resource: Audio

Topic:

Educational Entrepreneurship

Educational entrepreneurs have made great strides, but they still have a long way to go. In this panel discussion from the NewSchools Summit 2010 conference, several prominent educational reformers, both local and national, share their wisdom. They discuss the radical change in education in New Orleans post-Katrina, the investment strategy and results of the NewSchools Venture Fund, and why it's important to have a political strategy to match your educational goals.

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Resource: Audio

Case Studies : All | Academic Cases

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Entrepreneurs in a Harsh Business Climate: Reform-Era Vietnam

By the mid-1990s, a few years into Vietnam’s tentative market-oriented reforms, the country’s private sector was at a crucial point. Three owner-managers discuss their initial success in such an unreceptive setting.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Grameen Bank

Grameen Bank lent hundreds of millions of dollars to millions of poor entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Managing Director Muhammad Yunus faced tremendous challenges brought about by political upheavals and natural disasters in this country.

Resource: Academic Case

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An Introduction to Social Return on Investment

This paper discusses how socioeconomic results are quantified with traditional financial measures. It briefly outlines the methodology used by the Roberts Enterprise Development Fund.

Resource: Academic Case

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Lutherwood-CODA (Community Opportunities Development Association)

The Canadian nonprofit Lutherwood-CODA is engaged in a bold real estate project to develop a retirement community. Can the organization face a new level of financial risk associated with creating an assisted living center?

Resource: Academic Case

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Abercrombie & Kent: Pioneering Global Ecotourism

Abercrombie & Kent, a safari company, develops an ecotourism business in Kenya. The company must assess its challenges and future directions.

Resource: Academic Case

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Belize's Community Baboon Sanctuary

A sanctuary for baboons in Belize has been reformulated to support ecotourism. Numerous management, social, and political issues continue to limit the sanctuary’s growth.

Resource: Academic Case

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Eastside College Preparatory

This case describes the formation, management, and challenges of a prep school founded in a depressed urban community. It focuses on fundraising, performance measurement, faculty recruiting, growth, and managing culture.

Resource: Academic Case

Topics:

Healthcare, Social Entrepreneurship

Phyto-Riker Pharmaceuticals

Phyto-Riker, a pharmaceutical company in Ghana, contemplates the effects of the HIV epidemic in Africa on its business plans. It is not certain what resources will be available, and how they will be distributed.

Resource: Academic Case

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Property Rights in New Zealand Abalone Fisheries

When abalone divers were given a property right in abalone fisheries, fishery owner Roger Beattie moved from the small time to become a successful entrepreneur. He began seeking out opportunities to improve his bottom line and the local environment.

Resource: Academic Case

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River Run Development Company

Peter O’Neill envisioned a 120-acre residential community alongside the Boise River. However, he needed to convince the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, and several other agencies, that his idea would not harm the trout population.

Resource: Academic Case

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Social Entrepreneurs: Correcting Market Failures

A new breed of entrepreneurs is prioritizing social impact over the creation of wealth. This video case examines the insights, aspirations, and impact of three leading social entrepreneurs and the challenges they face in distributing products and services in hard-to-reach places. It is meant to be used in conjunction with cases SI72 A and SI72 B.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Economic Development, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

Waste Concern

Waste Concern in Bangladesh had earned an international reputation for its innovative approach to waste management in Dhaka. The organization needed to consider two opportunities to raise capital for expansion from large foreign firms.

Resource: Academic Case

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Healthcare, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Building the Knowledge Base of the Health Care Fields

By 2005, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation had firmly established the importance of building a knowledge base and communicating its findings to external and internal constitutencies. The foundation faced the challenge of how to effectively execute its communications.

Resource: Academic Case

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Social Entrepreneurs: Correcting Market Failures (B)

This case, part two in a two-part series, explores the challenge of distribution, particularly for nonprofit entities seeking to bring their products and services to hard-to-reach places around the world.

Resource: Academic Case

Topic :

Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

SV2: Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund

The Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund provides Silicon Valley donors with philanthropic experience and education to empower their giving, and awards capacity-building grants to nonprofits. The fund’s leadership wondered how to improve the partner consulting program to better leverage partner expertise, and how to engage partners in grantmaking and educational activities.

Resource: Academic Case

Research Papers : All

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The Meaning of “Social Entrepreneurship”

This seminal paper defines the term social entrepreneurship and helps shape, what was in 1998, the nascent field of social entrepreneurship.

Resource: Research Paper

Courses : All

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The Power of Social Technology: GSBGEN 358

The goal of this seminar is to investigate how social technology (e.g., blogs, websites, podcasts, widgets, community groups, social network feeds) can change attitudes and behaviors in ways that cultivate social change. We study the strategies and tactics used by companies and causes that have successfully catalyzed social persuasion.

Resource: MBA Course

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Social Entrepreneurship: STRAMGT 369

This course focuses on the efforts of private citizens to create effective responses to social needs and innovative solutions to social problems. It equips students with frameworks and tools that will help them be more effective as a social entrepreneur.

Resource: MBA Course

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Social Enterprise: STRAMGT 341

This course explores the challenges and opportunities related to social entrepreneurship. Students study nonprofit, for-profit, and hybrid organizational forms, and examine issues from a variety of perspectives, including that of entrepreneur, CEO, funder, and board member.

Resource: MBA Course

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Design for Extreme Affordability: OIT 333/4

Students apply engineering and business skills to design product prototypes, distribution systems, and business plans for entrepreneurial ventures in developing countries. The aim is to address challenges faced by the world's poor.

Resource: MBA Course

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Leadership in Diverse Organizations: OB 393

This course is designed to help students understand and manage human systems, exercise leadership, and work effectively with other people, specifically within the context of culturally diverse groups and organizations. The underlying premise is that diversity can present unique challenges and opportunities.

Resource: MBA Course

Innovators : All

Topic :

Economic Development, Human Rights, Nonprofit Management, Social Entrepreneurship

An interview with Federico Lozano (MBA '09)

Federico Lozano is working to alleviate poverty by connecting poor, semi-skilled laborers from the developing world with jobs in the developed world.

Resource: Fellow

Topic :

Environment, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

An interview with Robert Keith (MBA '03), Carl Palmer (MBA '03)

Robert Keith and Carl Palmer are restoring and protecting ecologically important properties in the West. They're earning market-rate returns for their effort.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Economic Development, Environment, Social Entrepreneurship

An interview with Sam Goldman (MBA '07)

Sam Goldman is bringing cutting-edge technologies to rural families all over the world. His passionate goal is to help them improve their standard of living.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Arts, Culture, and Religion, Economic Development, Education, Healthcare, Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

An interview with Peter Hero (MBA '66)

Peter Hero has been helping philanthropists make a social impact for two decades. He's now inspiring students to get involved in social entrepreneurship.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Economic Development, Education, Nonprofit Management, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

An interview with Katherine Boas

Katherine Boas created the Barefoot MBA curriculum with her classmate Scott Raymond while a student in the Stanford MBA program. Her ambition? To teach the world’s poorest entrepreneurs the basic business skills they need to make better decisions with their microloans.

Resource: Alumni

Topic :

Leadership, Philanthropy, Responsible Investing, Social Entrepreneurship

Using Entrepreneurial Approaches to Solve the Problems of Global Poverty

In turbulent times like ours, we need “hard-edged hope,” says Jacqueline Novogratz, the much-celebrated founder of the Acumen Fund. Affirming that the world is indeed a better place now than it was 40 years ago, she traces her own journey from a childhood witnessing racial inequities all around her in Detroit to a career leading the field of social impact investing. Novogratz rallies the community of Stanford business graduates to be part of the new generation of innovative problem solvers.

Resource: Video

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Lee Zimmerman and Brian Anderluh (MBA '94)

As co-owners of Evergreen Lodge in Yosemite, a social enterprise that combines environmental stewardship and socially-minded employment strategies, Lee Zimmerman and Brian Anderluh discuss keys and barriers to success, potential for scale, and opportunities for the future.

Resource: Innovators

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An interview with Dana Hendrickson (MBA '77)

Through Rebuild Hope, Dana Hendrickson and others help wounded veterans and their families overcome short-term financial obstacles.

Resource: Alumni

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