Skoll Foundation

Sally Osberg was recently quoted in the Financial Times in a piece entitled, “Philanthropy: Collaboration is key to getting more from less.” An excerpt:

“‘We can’t make a big dent in the challenges without a far greater ability to join forces,’ says Sally Osberg, president and chief executive of the Skoll Foundation, which was founded by eBay billionaire Jeff Skoll to invest in social entrepreneurs. ‘That’s where I see all this heading.’

Here, the sector has made advances since the days when, too often, grant makers based measurement of non-profits purely on overhead levels – even though investing in IT, training or streamlined procurement systems increases operational efficiency, leaving more cash for programmes.

Ms Osberg believes that many philanthropists have moved on from this approach. The sector is becoming more sophisticated and understands that accountability and legitimacy is dependent on measurement and results that add up,” she says.

Read the rest: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/8a1cc2ec-5e76-11e2-a771-00144feab49a.html#axzz2IvUGlRMW

Skoll Foundation portfolio principal Kimberly Dasher Tripp shares her insights on how to scale impact in the Harvard Business Review. Here’s an excerpt:

“If you ask venture capitalists in Silicon Valley how they measure the success of business entrepreneurs, they would no doubt list off metrics having to do with fast growth: funding raised, people hired, customers acquired, revenue produced. The assumption is that company growth is good. But when it comes to social ventures, where the primary focus is impact (not profits), bigger isn’t necessarily better.

When organizations talk to my colleagues and me at the Skoll Foundation about growth in staff size, budget size, or client / beneficiary numbers, we often ask “So what?” In our view, those types of growth don’t necessarily translate to real and significant impact. Sure, size can often be correlated to maturity, but we want to know that the service, curriculum, or product the organization is offering has a significant impact on the problem it aims to solve. For us the question is not how do you grow organizations but how do you scale impact?”

Read the rest: http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/01/its_not_all_about_growth_for_s.html

Girls Who Code, Jobs for the Future, and YouthBuild Among Groups Vying to Outraise the Field Starting Inauguration Day

*** full list of finalists at bottom ***

Palo Alto, CA – Jan 16, 2012 – On Inauguration Day, when politicians return to Washington to face the same jobs crisis, 74 organizations will begin a crowd funding competition to demonstrate who has the most promising, scalable employment solutions. They are finalists in the JobRaising Challenge, an innovative competition to help job-creating nonprofits raise money and publicity. The Skoll Foundation, The Huffington Post, and knowledge partner McKinsey & Company have selected the most innovative, feasible, and scalable candidates of the 210 applicants representing 31 states and 110 cities across America. Starting on Monday, January 21^st, the American people can choose to donate to one or more of these organizations.  Top fundraisers will be eligible for $250,000 in prizes by The Skoll Foundation.

read more

By David Rothschild and Joy Zhang

Our team bounced along the dirt road in Samistipur district in rural Bihar, India, who knows how far from the nearest paved road, until we finally arrived at the beautiful and peaceful village of Akha.  In rural Bihar you may be far from a paved road, but you are never far from people—the state is 2/3 the size of California, with three times the population.  Almost all of Bihar’s very few doctors live in cities, and the majority in the capital of Patna.  Over 70 million people live in Bihar’s villages, far from any city, and hence far from any doctor.  Villagers typically only make the long arduous trip to a city to see a doctor in extreme cases.  As expected, this lack of available doctors has led to unaccredited health practitioners filling the void, responding to the demand in almost every village. These rural health providers typically have some limited medical experience but no formal training.

We entered a small brick room with no embellishments, nestled among thatched roof and dirt walled houses and dung patties drying in the hot sun.  Inside we met Hardener Sharma, the village health provider, a young man who had recently joined the World Health Partners network.  Prior to joining the network his only training was having worked as an assistant to a doctor in a city a few hours away.  He was excited to share how the World Health Partner network had improved the quality of care he provides. The room was small and spartan but clean, with a bed, a tiny wooden table and a few chairs.  On the table was his “doctor” bag and a cell phone.  An older woman with hardened features and a crying baby on her lap sat next to him with a worried expression.  Hardener reassured her and called a number on his cellphone, and then hung up.  Two minutes later his phone rang and a World Health Partner counselor, similar to a physician’s assistant, took down details about the woman and her baby, and then put Hardener on hold.  A minute later Hardener greeted a doctor on the other end, explained a few details, and then passed the phone to the woman who conversed with the doctor.  Hardener then spoke briefly with the doctor again, and the woman seemed relieved, even gracing us with a heartfelt smile. A few minutes later a text arrived on Hardener’s phone—a prescription from the doctor for medicines for the baby. read more

“Social entrepreneurs see possibility where others see problems. They are unapologetically ambitious, setting their sights not just on incremental improvements but on systems-level transformation. And to achieve their audacious ends, social entrepreneurs enroll those most vested in that transformation — people oppressed, marginalised, or constrained by an existing reality.”

Those are Skoll Foundation CEO Sally Osberg’s words in This is Africa, a new publication from the Financial Times that “seeks to examine African business and politics in a global context and to make sense of the relationships that Africa is building with the rest of the world.” read more

2013 Skoll Awardees signal social entrepreneurs’ increased focus on not only individual impact, but also ecosystem-level change

December 20, 2012 – Palo Alto, CA – The Skoll Foundation today announced the winners of its 2013 Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship (SASEs).  Chosen from hundreds of applicants, the award recognizes a highly selective group of the world’s most promising social entrepreneurs.  Skoll’s 2013 award winners are BasicNeeds, The Citizens Foundation, Crisis Action, Independent Diplomat, Khan Academy, and World Health Partners.

2013 Skoll awardees: Who and why

“While Skoll’s six new awardees focus on different issues, they share what Skoll believes is key to accelerating large-scale change: an entrepreneurial approach, a proven innovation with demonstrated impact that can be scaled, focus on a pressing issue that is at an inflection point, and an ability to catalyze systems change,” said Sally Osberg, president and CEO of the Skoll Foundation.   read more

Frequent Skoll World Forum moderator, journalist David Bornstein, recently quoted Sally Osberg in his New York Times column, “Fixes.” Bornstein is also giving a talk about the future of social entrepreneurship, with Bill Drayton, on Nov. 29 in New York City. An excerpt from his column, called “The Rise of the Social Entrepreneur”:

“Social entrepreneurs excel at togetherness,” says Sally Osberg, president and chief executive of the Skoll Foundation. For a long time, Osberg said, she viewed social entrepreneurs as “individual actors” whose ideas led to the “creative destruction” necessary to “replace a societal status quo” with systems that were more just. “But over recent years,” she added, “I’ve come to see how the ‘social’ that characterizes their purpose also characterizes their way of working. In other words, social entrepreneurs don’t just pursue a social end, they pursue that end in a fundamentally communal way.” This approach is badly needed at a time of extreme factionalism, she adds: “Regardless of whether you call it teamwork, collaboration or consensus-building, we need it, and we need it now.”

Bornstein’s talk, Nov. 29 at 6 p.m. at Liquidnet, will address topics such as, “What are the biggest challenges facing social entrepreneurs in the current environment?  What will be the tipping point to create an “everyone a change maker” world?  What are the future trends in social innovation?” Those who can’t attend can join the conversation online: Your ideas will feed into the event. Tell us: What would the world look like if all entrepreneurs were social entrepreneurs? Tweet us at @csisl with hashtag #FutureSocEnt

Learn more: http://futureofsocialentrepreneurship.eventbrite.com/?ref=estw

Innovative Effort Seeks to Set a New Standard for Per-Dollar Impact

Palo Alto, CA – October 1st, 2012 – The Skoll Foundation, The Huffington Post and CrowdRise today announced the JobRaising Challenge, a new kind of philanthropic initiative to help job-creating nonprofits raise money, raise awareness and help put Americans back to work. Through highly engaged, cost-efficient incentive fundraising, the JobRaising Challenge, with knowledge partner McKinsey & Company, is meant to help job-creating nonprofits raise money, scale-up their efforts, and gain publicity.

The Skoll Foundation has contributed $250,000 in prize money to JobRaising, to be divided strategically to maximize dollars raised. ”We are champions of innovation the world over. We believe in doing what hasn’t been done — and we can’t wait to see the buoyant effect tough-minded but optimistic nonprofit organizations will have on our jobs market. We’re looking for social entrepreneurs whose ventures generate jobs, vitalize communities, and transform lives,” said Sally Osberg, CEO of the Skoll Foundation.

The effort is also enabled by The Huffington Post’s platform and its 44 million U.S. unique visitors per month. HuffPost will provide exposure throughout the contest to participating organizations, and will tap its community — currently commenting at a rate of 9 million per month — to engage in the JobRaising Challenge.

“I’m delighted to be working with the Skoll Foundation and CrowdRise to do our part to address the crisis that has left more than 20 million Americans unemployed or underemployed,” said Arianna Huffington, president and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group. “By raising money, raising awareness, and inspiring others, we believe JobRaising can convert the creativity and ingenuity of today’s most innovative nonprofits into the solutions we so desperately need.”

Skoll’s commitment is just the beginning, as additional prize money will be raised through CrowdRise. While the initiative will incorporate aspects of traditional incentive contests — the nonprofit that raises the most money will get $150k, the second will get $50k, and the third $30k — the JobRaising Challenge intensively leverages these dollars with social media-driven crowdfunding. The remaining $20k will be used for shorter-term incentives along the way.

The first round of the challenge, in which organizations apply to qualify, runs through November 15. In the second round, running from Inauguration Day to March 1st, 2013, qualifying organizations will be publicized on The Huffington Post and through social media. Readers will be encouraged to choose organizations to support with donations and fundraising. In the past, money that has been put up through CrowdRise to incentivize fundraising has seen up to an eight-fold return ($100k put up, $800k raised, etc.). Qualifying organizations must be U.S.-based 501(c)3s, in existence for more than one year, with a minimum operating budget of $500k. Each must submit a 990 form to the government. These requirements ensure organizations are legitimate and have a history of sustainability.

Those interested in applying should go to http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jobraising

This morning we got a sneak preview of the big glossy feature on Jeff Skoll that will be in the Oct. 8 issue of Forbes magazine. It’s a full profile of our founder, and talks about everything from the Skoll Foundation’s beginnings to his work in the Amazon rainforest, where he spent some time.

We especially love the interviews with Skoll awardees such as Ann Cotton of Camfed who credit the Skoll Foundation for being a “major catalyst” in moving to the next level.

An excerpt from the Forbes piece, which is online for the first time today: read more

A week from today, our CEO Sally Osberg is speaking on a panel called “Strategic Philanthropy: How to Think Bigger and Do Better” at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting.

The Sept. 24 panel, which starts at 10:30 a.m. in the New York West room, also includes Francisco Suárez Hernández, Chief Sustainability Officer, FEMSA; Trevor Mundel, President, Global Health Program, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder and CEO, Acumen Fund and Kevin Starr, Managing Director, Mulago Foundation.

“This session will explore creative ways for philanthropists to think bigger and do better, be it through providing seed grants to social enterprises or building partnerships with corporations,” according to the CGI web site.

Read more at: http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/ourmeetings/2012/agenda/?day=2

It has been a pleasure to see so many Skoll Awardees play such important roles front and center at World Water Week.  Water.org was highlighted numerous times by Pepsi, winner of the Industry Water Award. Pepsi improved its water use efficiency more than 20% per unit of production, leading to conservation of nearly 16 billion liters of water in 2011, and supported organizations that provided clean water to over a million people, mostly through their support of Water.org.  CEO Gary White, Director of Advocacy Chevenee Reavis and I had a wonderful dinner in Stockholm’s old town and shared lots of great stories and discussions, mostly about innovation and organizational culture and direction. Water.org is making strong moves to mainstream innovation throughout their organization. read more

Multi-year investment supports expansion of certification program,
continued development of partnerships with fishermen, industry and retailers 

Hong Kong – September 4, 2012 – As representatives from the seafood industry and conservation community convene in Hong Kong for the SeaWeb International Seafood Summit, three leading funders — the Walton Family Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the Skoll Foundation – announced a combined $10.85 million investment in the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) through September 2015, with the goal of continuing to build the global market for sustainable seafood. The multi-year grants demonstrate a continuing commitment to MSC’s certification and ecolabeling program, to preserve the livelihoods of fishermen while restoring depleted fish populations and a healthy marine environment.

read more

Skoll Foundation principal David Rothschild just returned from World Water Week in Stockholm. Wednesday, he presented on a well-attended panel on US philanthropy in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector, alongside colleagues from Hilton Foundation, Gates Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Winrock, Water for People and others. (Rothschild is seated second from left in the photo above).

“On the panel, Water for People CEO Ned Breslin and I had an open discussion about social entrepreneurship, the Skoll Foundation’s approach to philanthropy and how our efforts and our community have not only helped Water for People, but also challenged and pushed them to go further and do more. Ned was eloquent and passionate about how innovate and supportive the Skoll Foundation is,” Rothschild says.

Here’s an interview with Rothschild, where he talks about funder-grantee relationships, and more:

http://washfunders.org/Blog/3-Questions-for-David-Rothschild-of-the-Skoll-Foundation

Watch for a blog from him later this week, and meanwhile, read Water for People’s blog about World Water Week: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-sauer/setting-our-sights-high-a_b_1845136.html?utm_hp_ref=clean-water

Skoll Foundation principal Kelly Greenwood has had a very powerful experience at the V-Day Africa Rising Summit in Nairobi, and can’t wait to share it with us in a blog when she returns. Here’s what she’s told us so far:

“It has been an incredibly powerful experience, both in intensity and inspiration.  Sixteen African countries are represented, including the DRC and Sudan.  To ensure that all 46 participants are able to communicate effectively, live translations are being fed into headphones in four languages – English, Arabic, French, and Swahili.

The emphasis is squarely on empowerment, overcoming local taboos, and the ability to drive change across Africa.  One such session focused on getting governments to respond to violence against women and included Martha Karua, a Member of Parliament in Kenya who is currently running for President. Dr. Denis Mukwege, doctor and founder of the Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, DRC and past contender for the Nobel Peace Prize, spoke passionately about the need to increase men’s commitment to fighting violence against women.”

Here is the complete press release about the event, which the Skoll Foundation co-sponsored: http://www.vday.org/node/2951

Exciting news! At the Republican National Convention today, Arianna Huffington announced The JobRaising Challenge, an innovative competition organized by The Huffington Post, the Skoll Foundation, and CrowdRise to champion those US non-profits working to directly affect the number of jobs and/or our population’s ability to get one. Huffington also hosted a panel discussion today about the jobs crisis titled, “What is Working.” The discussion featured our own Skoll Awardee Civic Ventures’ Marc Freedman, Tom Brokaw, Walter Isaacson and Judith Rodin.

At Skoll, we know that entrepreneurs are society’s disruptors, attacking the most daunting problems by thinking bigger and creating innovations that drive behavior, systems and policy change. Social entrepreneurs especially: Skoll’s 91 social entrepreneurs on five continents prove their innovations, then scale them. Civic Ventures (Marc Freedman) is not the only Skoll Awardee working to make life better for Americans. We look to YouthBuild’s 273 programs in 45 states, to Manchester Bidwell’s 40-year track record in career training, to Citizen Schools, Kiva and HealthLeads. And we are inspired.

Today, the issue is clear: over 20 million Americans are out of work. We know how woeful the jobs crisis is, and we are beginning to understand its causes.  On August 17, The Wall Street Journal published a sage opinion piece titled “How Big Government and Big Business Squeeze Entrepreneurs”. The JobRaising Challenge aims to take a more optimistic tack: to change the dialogue and focus our attention, and dollars, on innovation in this country.

Applications for The JobRaising Challenge, which is wholly separate from the Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship, will open October  1. The competition itself – a contest to raise funds and awareness – will kick off on Inauguration Day 2013. Three winners will be selected, for awards of $150,000, $50,000 and $30,000. For details, go to www.jobraising.com