Your Mission is Clear. Your Messaging Isn’t
Most social impact brands are good at explaining what they stand for. Fewer are good at reaching the people they need to reach, at a cost the organization can sustain. I run the marketing systems side of a performance marketing agency working with product-driven brands. Commercial work, through and through. But the core question is […]
World Bank: Is Economic Growth Alone Enough? Human Wellbeing and Development Strategy
ASUNCION, April 13, 2026 – As the World Bank convenes its Spring Meetings this week, we have an opportunity to reflect on the longstanding debate on the relationship between economic growth and human wellbeing, not only as a one-way process in which rising incomes improve basic living standards, but also as a mutually reinforcing dynamic […]
Trailblazers and Transformers: How UK Business Can Deliver Greater Social Impact
With less than five years to achieve the SDGs, UK businesses face a defining moment. A new report, released by the UN Global Compact Network UK in collaboration with University College London, SDSN UK, Newcastle University, and Euromonitor International, provides the clearest picture yet of how six high-impact sectors are performing against the SDGs, and […]
CSR 2.0: Commercial Social Revolution?
As the global economy moved from stakeholder to shareholder capitalism, the social responsibility of companies was necessarily eroded. The controlling mechanism of the market became a share price rather than a link between a firm, their employees, suppliers, consumers, and the communities impacted by their work. Globalisation has also meant that the geographical distance between […]
Inclusive Advertising: The Case for Marcomms for a Better World
Most – perhaps all – of the world’s challenges are founded in large part on problematic attitudes and beliefs. Among these challenges, discrimination based on race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation and more is arguably the most pernicious. It exacts huge economic costs and, more fundamentally, ruins and even ends lives. It robs us all […]
Beyond Buzzwords: A Portfolio Approach to Value, Purpose, and Performance
In this moment of global volatility—marked by fragile economies, eroding public trust, and escalating supply chain shocks—companies face a critical choice: retreat from sustainability or reimagine how they lead. The most forward-looking ones are doing neither. Instead, they are building resilience by designing an integrated portfolio approach to impact—aligning their financial tools, philanthropic capital, marketing, […]
“Building the Muscle” to Manage Business Impact on People: Three Key Priorities
In late 2024, as “state of sustainability” reports began hitting our inboxes en masse, we began interviewing colleagues and clients to explore the way that trends were playing out on the social side of the field – the human side, the side focused on the way companies impact the people they depend on to succeed. […]
Afro-futurist Innovators Know What We Should Build Next
How might philanthropy shift if we framed Black economic mobility as an inherent right and a collective responsibility? Might we, as funders, abandon “risk” terminology to automatically recognize Black, African, and diaspora founders’ expertise and authority? Might we trust Black and diaspora leaders’ advocacy of their communities’ real needs, widely supporting proximate leaders to author […]
Empowering Poor Populations: How Business Can Transform Poverty Relief
Freedom is Not Trusted When It Comes to the Poor Population, Let’s Change That with Business There has been a consensus that capitalism and the free market are not designed to overcome poverty. We need to overcome this belief. We celebrate the capitalist economic framework for its ability to improve the lives of the majority who […]
Enhancing Women’s Empowerment Strategies: The Investor’s View
What is the main impediment to enhancing women’s empowerment strategies? Men. Sharing power is never easy. For business, the incentive to enhance women’s empowerment is made even weaker by the specter of short-term impacts to the bottom line. For example, achieving gender pay parity, improving childcare and parental leave policies, or setting a living wage […]
How Can Businesses Tackle the Digital Divide to Drive Social Mobility?
Limited internet users are five times more likely than extensive users to be from a low-income household, according to 2023 data from Good Things Foundation. However, having the means to engage effectively online is key in improving education and employment opportunities for those from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Social mobility in the UK, which refers to […]
3 Proven Strategies that Create Impact for Women Entrepreneurs
Women entrepreneurs represent a trillion-dollar economic growth opportunity with benefits that ripple through households and communities – this should be enough to inspire action, but sadly it’s not. And despite the proliferation of gender equality strategies, gender-focused financial inclusion policies, entrepreneurship support programs, and extensive evidence that women are worth investing in, we’re still only […]
Integrating Gender Equality into Sustainability Standards: A Strategic Approach
Tackling gender inequalities in supply chains through sustainability systems The world won’t meet its sustainability goals without addressing gender issues – and sustainability standards and similar systems have an important role to play by setting gender responsive standards. The world won’t meet its sustainability goals without addressing gender issues – and sustainability standards and similar […]
Evidence-Based Decision Making: Programs for Women-Owned Small Businesses
Despite its value, evidence-based decision-making may often be overlooked due to its complexity. It requires a lot of thoughtful consideration. For instance, to use evidence effectively, we need to understand the impact of research designs on the quality of the results, recognize potential biases that may lead to over-reliance on a single perspective, and learn […]
Social Entrepreneurs Advancing the SDGs Through Systems Change Strategies
How Social Entrepreneurs Advance Sustainable Development Goals in Africa Through Systems Change Strategies Despite significant progress in the alleviation of poverty and in promoting health and education, recent reports indicate that the international community seems far from achieving the SDGs by 2030. In the 2022 SDG report, the United Nations Secretary General has called for […]
Navigating Leadership and Governance on Sustainability
Navigating Leadership and Governance on Sustainability: Insights from The Sustainability Boards’ 2023 Annual ESG Preparedness Report In a world increasingly conscious of its footprint, the evolution of Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) is a worldwide focus. The Sustainability Board’s 2023 Annual ESG Preparedness Report offers invaluable insights into global boards’ approaches to sustainability governance and director’s […]
Introducing the Strive Community Small Business Evidence Map
Designing and implementing impactful small business support programs requires thoughtful consideration of the decision-making process. Typically, decisions are made based on a combination of existing theories, past experience, and evidence of what does or doesn’t work. While each of these approaches is valuable, evidence-based decision-making may be overlooked due to its complexity. To use evidence […]
10 Businesses Making the SDGs their Business
Some of the best ideas and boldest actions are coming from entrepreneurs and start-ups embedded in low-income communities. These disruptors are driving innovations that are tackling environmental challenges, improving people’s health and building inclusive economies. Investing and learning from them is one of the best ways to accelerate sustainable development. This is the purpose of […]
Improving Human Wellbeing in the Coffee Supply Chain
Improving Human Wellbeing in the Coffee Supply chain: The Need for Better Data and Benchmarks Ahh a freshly-brewed cup of coffee…if just the smell of it brings you comfort at the promise of a caffeine-hit each morning, you’re not alone. Globally, we consume over two billion cups of coffee every day. And yet, how often […]
The Unprecedented Potential of Africa’s Future Generations
“The youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow.” Spoken by Nelson Mandela, these words ring true, eluding time and geopolitical context. For Africa, they resonate today more than ever before because of our historic boom in the population of young people. This International Day of the African Child, June 16, is arguably the most […]