Power of Innovation – To Change the World
“We need to use the power of technology and the creative power of young people. By combining these together you can solve these problems. It’s possible!” ~ Professor Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Winner We live in extraordinary times. Financial crises and economic crises are looming large in many parts of the world. Social […]
The Power of We
October 15th is Blog Action Day, and the theme this year is “The Power of We”. That idea is at the very heart of Business Fights Poverty. I am continuously blown away by the energy and innovation of individuals around the world who are pioneering new ways of fighting poverty through business: just take a […]
What Does it Mean to Own and Operate a Socially Conscious Business?
As a new socially conscious business owner, I ask myself this question all the time. What social indicators could be affected through Evolvemint’s product line? I am intimate with each part of the supply chain for the silk scarves (and upcoming line of dresses) but I have developed some rules to ensure gender empowerment and […]
Fashioning Women’s Development
Women and fashion have a longstanding and complex relationship: often a source of joy as well as contempt. In the sleek surroundings of a London Soho art gallery, Rook and Raven, two leading female sustainable fashion experts exposed some ugly truths about fashion, and the visionary efforts underway to revolutionise the industry as part of […]
The World We Want
In the years up to 2015, the world needs to remain focused on securing as much progress as possible on the current set of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). At the same time, discussions have already begun on the goals and targets that could build on and succeed the MDGs. On 25 September, UNDP joined forces […]
Provoking while Inspiring Market and Enterprise Development Strategies
In keeping to tradition, the SEEP Network’s Annual Conference will undoubtedly be challenging development practitioners on how to significantly leverage the impact of development investments and initiatives. The gathering has for a long time been used as a key industry platform to acknowledge and address the most current challenge areas, and cutting edge practices that […]
Interview with Paul Hohnen: Greenwash, Sustainable Development and Saving the Planet
In an interview for Making It Magazine, sustainability specialist, Paul Hohnen, answers questions about ‘greenwash’, sustainable development, and what governments and the UN need to do to save the planet You have worked on economic and environmental issues for over three decades, as an Australian diplomat, as a Director of Greenpeace International, as Strategic Director […]
Reasons to be both hugely disappointed and very excited
In an interview for Making It Magazine, sustainability specialist, Paul Hohnen, answers questions about ‘greenwash’, sustainable development, and what governments and the UN need to do to save the planet You have worked on economic and environmental issues for over three decades, as an Australian diplomat, as a Director of Greenpeace International, as Strategic Director […]
How fertilizer can double cocoa production
Until now little was known about fertilizer use for cocoa. For instance, to what extent does fertilizer affect cocoa farms? How much does it cost, and which returns on investment can be expected? A pilot study on the impact of fertilizer by Francois Ruf from CIRAD, funded by IDH, Mars and Yara, gives an interesting […]
Catalyzing smallholder agricultural finance
The world’s 450 million smallholder farmers represent a large – and largely unmet – opportunity for agricultural financing. As population growth and rising incomes create unprecedented demand for food, multinational companies increasingly rely on smallholders to secure their supply of agricultural commodities. As a result, smallholders present a compelling opportunity for buyers, lenders, and other […]
The Empowerment of Women is Key to Tackling Poverty
The Bellagio Initiative caught my eye last year because of the organisations who had established it, and the mission they had set themselves – namely, the collective pursuit of answers to some of the world’s most pressing and current questions. The initiative has just published an inaugural report “Human Wellbeing in the 21st Century: Meeting […]
Education in Africa – looking beyond 2015
“If the youth of our continent are going to be successful in the modern workplace they need more than just books and pens. They need to be immersed in a technology-rich environment from an early age.” Ensuring that all children in Africa receive some sort of education at all is a challenge in itself. A […]
Smarter Impact: A new approach to enabling inclusive economic development in the information age
We are living in exciting times. Information and communications technology has already radically changed the world in which we live in for the better. The lives of billions have been transformed – those that were once isolated or living in remote locations are now connected in a way that offers a wealth of opportunities. The […]
Forget poverty. Let's talk about business
In an article I just finished for How Magazine on the future of design, I used Paul Polak as an example of why generalists are so important to the world right now. I said, “For example, it would be easy to think of global development pioneer Paul Polak as an expert in alleviating poverty, but […]
Forget poverty. Let’s talk about business
In an article I just finished for How Magazine on the future of design, I used Paul Polak as an example of why generalists are so important to the world right now. I said, “For example, it would be easy to think of global development pioneer Paul Polak as an expert in alleviating poverty, but […]
Practical Action Consulting is offering Participatory Market Systems Development training at the SEEP Annual Conference
Practical Action Practical Action Consulting (PAC) is holding a 2-day training workshop to introduce practitioners to the Participatory Market Systems Development (PMSD) approach at the SEEP Annual Conference in Washington DC. This technical training is aimed at enterprise and inclusive market development practitioners who wish to gain a greater understanding of Practical Action’s approach to […]
Clean water: a conduit for a healthier society and better business
As we prepare to publish our annual Global Sustainability Report next week*, I wanted to take the opportunity to highlight the importance of water, the most important ingredient in all of our brands, and underline our drive to improve water efficiency around the globe, particularly at our production sites in ‘water-stressed’ areas – predominantly in […]
Corporate pulling power to push sustainable development
Around the world many communities are distressed and in turmoil. The re-emergence of right wing political parties as credible electoral options, riots in European capitals, deterioration of living conditions and the development of movements (like ‘occupy’ and the ‘tea party’) are all part of a continuum of discontent. What all of these phenomena share in […]
The Next Digital Revolution
In May this year I had the pleasure of speaking at Seoul Digital Forum (Korea). I was stimulated and challenged by Steve Ballmer’s keynote address in the morning, especially the description of the new Windows 8 and all its bells and whistles. But I had one problem with it. What Steve talked about has no […]
The key to inclusive business- Getting better at partnering
“Partnering with other sectors is a bit like being a parent. Until you’ve experienced it for yourself, you really can’t appreciate what it’s like” – head of education partnerships of a multinational bank. Inclusive business (IB) projects, by definition, tend to sit in areas outside of companies’ traditional comfort zones. Whether providing incomes to disadvantaged […]