Gen-Y: The Social Innovation Generation

One of the exciting developments in the Social Entrepreneurship space is the eagerness of young people to help each other go from idea stage to program development to full-blown social enterprise. I was speaking last night at Compass Partners at Georgetown, which is entirely student run and they were planning workshops on filing articles of incorporation! Today at George Mason ChangeMakers I saw students wondering how to establish a social venture fund. These are not isolated cases but examples from sea of incredible young people from Gen-Y that are eager to push the envelope of social change and development. Real opportunities will come when people don't ask students and young people "What makes you qualified to start an initiative?" and turn the question around to say, "What do you want to do and how are you going to do it? There's no time to lose!"

As one of the leaders of Compass Partners at Georgetown, I'm surrounded and constantly inspired by students who dispel the notion that youth is an obstacle to affecting social change. Young people are responding to the social needs they see with concrete ideas, and you've got it right, Saul - they can't wait to ACT on them. Gone is the day when it's acceptable for age to determine the worth of ideas - we ought to empower innovation rather than college diplomas. The youth of Gen-Y can access inspiration from unprecedented amounts of information; the only resources they lack tend to be financial or, if knowledge-based, dictated by the chronology of a college curriculum. These deficits are what the Compass Fellowship seeks to remedy by providing 15 GU freshmen with:
INSPIRATION from experienced thought leaders in the social entrepreneurship field,
ABILITY through a series of business skills seminars, and
SUSTENANCE in the form of seed funding.
By enabling the eager innovators of Gen-Y, I'm convinced we can revolutionize the social entrepreneurship movement - and shift the age distribution in the favor of maximizing social change.

Marissa - thanks for the note. I would say that your formula of INSPIRATION,
ABILITY, and SUSTENANCE is vital and spot on. The Ability question is where I think our generation gets the most kick back, and frankly, I am surprised about it. Think of the remarkable technological and networking ability our generation has unfolded - it was a (very) young college student who unleashed Facebook on all of us. But the Ability segment should be nurtured because it can be misunderstood. Experience does matter, but we can push students and young people to have experiences that many of those in older generations would reject as crazy or ill-conceived.

I still think our generation is new to the concepts we are discussing here, and it is up to us to ensure that they have a platform to explore the possibilities. In 10, 20 or 30 years, I am sure we will not regret the foundation we are laying.

Saul,

One thing that immediately comes to mind is creating a project in which the members engage in a variety of roles starting from the beginning.

What does that mean? Let me explain as its just flowing from my head right now.

Start the program in the elementary/middle school level, where students can start learning about basic causes & movements. Highlight one organization (ie. daycare center with garden). Teach them about gardening, what this little garden can mean for these kids, and then creative ways how to fundraise. Connection is key. Utilize the internet, and broadcast updates, meet kids at that daycare, etc. etc.

This continues to the high school level where students learn more and more about giving, causes, resources, etc. Keep up the connection, but integration is key. Hold brainstorm sessions across different schools, have competitions to come up with the best ideas, invite groups to come for "paint a wall programs" so the connection continues. The information needs to be fresh and interactive.

On to the college level, more integration and more learning. Create school clubs that are connected with the whole program. This college students can help start similar programs at grades schools, and work to develop high school students' ideas, etc. etc. Offer longer programs where individuals study abroad, get credit, and help run the high school programs.

Post college can have offer grants to continue work while going towards graduate education. Partner with research universities, labs, and corporations. Open up networks. Make the opportunities available.

Generation Y is a 'give it to me now' or 'use me or lose me' culture. Community involvement, volunteerism, and philanthropic giving need to be convenient and impactful. Start small, just one program, to get it right and grow from there.

Sorry for the rambling. I'd love to continue this conversation.

Conor O'Phelan
conor.ophelan@gmail.com
twitter: conor_o

Conor, thanks for the post. I definitely appreciate the process oriented approach of people going through life literally growing into their roles and understanding different parts of the process of social innovation all along the way. One thing that I think our generation is uniquely equipped to do - because of vast resources, easy travel and our generational urgency to understand a global society that seems to have gone a bit mad - is to get knee deep early.

What does that really mean? It means going to the communities themselves and connecting with people to build human relationships first and foremost. There are no social problems that cannot be solved with social solutions.

Connor, this is great thinking. It is a strategy to develop future leaders. I encourage you to take a look at this "mentoring to career" concept map, which I use to illustrate the range of age-appropriate learning and mentoring that needs to be available to youth from first grade to first job. http://tinyurl.com/TMC-Mentoring-to-career

I love the energy of this generation, and its ambition. What remains to be seen is its staying power. The ideas and projects being introduced need to be sustained and improved upon for many years. What Saul describes as a "paint on the wall" program may have been the idea of some young entrepreneur a few years ago which has not grown because that innovator may have left the cause, or may not have been able to find the resources to keep building upon the work that was started.

I joined Social Edge more than 3 years ago, and one discussion led by students from Oxford led me to suggest an idea that would engage marketing and business school students from universities all over the country as the intermediaries who build public attention and a flow of operating dollars to all of the youth serving programs in the city where the university is hosted. You can see that idea at http://boardfellow.wikispaces.com/ . It's just waiting for some new entrepreneurs to make it a reality.

Unless we can create intermediary groups who help those leading organizations get the resources needed to grow organizations, many of those with great ideas will never realize their potential. The communities and youth/adults they were trying to serve will be the losers from this.

I completely agree with your thoughts on this matter. Developing leadership and social entrepreneurs from a young age is essential for long term success and staying power in the sector. There will need to be a few additional shifts in the coming years for Social Entrepreneurship to take hold and for Gen Y to make the long term commitments that will bear real fruit for society. But what strikes me as a high priority is the need to educate the public about the "option" of being involved in social entrepreneurship. That is why organizations like Ashoka U, Sparkseed and Unreasonable Institute are so important. We need to be promoting the sector so young people plan to explore it with their heart and soul when they leave college and build their careers.

I do think that the "privileged generation" of Gen Y is in a unique position in history to explore such rewarding and potentially society changing options. More young people want to become social entrepreneurs than ever before, and excitingly, there are dozens if not hundreds of passionate young people working to support their peers in that endeavor.

While the entire conversation about how to support the energy and vision of youth is important, Conor makes a crucial point here that is echoed later in this blog: We MUST be intentional about providing the training, support, and consciousness that young people need to be successful as change agents. The history of international development is littered with failed projects based on good intentions and inspiring visions. The risk of empowering youth with resources and opportunities to create change is not just wasted resources, but a worsening of the problem.

Saul's work at Think Impact, Alan's efforts at the Social Innovation Initiative, and others are doing critical work to ensure youth have the knowledge, skills, and consciousness they need to be proactive in their efforts. Thinking Beyond Borders (www.thinkingbeyondborders.org), the Gap Year program I co-founded, was designed based on the question: What do young people need to become proactive agents of change? They require cross cultural training, consciousness of dynamic and interwoven global issues, deep questioning of one's own assumptions about their approach and their motivations, and an understanding of the difference between the "products" and the "process" of development. Schools in the US do not prepare students with these crucial components. Lacking these, we must ask ourselves what youth are prepared to do with the funds and opportunities they are provided.

The development community and funders should continue to work together to support youth with opportunities to BECOME effective agents of change, not just to BE agents of change.

Saul, From a "generation Y" perspective and I wince as I use such a divisive expression, it may well seem as if who than what went before, were essentially part of the problem.

The truth as I see it, is that we've all been drip fed, by an economic orthodoxy that persuades us to go out and do a little something to treat the symptoms rather than cure the disease. Government corruption for instance, would be way off scale.

What we discover, having made the case for more inclusive capitalism, is that it's diluted and re-presented as suits the purposes of the presenter.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inclusive_capitalism

we and I'm sure that includes you, don't want to alleviate poverty as a career, we want to eradicate it and render ourselves redundant.

Jeff
     

         

I appreciate the notion of wanting to render ourselves redundant - that's a dream for sure - but I don't accept that we are part of the problem. Indeed, if that is the case, then capitalism IS the problem, and I find that to be troubling given the long history of capitalism's ability to grow the pie for communities and individuals alike.

The link you send defines Inclusive Capitalism thus: A term with 2 complimentary meanings: (1) poverty is a significant, systemic problem in countries which have already embraced or are transitioning towards capitalistic economies, and (2) companies and non-governmental organizations can sell goods and services to low-income people, which may lead to targeted poverty alleviation strategies, including improving people’s nutrition, health care, education, employment and environment, but not their political power.

I reject the notion that we are heading on a road that leaves societies corrupt and stuck. Many developed countries still deal with corruption, but there is - over time - greater inclusiveness and political power. If anything, I think that your point here requires more young, empowered individuals (especially the younger ones) to engage with their global counterparts so they know their voice can be heard.

OK, within inclusive capitalism specifically I'm referring to people-centered economics, where you'll find reference to targeted economic development and proof of concept for business with a primary social objective.

We certainly need young people but if we skirt around acts of corrupt government and imagine that we can bring inclusiveness and empowerment where its not welcome, we are going to come to harm.

Look for example at our 3 year long campaign to raise awareness of children neglected and ask yourself why, its still being brushed under the carpet.

http://eng.maidanua.org/node/581

Jeff


    

Jeff, I strongly agree with your point about corruption being the underlining or overarching challenge. In Kenya we face immensely corrupt government officials and they are all trying to skim off the top. I have had to tell people in government board rooms "nobody is getting rich here" very explicitly on several occasions.

What I think resonates most is how government manifests itself at the most local levels. In Kenya, the Chief's office is actually a function of the Office of the Presidency. That means the President, literally, has feelers right down to the poorest, most marginal region. That creates imbalanced power structures locally and huge opportunities for corruption.

My belief in young people to do this work is rooted in the idea that we can actually circumvent the corruption through the people centered relationships that youth create with each other and then demand the government acquiesce. It's a tall order, but I have seen it work!

Jeff,

People-centered economics is great, but if you are talking about Post-Soviet space, I think only youth could be the driving force behind p-ce projects. The reasons for that are pointed out in Saul's post: "idealism and open-mindedness".

Because Gen-Y (if we stretch the use of American generation theory) in Eastern Europe don't have the baggage from Soviet era or 1990's, they can create the true change. Let's take orphanages, for example. The terrible situation in Russia and Ukraine is not a secret to anyone. Not to Russians or Ukrainians, not to the international NGOs. It's just that people themselves shut their own eyes--they prefer not to see. Their reasoning: "what can we do?" In their eyes, the state is supposed to care for these kids. But it's not Soviet Union anymore! It's naive to rely on state to do ANYTHING in Ukraine or Russia. But young people, if empowered, connected, and inspired have the opportunity to create a change in this (and any) area. They have tremendous amount of energy and huge potential for connection and coordination that's allowed by the Internet and social media.

I predict that there will be a change in the coming years in Ukraine and in Russia. This change will be caused by young people.

But, the key things they need is connection and solidarity. The problems in Ukraine and Russia are very much the same--some of them are the outcomes of the Soviet system, the others are the results of its collapse. But the websites like one in the link is not much better than the current Russian "revolutionaries". Take one small detail: the website you've linked has a version in English, but not in Russian--it simply ignores a third of the country, just like Russian nationalists ignore the simple fact they live in multinational state. Groups like that only contribute to fragmentation and conflict.

 

Valdimir, thanks for your comments. I wanted to address your point that "It's just that people themselves shut their own eyes--they prefer not to see. Their reasoning: 'what can we do?'". I would argue that the beauty of a young generation of social entrepreneurs - any generation for that matter - that identifies market based solutions for development in a society, will render those who wonder "What can we do?" obsolete. Not because they will cease to exist, but because the very nature of social business will make it natural to engage in actions that improve society - even as they live their daily lives.

I think the question should not be about "Solidarity" as powerful as the image seems. Solidarity will be short term and will not motivate people to meaningful action on a daily basis for the rest of their lives. It will inspire momentary action and tons of passion, but it will not create a culture of creativity as powerful as a social market. Ideas are the core to that, and the ideas you read on the Social Edge site should be pushed to the former Soviet States.

How can the next generation of funders better meet the demand for funding long-term projects, instead of short-term experiences? – Funders must be presented with a plan that shows that the poverty relief effort is sustainable. How are you going to distribute 10,000 micro irrigation systems, fertilizer, and other supplies in Kenya without losing money? What high value food commodities are you going to grow in Kenya so that people will double their income each year? How are you going to repeat the UN FAO West Bengal India backyard poultry success in Kenya? (see “A Backyard Poultry Value Chain Increases Assets, Income and Nutrition” which can be found at http://sapplpp.org/[…]/91b5e80af8e97248aff0138f168d083a and at. http://zunia.org/index.php?id=11728&tx_dgcontent_pi1[tt_news]=287929&cHash=82cbb42aea.). Social entrepreneurs should be able to make money and not depend on income redistribution, Government officials, or philanthropists. I am working with the University of Cordoba (Colombia) agriculture engineers to answer these questions. We hope to dramatically increase the income of 500,000 poor people people within a few years. See http://home.comcast.net/~prigter/site/ for more information.

Thanks for your comments Paul. I think you are right to be pushing the sector for "a plan that shows that the poverty relief effort is sustainable." But not all social enterprises are entirely self sustainable - that is often an impossibility given the barriers to enter that the neediest places on earth deal with. Take, for example, water. We can create a very exploitative, profitable solution to access to water in rural Kenya, but the prices will be to high given the cost of doing business there. Where is the line between your definition of social entrepreneurship and business. And just as importantly, wouldn't you agree that young people should be supported and encouraged through new funding streams to explore all of the above?

Kickstart, Chapin Living Waters, and IDE have shown that you can create a profitable solution to access to irrigation water in poor rural areas without the prices being too high given the cost of doing business. The Gaviotas project shows what can be done in rural locations that most people have given up on
http://www.dharma-haven.org/five-havens/gaviotas.htm
http://money.cnn.com/[…]/
http://www.nytimes.com/[…]/16gaviotas.html?hpw

Where is the line between your definition of social entrepreneurship and business? Charities give money away, social entrepreneurs often attempt to be non-profit and non-loss, and businesses try to earn a profit so that they can be sustainable.

And just as importantly, wouldn't you agree that young people should be supported and encouraged through new funding streams to explore all of the above? Without being too mean, I think young Americans have been supported and encouraged when they were given an education; It is now their responsibility to make a living without depending on a “funding stream”. Young Americans need to be encouraged to be more creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative. Some jobs are available on the following web sites: http://www.reliefweb.org and http://www.nextbillion.net/ as well as the US Peace Corps. My son and daughter (late twenties) have done extremely well already.

I think that our ideas converge more than we even realize. I suppose that when I am discussing a "funding stream" - a term I rarely use - I mean to say, "Seed funding" for exciting ideas. The notion here is that with a bit of investment (usually a little bit goes a long way with young social entrepreneurs) a great program can be catalyzed. I certainly think that Gen Y has been blessed in many ways with incredible resources and education. I also think that we are pushing the envelope in development and social entrepreneurship more than has historically been the case.

I am not asking young people to live off of someone else - that would sap society of its wealth over time. I am saying that the incredibly hard work that many young social entrepreneurs put in should be acknowledged, and potential donors/investors should keep an eye out for really energetic, competent young people who are exploring revenue generating models that sometimes need some seed funds.

Here is one last consideration. When a Gen Yer starts a non-profit, he/she cannot get a credit line for more than $2500. They have no working capital, not enough funders who believe that Gen Y is serious about their work, and an oddly skewed time horizon. There isn't a 5 year window for success. There is a 4 week window instead. When I founded ThinkImpact in 2001 as a high school student, everyone wanted my "overhead" to be less than 10%. I couldn't realistically file with the IRS for that low of a ratio (it's a $500 expense to file). The conversation between Gen Y and more experienced investors needs much more exploration.

I'd like to suggest that the answers - when talking about youth and social change - are often slightly different. In my role as the Director of the Social Innovation Initiative (swearercenter.brown.edu/sii) at Brown, I teach students to think about two important principles when they decide they want to "help":

- Only start things they intend to finish. University students have a calendar that allows them to work intensively in communities for a month in winter & three months in summer - but the challenges of the community exist year round. Many students hope to leave a lasting impact but underestimate the time, energy and resources that are almost always required to get the job done. Communities appreciate their effort - but resent when the job is left half-done or fizzles when a student needs to return to school or decides to pursue other interests.

- Don't build the whole wheel if all you have to add is a hubcap. Students often rush to their work without appreciating or connecting with existing resources. Because their time is often limited by other commitments, they would be well served to work with/through partners that are interested in the value-add or innovation - rather than starting a whole new organization for the purpose of demonstrating the value of their idea. Developing these relationships takes time and yielding control over implementation details - but lead to stronger projects in the long run.

Think Impact addresses both of these extremely well through the design of their program that introduces students to community leaders and through existing relationships - and supports their efforts to develop collaborative efforts whose impact and results can be felt long after the student returns to comfort of their home context.

Alan, I think this is good advise.

I'd go a step further. Most of the significant problems in the world are complex, and can't be solved with one action, or in a short time frame. Because the knowledge someone has available to them when the begin to get involved with problem-solving is often limited, there is a lot of "reinventing" and "starting over".

Thus, one way student entrepreneurs, and the rest of us, could be supported would be for students themselves to be collecting and sharing information about different social problems, providing a starting point, or a source of continuity, for others who might get involved.

I worked with a class at DePaul University this fall, which has started this process. I encourage you and others to read the blog articles written by the students in the "coming to Chicago" class. http://jhickey50.wordpress.com/

You'll see a progression from when the students received their assignment in September and started their research, to their final comments this past week, and their recommendations for how a following group of students might continue their work.

If DePaul can keep this project alive, with different students taking ownership from year to year, the accumulated knowledge will grow, and so will the number of people who might draw from these ideas to support their own social benefit work in this sector.

While this group focuses on tutoring/mentoring in Chicago where DePaul is located, similar groups at other universities in other cities could be doing the same thing, writing about the poverty and resources for youth in their own community.

In addition, other groups could be writing about social justice, environmental and health issues, or other problems which can be solved by an on-going application of time, talent and dollars.

Hopefully the youth who get involved now will still be involved 40 years from now because they have stayed connected by one or more of these blog projects.

I'd like to suggest that the answers - when talking about youth and social change - are often slightly different. In my role as the Director of the Social Innovation Initiative (swearercenter.brown.edu/sii) at Brown, I teach students to think about two important principles when they decide they want to "help":

- Only start things they intend to finish. University students have a calendar that allows them to work intensively in communities for a month in winter & three months in summer - but the challenges of the community exist year round. Many students hope to leave a lasting impact but underestimate the time, energy and resources that are almost always required to get the job done. Communities appreciate their effort - but resent when the job is left half-done or fizzles when a student needs to return to school or decides to pursue other interests.

- Don't build the whole wheel if all you have to add is a hubcap. Students often rush to their work without appreciating or connecting with existing resources. Because their time is often limited by other commitments, they would be well served to work with/through partners that are interested in the value-add or innovation - rather than starting a whole new organization for the purpose of demonstrating the value of their idea. Developing these relationships takes time and yielding control over implementation details - but lead to stronger projects in the long run.

Think Impact addresses both of these extremely well through the design of their program that introduces students to community leaders and through existing relationships - and supports their efforts to develop collaborative efforts whose impact and results can be felt long after the student returns to comfort of their home context.

Thanks, Alan. I strongly agree with your two arguments. I find the prioritization of follow through and doing things through previous lessons-learned and existing structures to be incredibly powerful in sustainable development. One thing I always hear is that students are overeager and have no skills to offer. But based on your comment, student energy really just needs to be channeled and guided. Anybody who is successful at anything has at one time or another received valuable guidance.

What worries me is that people are too willing to discount those young people who like fast results rather than work with them to see the value in intermediate progress for long term benefits. In our program we have found that at during the internship the beginning steps of the curriculum - observation, scavenger hunt, capacity inventories, monitoring and evaluation work (all of which are research or about building relationships) - feel intangible and frustrating for students... at first. But when they begin to envision social innovations through the lessons they have learned and start to take the longer view on things, they are more grateful than ever to have spent the time, and more eager than ever to learn more and do a job correctly.

Youth are learners first, and that can be capitalized. This generation is not only learning - we are sharing that information quickly. Less reinventing of the wheel will happen in the 21st Century as a result.

A number of my friends and I feel that many young social entrepreneurs lack the skills to be effective in the profession of their choosing, For example, many of the world’s poorest people are subsistence farmers living on less than two acres of land. To help these people, social entrepreneurs should be very familiar with the following fields of study with emphasis on arid and tropical agriculture:
 Improved grain production
 Improved production of vegetables
 Improved fruit orchards and fruit nurseries
 Improved poultry production
 Improved small animal production such as goats and pigs
 Improved general purpose micro-farms
In urban areas, many of the poorest people are essentially migrant workers who are willing to go anywhere and do anything for a job: To help these people, social entrepreneurs should be very familiar with the following fields of study:
 Business process reengineering of small and micro businesses to make these business profitable (this is a field created by industry and is full of “industrial secrets”; university and Government personnel generally don’t know what industry does to make themselves profitable)
 Methods for creating jobs for people who currently earn $1-2/day including single mothers

Unfortunately, most American universities focus on policy studies which are primarily useful if you want to be a fund-raiser for an NGO. If you want a job at an NGO, I suggest you read Monday Developments at http://www.interaction.org/monday-developments to see what NGOs need

Hello to all.

Right now, I feel like there's a disconnect between the funders and the young social entrepreneurs. The funders are always looking for plans that are concrete, that are laid out on a detailed and timely (and many times restricting) framework in the same way corporate financial plans work. But on the other hand, many young social entrepreneurs (including myself) take the organic approach -- taking opportunities as they come, creating solutions as they are needed, and growing in a direction that community needs them to grow; relying heavily on personal intentions, patience, determination, humility and inherent talents.

Having said that, I think the next generation of funders should look more to the individual, to the success (so far) of the project/person, rather than the enterprise's ability to articulate in numbers and presentations its plan for the future. I think the funders should be able to design a way to identify successful entrepreneurs and enterprises, without necessarily looking to only plans and frameworks.

But of course, sustainability is key -- and the general attitude of the entrepreneur should still be developing a project that does not rely on funding. Difficult, but necessary, and DOABLE. The funding should only at most speed up some programs, but the system itself should be able to stand alone without this. This, for me, is the essence of social entrepreneurship.

"Paint a wall" programs still thrive (or more like survive) now. And there is a reason. They do serve a purpose that the new generation should learn from: accessible work that people can partake to help a community + quick tangible results that many volunteers and corporations appreciate. These programs are a piece of a puzzle we're all trying to solve, and rather than making these "better suit Generation Y", perhaps we should learn from them and simply make all programs evolve into better programs for all.

I think the power of individuals to realize goals - even if they aren't immediately apparent - is huge. But funders can support this generation by rewarding focus, rather than punishing enthusiasm. Too often students and other young social entrepreneurs become discouraged because they are asked why their idea should be funded rather than, what is it they are trying to do, and how they can do it?

The simple and concrete questions from funders: 1) What are you hoping to do? 2) How are you hoping to do it? can provide the basis for an ongoing conversation that provides focus and ultimately the very appealing hard numbers that investors get excited about.

The problem here is that student's sometimes lack the guidance they need to make a program focused and productive, and instead receive negative feedback from people who only fund established tight knit models. Student should be confident in asking for that guidance, it does not diminish their image of legitimacy. It is, indeed, the best way to get meaningful support.

Great topic One of your questions to Paul and his response relates to “where the line is between social entrepreneurship and business” Paul has correctly identified that “Charities give money away, social entrepreneurs often attempt to be non profit and non loss and businesses try to earn profit so they can be sustainable” In this thinking I see one of the greatest challenges but also greatest opportunities for the Y generation. If they can rethink or even erase this line and can truly start envisioning and giving more equal rating to environmental, social and commercial considerations ( triple bottom line ) when planning, starting and growing any venture we could see a growth in sustainable, responsible, profitable enterprises. This is in contrast to the current dominant trends of choosing one over the other as is the case with not for profit social ventures that rely exclusively on charitable donations to survive or choosing one before the other as in the Bill & Melinda Gates model, make money first then do good. If this more equal rating thinking becomes the norm and also the benchmark by which ventures are evaluated it will also create more genuine career opportunities for young people allowing and inspiring them to create something lasting that works, for the communities in which they operate and for themselves.

I agree that there is and will continue to be immense power in the hybrid model that social entrepreneurship provides, especially if Gen Y can be creative with it and spend substantial amounts of time developing/incubating the sector. But these ideas of non profit and non loss are nothing new, and maligning fundraising can have the deleterious effects of losing sight of the social benefits of non-profit work because it does not have a natural revenue. Clinics that charge a small fee in rural Africa can weed out the poorest from getting service they need. The revenue model can be tight, but it can be disastrous for a child in need. Private universities in the US get a huge amount of revenue from tuition, but as I was told when I started undergrad at Johns Hopkins in 2002, the cost of actually educating a student there was over $60,000 per year, not the $35,000 it cost to attend. So we need to be able to find the balance and non-loss is not always the answer. Even Martin Fisher, who is an incredible inspiration to me, shared with me the fact that many of his moneyMaker products in Kenya, when you factor in all the time, marketing and overhead, post a lost on every sale. And I think we can agree that he has been pushing the envelope on this for quite some time.

Gen Y will need to explore new opportunities - and funders, universities, and organizations like ThinkImpact need to be providing the right intellectual background and resources to make each social entrepreneur a successful pioneer in their own way.

Sual, you asked, "How can the next generation of funders better meet the demand for funding long-term projects, instead of short-term experiences?" Here's one idea:

Funders should focus on impact and SROI (social return on investment). It's fair for funders to ask, "How will the money be spent?" but the real question is, "What difference will this contribution make?"

Funders love to contribute to "projects" and have a propensity not to like "overhead," especially salaries. The problem with this is that many innovative solutions require funding for intangible items. For example, I'd rather hire a brilliant person to develop and implement a world-changing solution than spend money on tangibles, like cans of soup or building supplies. Why? Because the former may cure the disease, whereas the latter may only put a band aid on the symptom.

There IS a new generation of funders that is bold and impact-oriented. They invest in good ideas, good people, and good business acumen. A wonderful book called "Grassroots Philanthropy" is their manifesto. These funders give me hope and serve as an example to their peers.

Thanks, Mike for your comments. I have a follow up question for you. As you refer to the question that funders should be asking, "What different will this contribution make?" I wonder if it falls short. The reason I say this is that funders that only ask that question might be unimpressed with an answer such as, "It keeps the lights on" or "It pays for me to work!"

If there is a way to explain that funding projects alone is insufficient, and Gen Y can be at the forefront of "re-educating" funders to get the right questions asked, I suspect that a lot of brilliant young people will find their way into innovative non-profit organizations. If not, we can't, as a generation, promise much change from the past (a generous, but not poverty eradicating past that it is).

And now for the promised question that I have for you: "Is there a Gen Y answer to 'What difference will this contribution make?' that does not sound self-serving but still includes the importance of critical management/admin support?"

Cross-posted from Denver, Post 11/22/2009:

http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_13834225

This week the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization hosted the world food summit in Rome, hoping to raise awareness of the rising number of hungry people worldwide - a figure which now exceeds one billion for the first time since records were established in 1970.

Unfortunately, the summit revealed that the U.N. is not in a position to meet its own goals of alleviating hunger. The United Nations did not set a target to eradicate hunger by 2025 as proposed. U.N. experts also say that halving the number of hungry people by the previously set 2015 deadline is not possible - and the goal may not be reached until mid-2040 at the earliest.

Young people provide an untapped resource to redirect this ineffectual course. Our idealism and open-mindedness to new solutions create opportunities that empower communities to develop their own solutions to poverty. Generation Y is the generation of social innovation.

In Kenya, 22 year-old Laura MacArthur is creating a demonstration farm. Laura will work with farmers and farming organizations in Kayafungo, Kenya to teach and make available modern farming technologies, increasing the farmers' crop yields and confronting hunger. The demonstration farm will teach the best practices in farming used worldwide, implement a solar-powered drip irrigation system - using green technologies to increase the crop yield - and create a digital video curriculum.

Another volunteer, 21 year-old Jessica Maurer is creating a women-owned and women-run agricultural co-op at a nursery school which will provide nutritious food for school lunches and generate revenue for the school to purchase much-needed classroom supplies. The importance of quality early childhood education is taken for granted in the United States, but in Makrepeni, South Africa, parents need every incentive available to send their children to nursery school. The distribution of nutritious lunches to the students provides the needed incentive, which will set Makrepeni's children on the path toward a quality education.

To address the worldwide hunger crisis, our philosophy must be to engage the entrepreneurial generation - those who will create the much-needed sustainable and innovative solutions to poverty-reduction. In doing so we will develop the next generation of CEOs, policymakers, international entrepreneurs and philanthropists who personally understand the potential for development from within local communities and who can create and support new solutions to reduce hunger.

My generation yearns to create poverty-reduction solutions that will continue to affect the lives of those in rural communities for years to come.

My generation wants to create something from conception to completion - from design to implementation.

My generation doesn't want to "paint a wall" or "pile bricks" in the developing world. Generation Y wants to do more, and we're up to the task.

Saul, thank you for this inspiring post. I too believe that people--young people and older people--want to do more and have a greater impact on the social issues they care about. That's one reason I founded UniversalGiving--to help people find high-quality opportunities to volunteer all over the world. By connecting people to many opportunities through our web-based marketplace, we make it easy for someone to find the kind of opportunity they're looking for, to build a daycare center or work in conflict resolution or teach in a school for a year.

My own international volunteering experiences have also been an inspiration to me. Guiding microfinance in India, working with the handicapped from Pol Pot’s regime in Cambodia, helping sustainable farmers in Guatemala and serving earthquake survivors in El Salvador. International volunteering has led to many of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had in my life. It’s provided perspective. It’s instilled an overwhelming sense of gratitude.

I've also been so pleased to see the rising trend towards social entrepreneurship, as people bring together their desire to create change with their business skills. I believe we're on an exciting path in social innovation!

Sincerely,
Pamela

Pamela Hawley
Founder and CEO
UniversalGiving

www.universalgiving.org
phawley@universalgiving.org

Living and Giving Blog
www.pamelahawley.wordpress.com

Pamela, first of call, congratulations on your work! It sounds like you have explored the worlds of service and social entrepreneurship from corner to corner of the globe. I think what is particularly exciting here is that your volunteering work catapulted you to 1) continue to work globally through a new enterprise and 2) your new enterprise puts the emphasis on quality over quantity. The notion that the marketplace can provide insight into the best program possibilities for volunteers is rooted in the same capitalism that drives ebay. Gen Y does not look at that marketplace as somehow inherently evil - we leverage it because we think it is inherently informative. Social innovation comes from understanding the market. The market demands increasing quality.

Great to hear you're hooking up volunteers Pamela, living and giving's the way to go. Saul, have you heard about indigo's? - a generation of children from the 1970's on, who are here to help remake the world. You're right, Gen-Y is the meta-gifted generation, with its technological and creative sophistication in mixing heart with business, and idealism with open-mindedness as a unity consciousness.

The indigo generation's main purpose is to take us to the next level of our evolution, for a new earth - in creating new ways of thinking and being - in the realm of the greater good for the greater whole. I, for one, can't wait to see it happen. Go Gen-Y, you're up to the task.

Thanks for sharing. I have to confess that I had not heard of of indigos, but I am not surprised to hear that there are folks from previous generations with aspirations for a better humanity.

The vote of confidence in Gen Y is much appreciated. The reason I wanted to discuss this topic on Social Edge was in large part due to a need for more clarity about what Gen Y is all about and how we are working to remake the world. I am confident that while Gen Y will meet challenges and hurdles, we will indeed leave the world better than we found it. That will come from the convergence of positive social collaboration, new technologies, and the shifted priorities from a more transparent and better informed society. We have made strides already - I know we are just getting started.

It seems to me that the word sustainability is used too glibly. In order for a program to survive, it must be _financially_ sustainable first and foremost. Other kinds of sustainability are also important in the long run but they must as a rule be secondary.

I would like to create a bottled water company whose entire profits go to charity. This has been done with many products, most notably Newman's Own, and Ethos Water. However, Ethos is a profit maximizing organization and only donates a slim percentage of it's profits and Newman's Own doesn't sell water.

I think that water is a particularly good place to start because a lot of people feel guilty buying bottled water and this may motivate the to buy from a social business.

What should be my first step? market research? write a business plan? Get an MBA?

David, thanks for your questions and thoughts. I want to address your post in two separate parts: First, the debate on sustainability and second, on starting your water initiative.

Sustainability is a complex term referring, I believe, to more than just financial sustainability. In a rural African village, if a tiny group of women help deliver babies to decrease infant and maternal mortality, and do so without income (because the village has no real economy) but has created educational programs to support additional women to learn the techniques in midwifery, and the program continues in perpetuity, it can be called sustainable. Just the same, financial sustainability is a natural hook, and is easy to related to and for community members to buy in to for the long run - as long as the financial model is profitable.

But the sustainability question gets murky when reality sets in: In the US most small businesses fail in the first 5 years, should the same track record in poor areas be considered "worse" because it's tied to development? I think Gen Y would say no - that creative destruction is essential, and while some solutions are not financially viable, they still may be viable.

Second, on your idea, I want to direct you to http://www.livepeacewater.com/. This is a water bottle company that gives 50% of its profits to charity (full disclosure, Think Impact has benefited from this in their early start up days) but they seem to share your vision. I am not sure water bottles are the only answer though. You definitely should hunt around and see what else is out there, I am sure several such organizations exist. You should also ask yourself what about water - as the product - makes so much sense. Is it because you want to sell water to fund water projects and it's a natural fit? Or is it because you like to buy bottled water? Is there a more eco-friendly solution? Finally, check out the TAP Project with Unicef. There is an idea that makes tons of sense. Pay $1 for a glass of water at a restaurant during Water Week in March, and provide clean drinking water to the most marginalized.

Every comment that rejects Gen Y for failing to address government related causes of poverty and solutions to poverty is meant to undermine the notion that Gen Y is on to something incredible with their social innovations. Some even argue that Gen Y is just naive and will achieve nothing as long as governments (I now speak of those in Africa) continue to be corrupt. Many contend that Gen Y needs to just focus on government corruption to make any real impact at all.

I like the idea of reducing corruption as much as the next guy - but the work young social entrepreneurs are doing by getting into the field and learning about local culture through their efforts, will ultimately provide invaluable insight into ways to fight corruption. We cannot just "Fight Corrupt Governments" effectively until we fully understand the way societies function. This is why I commend Gen Y for pushing so hard to get on-the-ground experiences, and reject the notion that we are just naively working on problems the governments should be fixing.

I admire everyone who has a heart and mind for the least of humanity.

I think I will just share, instead of theorize, my own concrete experience working with the rural poor, in the hope that this may trigger some ideas for college kids interested to do the same.

In my experience, food sustainability is foremost in the minds of economically dislocated people, and if I may suggest hydroponics or aquaponics be included in the self-help programs for target clientele or beneficiaries, people would be able to start harvesting within a couple of months, and that is just the first harvest. I do not recommend using high intensity distribution lamps running 24X7 to boost the growth of vegetables, not only that it would require the use of electricity and more capital outlay, but most of all, that would not allow the vegies to develop sufficient nutrients (only around 14% nutrients)by harvest time. The sun is still the best source of light for photosynthesis.

Hydroponics, is highly sustainable,low-cost,low maintenance, preserves clean water, easy to set up,and technologically speaking, knowledge-transfer is not at all challenging. Aquaponics is not that difficult either, though there would be extra investments for the holding tanks for fishes, and you have to have pumps for nutrients to be forced up. With hydroponics, the people have the option and the control to grow food organically. Those involved could also sell extra produce to neighbors or neighboring towns. Better still, if the whole community is involved in it and they could assign which household grows what green foods or what fish to culture in the case of aquaponics. To me this means full ownership. The urban poor in Uruguay are successful in using hydroponics proving it is sustainable food production. Many do not even use the drip system.

Years ago,at my planet, youths from the city went to a rural area and helped the peasant women to organize themselves for livelihood purposes. The youth got workers from city factories to train women how to knit, sew, crochet, and make stuffed toys. Those products were ordered by companies in the U.K. and the U.S. The same youths helped the women find factories that would outsource extra work to them. In the mid-80's, the peasant women were knitting, on the average, one sweater a day, and they were paid $3.00 per sweater. In that setup, the women didn't need any investments, except time to attend each skills training and development. All raw materials were provided by the outsourcing factories. Furthermore, the Singer Sewing Machine company distributed almost 300 sewing machines in the homes of the peasant women, and the women paid some each time they had a project, and they did pay those machines off inno time.

Career-wise, the college kids may fnd this as an opportunity to develop designs for sweaters, stuffed toys, clothes, or be in marketing and find buyers for the hand-knitwear. Maybe find a company that has its own designs and instead of having these sweaters done by machines, have them hand-knit. Campaign for buyers to buy hand-knit clothes. Contract their colleges and universities to get their sweaters handknit.

There's another project where a pair of female piglets were initially donated to a household, once those pigs have grew and had babies, the original recipients gave away two female piglets to another household, until all participating households had their share. This took quite a while though, but the the good thing is a waste management system was introduced there that turned pig waste to fuel for cooking and light. The piglet dispersal project won an award from the UN for being the best livelihood project in that part of the globe.

There are live laboratories thriving on sustainable development technologies. We just need to get connected so we can share our success stories together.

Maybe...members of Social Edge can hold an open contest on wind and solar energy designs specifically for use in rural areas...maybe there are green-minded companies that would be willing to donate prizes...

If we are to sink our teeth in rural development, we need to examine the technologies that could positively impact the quality of lives of our target beneficiaries, or else they lose interest...trust...and hope.

More power to you and the young.

Thanks so much for sharing your experiences. One of the things that I find compelling about your examples is that young people are great at exploring ways that communities can leverage new technology. It's interesting when individuals question the capacity of college students to work with new technology in fighting poverty when the truth is that if a college educated person cannot handle the technology, what chance exists for a rural farmer with a 4th grade primary education to successful implement it on a daily basis.

Your case for simple - but transformational - technology is a great one, and I am glad to hear you believe strongly in the role of youth in the process.

I will be referring others to your Hydroponics and Aquaponics examples as well. I am eager to learn more and find out if they can be utilized in rural Kenya!

Your work is very good and I appreciate you and hopping for some more informative posts.
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