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"New Ideas for Social Change"

An Introduction to Social Innovation

(First appeared in The Stanford Daily, 1/4/2005)

The Innovation section in the Daily usually focuses on technological innovations at Stanford. This is no surprise, since Stanford is a leader in developing new technologies. From new medicines to new search engines, technological innovations coming out of Stanford will change the way we live.

But Stanford contributes to more than just technological innovation, and these innovations often get overlooked. Researchers, students, and alumni are also developing social innovations: innovative ideas aimed at improving our society. These social innovators aim at ending cycles of poverty, improving healthcare access, conserving natural resources, and others.

Social innovation begins with ideas, but doesn’t end with them. The best social innovators turn their ideas into organizations aimed at social change. Somewhere between traditional nonprofit and for-profit models, these organizations aim at sustainability and measure success by calculating their social bang-for-the-buck. The people behind these organizations, who hold others’ needs and rights as a priority in order for a better future, are what are being called “social entrepreneurs.”

This column is our way of bringing these people and their ideas to you. Each week, a different social innovator will be interviewed, sharing their thoughts and their experiences with the Stanford community. Some will be from campus, some from the Bay Area, and some from further away. The column is a way of sharing their ideas and organizations with you.

Social innovation is, of course, not a panacea. It requires lots of money from generous philanthropists, and its focus on measurable results diverts its energy away from less tangible social goals, such as social justice. “Charity is not justice,” Cornel West reminded a Stanford audience last November. Smaller organizations with limited aims need to work together on a national scale to accomplish larger changes in our society. However, even taken individually, these socially innovative organizations are improving people’s lives and communities around the world. As these organizations grow, so will their goals and their impact.

The social innovation movement is an important new movement. It is prompting intelligent and entrepreneurial people to address social issues that others had written off as either unsolvable, or not their concern. These people are not just aiming to make a difference, but aiming to make a big difference.

While this column is mainly about socially innovative ideas and organizations, it's also about showing why cynicism and apathy are mistaken.

A common misconception, at Stanford and elsewhere, is that when it comes to making the world a better place, “nothing works.” Every solution has its problem—and anyway, problems are only really problems if we call them problems. Why not just say, “that's the way it goes”?

It's a prevalent attitude, but it's not everywhere. Social entrepreneurs remind us that the world is better now because of the efforts of people like them in the past, and that the future could be better if we take action now.

Stanford and its surrounding areas are full of bright, motivated people. This much is clear. But how this talent will be used is up in the air. We hope this column will help inspire and inform people at Stanford about how their talents can be used, not just to pursue profit, but to make the world a better place—a much better place—as well.