Social capital
& Social value
IMPACT AT SCALE
Development work is hard. Making change happen at scale is complex and there is not a linear path. Yet, achieving impact at scale is a goal many grantmakers, philanthropists, social and impact investors aim for – but this goal is not o...
Using Innovative finance for new economic models in a new world
“We are at the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!” thundered climate activist Greta Thunberg at the 2019 UN General Assembly. The Swedish teena...
Building consensus through a new social compact
In South Africa there has been much talk about the need for a new social compact. Distrust of government and political parties is on the rise and the NGO-sector has lost credibility with scandals rocking organisations like Treatment Acti...
5 Things We Have Learnt About Measuring Social Impact
Over the past seventeen years we’ve assisted numerous social investors, philanthropists, grantmakers and development organisations to not only become more sustainable, but to also create greater social impact.In the process, we’ve co...
Social value and return on investment
Lets talk about social return on investmentGrantmakers, donors and philanthropists want nothing else, but to make an impact with their investments. So do companies, foundations and trusts. And – if you are a more commercially incli...
Social Innovation to Drive Shared Value
Social innovation is becoming a buzzword which is discussed around the world. There’s a surge in attention and government support for social development and social innovation, because it’s seen to be providing effective ways for addr...
Understanding the concept and value of social innovation
The term social innovation has been used in a number of ways. Some of the earliest references, dating back to the 1960s, use it to refer to experimental research in the social sciences and humanities. Since then, the term has been used i...
Social capital – its value and how to measure it
The newly revisited concept of social capital is now prominent in several fields of social science. For Next Generation Consultants, the concept became important with the introduction of the integrated reporting framework that requires c...
The value and importance of socio-economic research and baseline studies in social investment and development practices
Definition: Socio-economics is the study of the relationship between economic activity and social life. In many cases, however, socio-economists focus on the social impact of a specific kind of economic change. Such changes might includ...
Social capital – measuring the unmeasurable
"Social capital” as a concept is relatively new, multifaceted and imprecise. “Hard data” on what it is and how it should be measured is therefore not readily available. Companies often only report on the money they invest in commu...
Social innovation: Contributor and driver of future value and capital
Even today, many development practitioners find it hard to prove the value (and the business case for that matter) that social and community development delivers and contributes to the future sustainability of a business. However, becaus...
Social capital: What it is
What is social capital? It is “the glue that binds society together’’ and provides the opportunity for businesses to be purposefully involved in creating a sustainable future for their operations, communities, and society at large....