Social innovation
Saving South Africa’s Social Sector
There’s an increasing sense of concern, disconnect, desperation and even hopelessness among the stakeholders that make up South Africa’s humanitarian sector – and with good reason. The sector is facing numerous challenges that not only...
Social Innovation: beyond the buzz
From organ transplant deliveries by drone to smartphone apps that help diagnose eye disease and plant-based burgers that taste just like meat right through to entrepreneurship programmes that aim to build thriving early child development...
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 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...
Executive Summary: Grantmaking & Social Innovation
Grantmaking: Executive Summary of research report 2017/2018: Reflections and insights from Africa regarding the social investment and development sectors....
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...
In social investment, it’s now about hard evidence and measured impact (2018 CSI trends media release)
2 April 2018 Social and impact investors no longer just want to know that they’ve attempted to change the world for the better. They want to know if their investment meant something. They want detailed evidence that their investment le...
Social sector needs to up its game to keep receiving financial support (2018 CSI trends media release)
12 April 2018 Today’s philanthropists, grantmakers, social and impact investors want more control over their giving and they want evidence of the scale and sustainability of the impact they make. They demand greater transparency and ac...
Social investors now want to see impact, sustainability – and ROI (2018 CSI trends media release)
12 April 2018 Investing in social and developmental causes has become increasingly innovative lately, moving away from one-directional donations and suchlike. Social investors now use a mix of finance models to put their money where it h...
Creating shared value – because companies cannot succeed in a failing society
Too many companies are still trapped in an outdated approach of focusing solely on short-term financial performance while mostly ignoring the well-being of their customers, the availability of natural resources and the needs of the commu...
Let’s do social innovation rather than corporate social investment
Companies cannot be sustainable if the communities they depend on for future business are unsustainable. While this may sound as logical and common sensical as continually adapting CSI efforts to keep up in an ever-changing world, so man...
Implementing social innovation strategies at a systemic level: A wish list for 2018
Spring has officially sprung and we’re heading towards the planning phase for the forthcoming financial year. There is no better time to clean out the CSI closet and consider more innovative approaches that can equip us to better manag...
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...