Simon Mainwaring. The We First Blog.

Mashable Social Good: Building a Private Sector Pillar of Social Change

I had the real pleasure of speaking at Mashable Social Good yesterday. It was a hugely inspiring day with great presentations by Ted Turner of Turner Enterprises,  Alec Ross from the State Department, Scott Harrison of charity:water, David Armano of Edelman, Howard Buffett of the Howard Buffett Foundation, David Jones of One Young World and a Christy Turlington who is doing amazing work for maternal health care.

It was also a really powerful demonstration of effective online engagement as the atmosphere in the room and outside was very dynamic and the twitterstream was non-stop around issues of how to scale social good. So in the midst of so much tough economic news it is so great to see so much positive work going on.

Some people kindly asked me for my slides so I’ve included them above (hyperlinked to case studies and ready for download) plus here is an outline of my talking points in case it helps. Many thanks to those who watched the live stream yesterday and I hope these are useful.

PRESENTATION TALKING POINTS:
Everyone deeply understands how grave the economic situation is, both here in the US and around the world. But hidden within this challenge is an opportunity to create a third pillar of social change to support government and philanthropy. It’s possible now for 3 reasons.

1. Global Recession
2. Consumer Distrust
3. Connected Citizens

So we have a customer and citizen base that is desperate for new solutions, a private sector desperate to earn back consumer trust, and consumers that can make themselves heard like never before. So how do we build a third pillar of social change that addresses these three issues.

1. Brand/Customer Partnerships (Case Study: Pampers/UNICEF)
2. Contributory Consumption (Case study: Zynga/Haiti & Japan Relief)
3. Global Brand Initiative (Case study: Patagonia/ Sustainable apparel Coalition)

By doing so, we can end the false separation between living and giving, between consumption and contribution, between purpose and profit, and create a third pillar of social change that leverages the might of the private sector to massively scale social change in a systemic and sustainable way. This third pillar is not more than a creative possibility. It’s an absolute necessity if we are to survive as a community of people, thrive as a private sector and build a better world for all.

READ MORE

Are you shopping for a better world?

I recently had the pleasure of joining Jen & Barb on their great web series: Mom Life. We talked a little about how a shopper can make a difference in building a better world using some on the new online and mobile tools available to them. This is especially important to Moms who already have so many demands on their time. Here’s a few tips that I hope are helpful

BM:  Moms are busy. We still have to make purchases. How can we do that and be socially aware?

SM:  In a struggling economy, it’s hard enough for any of us to make a contribution.  So what do we do?

BM:  Right. Because you do want to give to everybody. Every time you turn around it’s like, ‘Give $50 to this, give $100 to that.” You want to make a difference, but…

SM:  As a father with daughters, what encourages me is that technology is making it easier and easier to contribute. For example you can have a smart phone application like Good Guide. All you have to do is point your smart phone at the bar code of a product and it will give you a social impact rating. And it’s free, so imagine, you can transform your shopping cart into this contribution you’re making where you consider every item that you’re putting in your shopping cart.

JP:  But then, soon enough, you’ll probably know. You won’t have to do it every time because you’ll start getting an idea.

SM:  It’s like those online grocery stores. You’ve built the list once and you know exactly what you need. Secondly, when you have a big ticket item like a car or a washing machine, use something like BrandKarma, who tells you want companies are doing in terms of social responsibility. Also, just look at what causes or non-profits a company is supporting so that you can feel good about supporting that company.

BM:  I just did that with a new Dodge minivan. This was a brand that actually had causes that I was interested in, and I love the car.

SM:  Then suddenly you look at your life, you look at your fridge, you look at your garage and you see the car and you feel okay about all of that.

BM:  Once you do have children, you become no longer selfish because your purpose is to make sure that your kids are safe, that they experience a world that is the best it can be for them.

JP:  You think more outside yourself.

SM:  But the great tragedy is that it seems we need to get to our 40s before we wake up to the needs of others besides ourselves.

JP:  What’s interesting though, Simon, is that I think this is changing. I think that our children are socially aware, they are environmentally aware in a way that we were not brought up. It’s just going to be part of who they are.

SM:  I think that is happening because they’re so much more aware through the internet.  Imagine what we knew when we were in our early teens and there wasn’t the ability to share that information like there is with social media. When you’re on Facebook or Twitter, you can use social media to celebrate those brands that are doing good and punish those that are not. This is not being any more self-interested than before, it’s about leveraging these tools to make your choices a little more responsible, and then in the same way asking companies to do the same.

BM:  So there’s no reason not to participate in this. It’s just going to be better for everybody in the long run and right now.

SM:  And it’s fulfilling. When you look back, the thing you take greatest pleasure  from in life is what you’ve contributed. When you know that the money you’re spending on what you need everyday is actually also making a small contribution, you’ll feel better about yourself.

What other websites or apps have you come across that can make you a more mindful shopper?

READ MORE

Social media and climate change: How communities can change the course of history

Al Gore, the former vice-president of the United States and a force behind the climate change debate and the film An Inconvenient Truth, has just announced a 24- hour worldwide presentation called “24-Hours of Reality” to combat the country’s growing disbelief that man’s actions are dramatically shaping the planet’s climate. Gore aims to enlist the power of social media to this end stating on the website:

“The climate deniers may have millions of dollars to spend, but we have a powerful advantage. We have reality.”

In a dramatic demonstration of how social media can be used to engage a global community, the project is reaching out to volunteers asking them to donate their Facebook and Twitter accounts for a few days to enlist their community’s support for climate change awareness.

The architecture of the approach is very interesting. The project itself will move through every time zone, enlisting the support of social media users who volunteer their accounts to spread awareness of climate change amongst their friends and family. In the course of 24 hours, such an approach can effectively create an awareness wave that sweeps around the globe, enlisting unprecedented engagement and support around the debate. Over 800,000 people have already volunteered their social media accounts and Climate Reality on Facebook has over 120,000 likes.

The approach taken by the project is simple. They ask for three steps of engagement. Firstly, commit to watch the 24 hours of reality event for which you RSVP on Facebook. Secondly, you plan a viewing party with your friends, co-workers or neighbors (the project site provides a platform through which to easily invite and register guests).  Thirdly, you donate your social network, and specifically your tweets and Facebook status updates, to the Climate Reality Project. Donors will still be able to tweet and post as normal and permission can be revoked at any time.

The Climate Reality Project serves a powerful demonstration of how social media now allows individuals to not just volunteer their own interest, time or dollars towards a cause that’s meaningful to them, but also their entire community. It provides a powerful opportunity to be a part of something larger than yourself, and to play an active role in what could be a historic shift in perception. And, yet again, social media is poised to play a powerful contributory role in a shift in thinking and behavior that can help build a better world.

Do you believe social media is an effective way to educate people about climate change?  Would you be willing to volunteer your social networks for a cause you care about?

READ MORE