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The BBC defines civil society as a public space between the state, the market, and the ordinary household in which people can debate and tackle action. If a healthy civil society relies on two-way communication, America is failing. “We see early signs of decay,” says Marc Rowan, co-founder of the Rowan Family Foundation. He says civil society in the United States is one-of...
In a time of uncertainty, rapid change, and disruption, who is best positioned to move society forward? Many are losing faith not only in government, but in the institutions of journalism, nonprofits, and higher education. What role should these organs of civil society play in today’s fractured world, and how can people of good will come together to best make a difference?...
Whether they are tending to an elderly parent, a disabled partner, an injured child, or an ailing friend, most people are deeply committed to caring for those they love. But surely compassionate public policies, generous employer benefits, access to respite and other supportive services, and strategies to train and reward a caregiving workforce can make that arduous task e...
As the prospect of mass implementation of artificial intelligence begins to alter realistic expectations of its impacts (large and small, positive and negative), the consequences for the business community are only just beginning to be imagined. Unlike the internet, AI is not a new industry — yet its application will radically alter industry. Says one CEO, “Everything inv...
Philosophical and religious teachings regarding wealth can feel both archaic and strangely relevant to our age of economic upheaval. How can we reconcile these ideas about wealth — such as renunciation and warnings against attachment — with today’s urgent questions around inequality, the shrinking middle class, and the proper role of philanthropy in a good society?
Faced with the upcoming general election, the United States has many hard choices ahead. Everything—from the country’s place in the world to the social contract between citizens, government, and the private sector—seems to be knotted in hard, uncompromising debates. Throughout most of US history, the spirit of civitas—binding laws and mutual commitment of a shared national...
Trust is democracy’s most valuable asset; we simply can’t work together to solve large problems without it. Yet, trust is at an all-time low. Polling reveals that a majority of Americans do not trust government or the media, and — perhaps more concerning — they do not trust each other. The Aspen Institute’s program on Philanthropy and Social Innovation argues that when it...
A healthy society is about more than just preventing injuries and reducing the death toll from disease. It is also about having access to safe neighborhoods and affordable housing, broadening job opportunities and reducing income inequality, designing walkable towns and fostering community cohesion. It takes multiple interventions and cross-sector partnerships to do all of...
Public education is an investment in America’s future, and schools profoundly influence how students understand themselves, their potential, and the country they will collectively create. For over 35 years, political consensus held that reading and math test scores were a good-enough proxy for school quality and student success. But two years of pandemic disruptions — comb...
The science on climate change is clear, yet data alone does not inspire change. We must combine science with powerful storytelling to raise awareness, drive action, and move the world to make big changes. National Geographic Explorers are on the front lines of some of the world’s most pressing issues, documenting and bringing to life the people, places, and species most im...
Silicon Valley is notoriously a boys’ club, perhaps to society’s detriment. What effects do discrimination and inequality in this sector have on our culture, society, and economy? What happens to technology when the executives, engineers, and designers who produce it are mostly male? Who are our most powerful advocates for diversity in the tech industry, and how are they f...
We don’t trust many institutions these days, but research shows a majority of us do trust our employers — especially when it comes to taking action on societal issues. And the Edelman Trust Barometer asserts that some 71 percent of employees believe it’s critically important for their CEO to respond to challenging times. But deciding whether to engage, and how, is not easy...
Can companies determined to support solutions to some of society’s larger dilemmas make the kinds of returns that Wall Street — which judges bottom-line performance above all — happy? Yes. Take a cue from Capricorn Investment Group, born from a belief that values-based, sustainable investment practices can enhance return rates. Its mission is "to deliver extraordinary inve...
The relationship between business and society in America has always been close. Today, it is perhaps closer than ever. Catalyzed by events like the murder of George Floyd and inspired by powerful social movements, many corporations have moved from tacit to far more open positions on hot-button social issues. Society, in turn, has largely moved to embrace corporations whose...
Far too many students in the United States and around the world face challenges when seeking a quality education; this untapped potential is a waste of societal and economic resources. In this session, education and civil society leaders will talk about their efforts to engage underserved and refugee youth, and their successes and failures in helping those youth overcome b...
Colin Kaepernick. Charlottesville. Identity politics. Travel ban. Black Lives Matter. Build That Wall. Trump. A decade after the United States elected its first black president and pondered whether it had become a post-racial society, race is a more prominent and intransigent problem than ever. In this dialogue about racism’s complexities and societal implications, we’ll a...
Amidst the pandemic, the George Floyd killing, and the 2020 election, the calls for business to respond to societal challenges have increased exponentially. Chip Bergh has spent much of his decade-long tenure as Levi Strauss & Co. CEO speaking out on topics including gun-violence prevention, voting rights, climate change, and racial justice. Join Bergh and Ellen McGirt as...
Not since the atomic bomb has a technology so alarmed its inventors that they warned the world about its use. Not, that is, until the spring of 2015, when biologist Jennifer Doudna called for a worldwide moratorium on the use of the new gene-editing tool CRISPR — a revolutionary new technology that she helped create — to make heritable changes in human embryos. The cheapes...
World order is never in stasis for too long. And indeed, we seem to be witnessing a historic shift now. The relatively stable decades after World War II saw gains for global democracies, rapid economic growth fueled by globalization, and the birth of the Internet. But they also saw the speeding of global warming, widening inequality, and the scourge of transnational terror...
Hear first-hand from four extraordinary social entrepreneurs who are working in communities around the world to solve some of society’s most complex issues from education to healthcare and human rights.