Disruptors for GOOD | Social Entrepreneurs and Social Enterprises

In episode 84 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Hugues Didier, Co-founder of PANAFRICA, on quitting his job to start an impact sneaker company that invites transparency, creates educational opportunities, and invests in job training across Africa.A littele over five years ago Hugues and his co-founder Vulfran de Richoufftz decided to quit their jobs and promising careers to start something that that was both creative and impactful to society. They chose to start PANAFRICA, a company dedicated to making sneakers differently, by respecting those who make them and by taking into account social, economic and environmental impacts of their actions.Not only do they continue to invest in innovations around its textiles and materials, as seen in their returnable and recyclable sneaker: The ARUSHA, they also invest time and energy into its workers and their futures.In order to support the development of the workshop and to guarantee long-term employment PANAFRICA is committed to producing one collection over six months. This enables us to avoid the pitfalls of mass production over short periods and ensures every worker: on-the-job training specific to the PANAFRICA chain of production, improved working conditions (transparency and lasting contracts), a workload spaced out over a longer period of time.Any purchase of PANAFRICA sneakers support projects for access to education and job training in Africa through the WALK FOR SCHOOL program. For each pair of sneakers you buy, PANAFRICA donates 10% of its profit to various associations.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Submit news to Causeartist hereCheck out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 83 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Bridget Hilton, Founder of LSTN Headphones, on the power of giving the gift of hearing to 35,000 people around the world, all while competing against Beats and Bose in a sector ruled by giants.Bridget and her co-founder, Joe Huff, started LSTN in 2012, after seeing someone hear her own voice for the first time, the two decided to focus their efforts on creating change through the power of sound & music.For every pair of headphones sold, LSTN helps restore hearing to a person in need through a partnership with the Starkey Hearing Foundation. Over the last 8 years, through the sales of millions of headphones and speakers worldwide (D2C, Delta Air Lines, Nordstrom, Barney's and more), LSTN and its customers have been able to give the gift of sound too over 35,000 people through Starkey in the U.S., Peru, Mexico, China, Dominican Republic, Shri Lanka, Rwanda, Indonesia, Kenya and Uganda!Some of Bridgets accolades include:Forbes Magazine 30 Under 30 //Inc. Magazine 30 Under 30 //Member, Young Entrepreneur Council //Featured in commercials by Delta Air Lines, Chivas Regal and Google //As seen on Today Show and Good Morning America //Origin Magazine Top 100 Creatives //National Association Women's Business Owners - Rising Star of the Year //Entrepreneur Mag 15 Women to Watch //Guest Speaker - USC, UCLA and NFTE //Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 82 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Matine Khalighi, Founder of EEqual, on developing impactful programs that create opportunity for students fighting homelessness and extreme poverty in America.Matine is a member of the graduating class of 2020 at Smoky Hill High School. In addition to academics, Matine is passionate about helping those who are less fortunate. Inspired by his project in his “Building a Better Community Class” in eighth grade, Matine was motivated to do something more to help those in need. In 2016, he co-founded the nonprofit Helping the Homeless Colorado, a 501(c)(3) youth-led nonprofit organization. As the Executive Director, Matine helped the organization develop a teen-led board of directors which creates life changes for those in need in Colorado. His organization has distributed over 50,000 basic necessities to those experiencing homelessness across Colorado, awarded over $15,000 in scholarships for homeless students to attain associates degrees, and even launched the state-wide social campaign on live television.In June of 2020, Matine led his team through a complete rebranding and transitioning process of Helping Homeless Colorado to EEqual, a 501(c)3 youth-led nonprofit working to support students in poverty and homelessness.Matine Khalighi is a three-time winner of the Presidents Volunteer Service Award. In addition, he is a TEDx speaker, and a leader in Ashoka Young Changemakers program. He has been featured on Colorado and Company, Denver Voice, 5280 Magazine, The Denver Post, and PR Newswire. EEqual is a 501(c)3 for youth-by youth nonprofit organization that mitigates the impacts of economic inequality for students experiencing poverty through targeted programming powered by youth.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

Bonus episode from the Investing in Impact feed.In episode 14 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Liesel Pritzker Simmons & Ian Simmons, founders of Blue Haven Initiative, on using innovative impact investing to enhance competitive returns and positive social and environmental change.Liesel Pritzker Simmons is Co-Founder and Principal of Blue Haven Initiative, where she oversees, as an investment strategist, a portfolio focused on holdings that generate competitive financial returns and address social and environmental challenges. The portfolio spans asset classes, from traditional equities and direct investments to philanthropic programs.Liesel co-founded Blue Haven with her husband, Ian Simmons. Together, they systematically assessed their portfolios based on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria and financial performance. The restructured portfolios became the foundation of Blue Haven, one of the first family offices created with impact investing as its focus.Liesel is also Co-Founder of IDP Foundation, a private Chicago-based foundation focused on achieving universal primary education. There, she helped create the IDP Rising Schools Program, which leverages microfinance networks to empower nearly 450 low-cost private schools—established and managed by local entrepreneurs—in some of the least-developed regions of the world.Ian Simmons is Co-Founder and Principal of Blue Haven Initiative, where he oversees a portfolio focused on investments that generate competitive financial returns and address social and environmental challenges. This portfolio spans asset classes, including private and public equity, fixed income, direct investments, alternative investments and philanthropic programs.Committed to initiatives and corporations that advance investing and strengthen democracy, Ian is the President of the Foundation for Civic Leadership and Chair of the Youth Engagement Fund. Ian serves on the board of directors of the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, Social Finance, Issue One, Organizing for Action, the National Advisory Board for Public Service at Harvard College, and Karibu Homes, an affordable-housing company in Kenya.Blue Haven Initiative IS One of the first family offices created with impact investing as its mission and focus, Blue Haven seeks market rates of financial return on its investments as well as maximum social and environmental impact. It applies a rigorous portfolio-management lens to for-profit and philanthropic capital with the goal of aligning financial performance and public benefit. With this approach, Blue Haven considers the nuanced ramifications of its investment choices while pursuing financial returns appropriate to each asset class or venture.When investing, Blue Haven seeks to put capital to work in highly productive ways: helping mission-driven projects and companies achieve scale, supporting entrepreneurs whose innovations spur change, and partnering with other investors to accelerate economic progress. Active in frontier markets and in the United States, its in-house team and their advisors are dedicated to sourcing direct investments, conducting due diligence and managing its portfolio over time. In addition to funding early-stage, innovative businesses that improve standards of living, create economic opportunity, and deliver products and services cleanly and efficiently to underserved communities, Blue Haven also invests in traditional asset classes through third-party investment managers.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 81 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Dustin Young, Co-founder of Our Own, on building and strengthen communities through life-changing experiences.Dustin is a Mentor, Physical and Mental Health Advocate, and the Founder of Our Own. After graduating with a degree in Psychology and Sociology, Dustin went on to work for various nonprofit organizations that focused on behavioral prevention with inner city youth. His firsthand experience has given him deep knowledge and understanding of issues in providing optimal health that helps individuals achieve greatness. Such awareness equips Dustin to offer unprecedented and exceedingly outstanding care to our youth and young adults.Having a strong connection with the community and the traumas our youth face daily, he decided to dedicate his time on creating solutions that would help communities grow and utilized non-traditional engagement strategies to assist with reducing stigma related to mental health treatment. Dustin’s phenomenal energy, friendly and approachable personality, as well as affection for people are what makes him unique and truly for the people.Our Own's mission is to build and strengthen communities through consistent, life-changing experiences. They create access to resources for mental, physical, and emotional health to support the underserved. These tools empower people to reimagine themselves and impact their community. The initiatives created such as Be Right Back, Keep It Run Hundred, Seed & Soil and SELF provides the access needed in underrepresented communities. Communities served includes, Los Angeles County, Ventura County, Compton, Watts, Long Beach,Inglewood and AltadenaUnderstanding the limited access to mental, physical, and social emotional resources increases stress and trauma, which drastically stifle the opportunity for growth in the community. Dustin believes engagement and a relationship built through experiential learning and actionable tools empowers the community to make informed choices and reclaim their future.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 80 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Dr. Lydiah Kemunto Bosire, Founder & CEO of 8B Education Investments, on using Income Shared Agreements to create affordable financing solutions for African students in global universities.Dr. Lydiah Kemunto Bosire, a native Kenyan, holds a D. Phil in Politics from the University of Oxford, which she struggled to finance. In the years since, she has watched colleagues, friends, and family from the African continent turn down or forfeit opportunities to study at global universities because they could not secure sufficient financing.She has seen African students, admitted to and attending colleges that would open doors into innovation clusters and leadership networks, cut short their studies and their ambitions, as necessary funding failed to materialize. For these reasons, 8B’s mission is personal.Lydiah has a high-profile background in international affairs, including serving in the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General, the World Bank, and the World Health Organization. Lydiah led the UN’s collaboration with the World Bank on the Global Concessional Finance Facility, an innovative financing window for refugee-hosting communities. 8B Education Investments draws from this experience of developing strategy and innovation with global implications. A scalable market-based solution investing in African human capital is necessary in a set of tools aiming to accelerate African prosperity and achieve shared prosperity. Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

Recently, I had the great pleasure of being interviewed by Tim Scott, faculty lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin in the Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relations, about the current state of social enterprises and social entrepreneurship. Tim is the founder of Mitscoots Outfitters, a social enterprise on a mission to outfit and employ individuals transitioning out of homelessness. Leveraging some past military and ad world experience, he has guided the team in growing Mitscoots into a national brand that has ultimately helped to lift individuals off the streets and out of homelessness. Through strategy, community building and grit, they’ve bootstrapped a great social enterprise into 200+ retail partnerships with a significant e-commerce presence.Pivoting off that experience and at the insistence of colleagues, Tim founded Benefit Branding, a full service ad agency focused on social impact branding. With a unique technique for strategy, target audience insights, and long term planning, the team helps clients build customer relationships by telling their story in the best way possible, everywhere possible.Tim also teaches branding and strategy as a faculty lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin in the Stan Richards School of Advertising and Public Relations. Tim can be reached at: timscott@utexas.eduCheck out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 79 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Brett Hagler, Co-founder and CEO of New Story, on ending global homelessness and using a startup mentality to create one of the most innovative nonprofits in the world.Brett is a cancer survivor, author, speaker, and 2016 Forbes 30 Under 30 Entrepreneur. In 2017, 2019, and 2020, New Story was named by Fast Company as one of the “Most Innovative Companies In The World.” Brett is a Y-Combinator alum and, in 2018, was named one of the Top 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs by Goldman Sachs.An estimated 3 billion people will be living without access to adequate shelter by 2050 — a 200% increase over three decades. To tackle this massive issue, they’re researching breakthroughs in homebuilding and proving them in every community New Story builds. The organization is also sharing these breakthroughs with other nonprofit organizations and governments, so collectively, the world can build faster, better, and stronger.New Story is pioneering solutions to address global homelessness and imagine a world where no human lives in survival mode.  Donors see exactly who needs help, give knowing that 100% of their donation goes to the field, and receive a video of the family they helped in their new home.Since 2015, New Story has built 2,300+ homes in 4 countries and impacted 11,000+ lives in 25 communities.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with WebflowWe are powered by:Impact Recipe – Tips, Tricks, and Resources to create the best recipes to grow your business.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 78 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Alex Amouyel, Executive Director of MIT Solve, on creating a social impact innovation marketplace to solve world challenges.Alex Amouyel is the Executive Director of Solve, an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Solve is a community of cross-sector leaders devoted to identifying and supporting solutions to actionable challenges through open innovation. Previously, Alex was the Director of Program for the Clinton Global Initiative, where she curated the content for the Annual Meeting. She also worked for Save the Children International in London and across Asia, the Middle East and Haiti, and at the Boston Consulting Group. Alex holds a double Masters from Sciences Po, Paris, and the London School of Economics, and a Bachelors from Trinity College, Cambridge, UK.Solve is an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a mission to solve world challenges. Solve is a marketplace for social impact innovation. Through open innovation Challenges, Solve finds incredible tech-based social entrepreneurs all around the world. Solve then brings together MIT’s innovation ecosystem and a community of Members to fund and support these entrepreneurs to help them drive lasting, transformational impact.Solve was born out of the Office of the President of MIT in 2015, a natural offshoot of MIT’s mission to advance knowledge in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century.In the last three years, thanks to its partners, Solve has brokered commitments of over $25 million in funding for Solver teams and social entrepreneurs.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Check out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.

In episode 77 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, I speak with Kate Byrne, President of SOCAP Global, on impact investing, the rise of women in global leadership, and rapidly moving an events business online in the wake of COVID-19.SOCAP Virtual: A Global Impact Summit - Register HereKate Byrne is the president of Intentional Media(soon to be SOCAP Global), the purpose-driven platform whose brands SOCAP, Good Capital Project, and Conscious Company Media are at the intersection of business, meaning, and money. Byrne is the former VP of partnership, membership, and sponsorship for Watermark, the Bay Area’s leading women’s leadership community. She’s played executive leadership roles at the Tides Foundation, George Lucas Education Foundation, Future LLC, BusinessWeek, Fast Company, and SF Gate and Inc — focusing on technology and its ability to advance media, drive revenue and promote social good.SOCAP is the largest and most diverse impact investing community in the world. They have created a global ecosystem and marketplace - social entrepreneurs, investors, foundation and nonprofit leaders, government and policy leaders, creators, corporations, academics and beyond - through content experiences that educate, spur conversation, and inspire investment in positive impact. Programming includes the annual SOCAP Summit, SOCAP 365, SPECTRUM conference, World-Changing Women’s Summit and Money + Meaning podcasts.SOCAP Virtual: A Global Impact Summit is the leading gathering of global changemakers addressing the world’s toughest challenges through market-based solutions, October 19 through 23. Hundreds of speakers during more than 150 sessions will explore the following themes: Radical Change. Impact Investing. Meaning. Climate Action. Global Health. Future of Work. Next Gen Leadership. Education for All. Resilience. Inclusion. Arts, Culture & the Creative Economy. Racial Equity. The five-day conference will convene thought leaders from across the impact ecosystem including impact investors, social entrepreneurs, foundation and nonprofit leaders, government and policy leaders, corporations, academics and other innovative cross-sector practitioners committed to increasing the flow of capital toward social good. There will be intimate fireside chats, virtual workshops, a Digital Pavilion, Social Entrepreneurship Scholarship presentations and a host of virtual networking opportunities for one-on-one to small meeting formats. “This year we will lay the foundation for a new decade in impact investing and a more just and inclusive economy. Now more than ever, creative market-based solutions are needed to address the world’s toughest problems,” said Cari Hanson, Vice President of SOCAP, the largest impact investing community in the world. “The speakers and conversations we’ve pulled together for our SOCAP Virtual Main Stage schedule were crafted with the goal of presenting such solutions — and to give attendees ways to take collective action to keep the conversation going long after the final session.” Among the Main Stage session highlights: ●      Impact Investing on the Precipice: A Fireside Chat with Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, and Sir Ronnie Cohen, author of IMPACT: Reshaping Capitalism to Drive Real Change, and Chairman of the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment.  ●      Cultural New Deal for America: A panel with Jeff Chang, former Executive Director of the Institute for Diversity in the Arts at Stanford University; Lori Pourier, President of the First Peoples Fund; Carlton Turner, Director of the Mississippi Center for Cultural Production; Deborah Cullinan, CEO of the YBCA. ●      The 2% Approach to Dismantling Structural Racism in the U.S. Economy: A Fireside Chat with Robert Smith, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, and Bill Bynum, CEO of HOPE.●      Capital for Climate-Critical Infrastructure and a Resilient Recovery: A Lightning Bolt presentation by Ibrahim AlHusseini, Founder and Managing Partner of FullCycle.Listen to more Causeartist podcasts here.Causeartist Executive Network - We’re building a global network of impact founders, impact investors, and impact professionals. Apply HereSubmit news to Causeartist hereCheck out:ImpactInvestor.io - Discover impact investors from around the world.Podcast Made with TransistorPodcast cover design Made with CanvaBuild amazing web platforms with Webflow ----------------------------------------Disruptors for GOOD is powered by Causeartist, a nonprofit media company dedicated to bridging the gap between capital and culture by spotlighting founders, investors, and organizations reimagining how business can serve people and the planet.Through storytelling, events, and open-access education, Causeartist helps create a shared language of impact, inspiring more founders to build with purpose and more funders to invest with intention.By amplifying ideas and innovations across industries, Causeartist transforms awareness into action and cultivates a community where paying it forward is part of the foundation for growth.