Do One Better with Alberto Lidji in Philanthropy, Sustainability and Social Entrepreneurship

Let’s talk collaborative philanthropy! We are joined by Anna Hakobyan (Chief Impact Officer at CIFF — the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation), Deepali Khanna (Managing Director for Asia at the Rockefeller Foundation) and Anurag Banerjee (Co-Founder & CEO of Quilt.AI) for a candid and thought-provoking conversation.

This is an in-depth episode with views from three influential and consequential thought-leaders in philanthropy and social good, who bring a breadth of experience and expertise ranging from grant-making and impact measurement to data-sharing and artificial intelligence for good.  

Collaboration in the world of philanthropy is not only increasing in prominence but is also becoming ever more sophisticated and innovative.  

We take a look at collaboration across numerous dimensions, including funder to funder; funder and grantees; grantee to grantee; Global South to Global South; private and non-profit sectors; and large/experienced organisations to small/inexperienced ones.

We also discuss how impact measurement, evaluation findings and evidence reviews should be viewed as a public good; fully transparent and shared widely; within an environment of trust that creates safe spaces for candid exchanges on what works and what does not.

And, we explore the importance of going beyond traditional knowledge-sharing by targeting the right audiences with key insights at just the right time when they’re in the decision-making process.  This is an episode that will inform you and equip you to achieve more social good. 

Thank you for downloading this episode of The Do One Better Podcast. For information on more than 150 episodes featuring remarkable thought-leaders in philanthropy, sustainability and social entrepreneurship please visit our website at Lidji.org

Celebrating our 150th Episode! Tania Bryer of CNBC fame interviews Alberto Lidji to explore insights from The Do One Better Podcast’s 150 episodes. A candid look at podcasting, philanthropy and more.

Alberto Lidji launched The Do One Better Podcast in early 2019, shortly after stepping down as Global CEO of the Novak Djokovic Foundation. 

He has also been a Senior Advisor to the Goldie Hawn Foundation and Director of Development at the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Foundation.

The purpose of The Do One Better Podcast is to inspire a global audience to be more philanthropic, to act more sustainably and to embrace social entrepreneurship.

Guests over the past three years have included Paul Polman, Siya Kolisi, David Lynch, Julia Gillard, David Miliband, Cherie Blair and Ricardo Lagos.

On this episode we explore:

(1) What it was like in the early days of the podcast.

(2) Advice for up-and-coming podcasters and those who want to create a podcast.

(3) The move from private sector into philanthropy.

(4) What to think about if you’re looking to get into philanthropy.

(5) Lessons and surprises from 150 episodes.

(6) Most moving philanthropic initiative?

(7) What are some of the key trends in philanthropy and broader sustainability agenda?

Thank you for downloading this 150th episode of The Do One Better Podcast. For information on many other interviews with remarkable thought leaders, visit our website at Lidji.org

A must-listen episode that will inform and inspire. Learn how Pinterest is leveraging its scale and reach of 444 million global, monthly active users to change narratives and drive forward social change around emotional wellbeing and mental health.

Pinterest is one of the most inspirational destinations online and, indeed, their mission is to help people discover the things they love, and inspire them to go do those things in their daily lives. 

However, there’s an appreciation that life isn’t always so inspiring, and things on the internet aren’t either. Real-life feelings and experiences can carry over to our lives online. 

Pinterest is focused on emotional wellbeing and they’re leveraging their product, scale and philanthropic network to make a difference to millions of people across the globe.

Thank you for downloading this episode of The Do One Better Podcast. For information on nearly 150 interviews with remarkable thought leaders in philanthropy, sustainability and social entrepreneurship, visit our website at Lidji.org

A must-listen episode for anyone who is interested in integrating ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) into their investments and taking an active, strategic approach to ensuring investee and portfolio companies drive forward the Global Sustainability Agenda.

Yellowwoods is an investment firm and business-builder. They are driven by purpose and we explore how they’re leveraging a range of tools, including procurement, supply chains, youth and inclusive employment initiatives, and regenerative agriculture to drive impact across entire industries.

All of Yellowwoods’ businesses were born in South Africa and many are now global multinationals and household names.

This episode inspires, informs and serves as a call to action for investors and grant-makers alike to leverage commercial models and multi-sectoral partnerships for good. 

Thank you for downloading this episode. For information on nearly 150 other podcast interviews, we invite you to visit our website at Lidji.org

We explore the importance of making the latest evidence on children's rights and wellbeing accessible to a broad audience, strengthening and framing key arguments by using the most engaging language and communicating with policymakers and politicians so they make informed budgetary and voting decisions.

The Institute for Inspiring Children’s Futures works with diverse partners, including the OECD, Unicef and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and engages with policymakers and politicians internationally.

They aim to ensure children facing adversity have what they need to reach their full potential, and much of their focus is on children who come into contact with the justice system.

Despite the fact that the wellbeing of children is an important indicator of the future stability of society and prosperity of the economy, there is still far to go to ensure children’s rights are realised.

Thank you for downloading this episode. For information on nearly 150 other interviews with remarkable thought leaders visit Lidji.org

It’s been said that philanthropy is under attack. In this episode we explore key arguments in favour and against philanthropy and highlight opportunities for the road ahead. 

No matter your views on philanthropy, you will find this episode informative and thought-provoking. 

Beth worked as a fundraiser and charity manager for a decade before co-founding the Centre for Philanthropy at the University of Kent in 2008.

She researched and wrote the annual Coutts Million Pound Donor Report from 2008-2017, co-authored Richer Lives: why rich people give (2013), The Logic of Charity: Great Expectations in Hard Times (2015) and co-edited The Philanthropy Reader (2016). 

Her last book The New Fundraisers: who organises generosity in contemporary society? won the AFP Skystone Research Partners book prize for 2018, and her new book, published in Autumn 2021, ‘In Defence of Philanthropy’, is a timely response to growing critiques of private giving.

Thank you for downloading this episode. For information on nearly 150 episodes with remarkable thought leaders in philanthropy, sustainability and social entrepreneurship, visit our website at Lidji.org

This episode provides clear insight into how the EdelGive Foundation developed, structured and executed a highly collaborative fund to support 100 NGOs in India, securing funding from the likes of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies and the Chandra Foundation. 

The EdelGive Foundation is a grant-making organization, helping build and expand philanthropy in India by funding and supporting the growth of small to mid-sized grassroots NGOs committed to empowering vulnerable children, women, and communities. 

This approach has enabled the foundation to be a go-to partner of choice for Indian and foreign funders wanting to engage with the Indian development ecosystem.

The Grassroots, Resilience, Ownership and Wellness (GROW) Fund is aimed at building the capabilities, resilience and future readiness of grassroots organisations.

The GROW Fund aims to strengthen 100 high impact grassroots organisations over 24 months, through capacity building and support of key organisational functions.

Thank you for downloading this episode. For information on nearly 150 interviews with remarkable thought leaders in philanthropy. sustainability and social entrepreneurship, please visit our website at Lidji.org

Get a behind-the-scenes look at how ‘the Squirrels’ came about and how the programme is providing 4 and 5 year olds with skills for life when it matters most by promoting key skills like working together, communication and language, as well as creativity and community awareness.

Gain insight from an in-depth conversation covering the entire journey of how the Squirrels went from initial concept to successful funding, evidence-based piloting, execution and meaningful scale. 

We hear of the many challenges that had to be overcome, the funding sources that were tapped and the diverse stakeholders who were brought on board to make this initiative a success.

Thank you for downloading this episode. For information on nearly 150 interviews with remarkable thought-leaders in philanthropy, sustainability and social entrepreneurship visit our website at Lidji.org

A great conversation on how foundations are able to nurture the organisations they fund and support. We look at the power dynamic between grant-maker and grantee, delve into fostering trust and explore how foundations are able to provide support that goes beyond financial grants.

Simon Sommer is Co-CEO of the Jacobs Foundation, which has 7 billion Swiss Francs in assets (roughly USD $7 billion), granted out nearly 90 million Swiss Francs in 2020 and is a strong backer of education, internationally.

Sharath Jeevan is the Founder of Intrinsic Labs, which helps leaders and their organisations tackle deep motivation challenges. He is the author of the recently-published book “Intrinsic”.

Thank you for downloading this episode of The Do One Better Podcast. For information on nearly 150 interviews with remarkable thought leaders in the world of philanthropy, sustainability and social entrepreneurship visit our website at Lidji.org

Safeena Husain founded Educate Girls in 2007 and today they operate in more than 20,000 villages across three states in India.

They’re mobilising communities in the most marginalised and remote areas to get out-of-school girls back into school and ensure they stay in school and are actually learning.

They’ve grown at a fast pace and today have a team of 2,200 full time employees and 15,000 volunteers.

Under Safeena’s leadership, and in conjunction with the UBS Optimus Foundation and Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), they launched the first development impact bond (DIB). This was a highly innovative approach to align performance with funding.

Educate Girls was the service provider; CIFF was the outcome payer (who were purchasing two results: (1) getting out-of-school girls back into school and staying in school, and (2) ensuring learning outcomes); and the UBS Optimus Foundation was the social investor. 

We hear the ins and outs of what turned out to be a highly successful initiative.  Educate Girls took the risk of performance, UBS took the financial risk and CIFF got to purchase the impact. 

We also hear how Educate Girls was the first Asian organisation to become an Audacious Project — an initiative run by TED that brings philanthropists together to collaborate and back really innovative, big bets that improve the world.

The COVID-19 pandemic is severely impacting girls and women, and Safeena's view is that if action isn’t taken it could well set girls’ education back by a decade, if not more, so let's work together to get out-of-school girls back into school!

Thank you for downloading this episode of The Do One Better Podcast. For information on nearly 150 other interviews, please visit our website at Lidji.org

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