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

British Ambassador Designate to South Sudan, Chris Trott, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss conflict resolution, power sharing agreements, Ebola and working in the frontlines.

Chris talks about his career trajectory and the rewarding challenges of being posted to South Sudan, Afghanistan and other precarious settings. He explains why this is important to him and provides advice to others who may be drawn to similar postings while having to juggle family commitments.  Chris is motivated by wanting to make a difference in a conflict environment.

He is quick to note that despite the challenges of being posted to South Sudan, these pale in comparison with the hardships the South Sudanese population has to endure.

Chris sheds light on the state of affairs in South Sudan and the region. He provides statistics on the death toll from the conflict, along with staggering numbers pertaining to refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs). 

He then proceeds to discuss the challenges of securing – and maintaining – power sharing agreements and the difficulties of bringing enemies to the negotiating table.

Chris notes that the statistics around the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in South Sudan are horrifying. He talks of girls’ education and explains how a girl in South Sudan is more likely to die in child birth than complete secondary school.   The country has one of the highest maternal and child mortality rates in the world.  This is but one element of the myriad of problems facing the country, from high rates of sexual violence in conflict to lack of adequate healthcare, malnutrition, the threat of Ebola and more.

Chris notes that “it’s really, really important that we focus on the Sustainable Development Goals, because they are a long way from achieving them here”. 

Chris’ key takeaway: The international community has a hugely important and supportive role in trying to help address crises around the world – we need to find ways to offer that support in a way that empowers local partners, local governments and other key stakeholders.

Full episode notes, guest bios and useful links are available at Lidji.org  -  Please subscribe to the podcast if you enjoy it. Thank you!

Founding Executive Director of the Center for High Impact Philanthropy, Kat Rosqueta, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss social impact, strengthening democracy through philanthropy and knowledge sharing in philanthropy.

Kat speaks passionately about the power of philanthropy and notes that high impact philanthropy is not about how much you give but, rather, it’s about how you give. 

She sheds light on her career trajectory and the origins of the Center for High Impact Philanthropy, at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice. 

Her team at the Center is highly multi-disciplinary, which Kat notes is essential.  You need the best thinking from diverse actors and disciplines to improve and change the world.

At the Center, they focus on different thematic areas. An interesting – and highly topical – area of research they’re currently pursuing looks at how philanthropy can strengthen democracy.

At the Center, they decide which thematic areas to focus on by determining whether there’s a high potential for social impact; whether they have the funding; whether they think they can quickly assemble a team that can generate answers quickly and well; and whether there is clear funder interest globally for such research. 

She adds that it’s essential to have clarity of thought on what, exactly, is the social impact goal you’re trying to achieve; ensuring decisions are informed by the best available evidence out there (both academic and practical); embracing an attitude of learning, measuring and managing progress; and ensuring there is value for money.

The Center is keen to provide guidance on philanthropy to a wide audience and to ensure research can be accessed freely, across diverse platforms. They publish the ‘High Impact Giving Guide’, which provides tips, examples and useful resources for donors.

Moreover, the Center has partnerships with the likes of Fidelity Charitable – the largest Donor Advised Fund (DAF) – who mirror some of the Center’s guidance on giving, and also with Giving Compass, who add some of the Center’s guidance content on their own website. 

Kat is clear that one can be a philanthropist without having to be a high-net-worth individual (HNWI). She lightheartedly distinguishes between ‘high input’ philanthropy where you do need a lot of money and ‘high impact’ philanthropy where it’s not about how much you give but, rather, how you give.

Kat also introduces the concept of a ‘social impact portfolio’, which is a useful way for individuals to balance out how much they may want to give philanthropically, or allocate towards impact investing or, indeed, spend by making sustainable purchasing decisions through conscious consumerism.

The conversation then moves into a policy exploration on philanthropy itself; its accountability (or lack thereof); its freedom to take on risk; its track record and ability to tackle social issues where for some reason neither government nor the business sector have mobilised.

An interesting point to keep in mind is that the pools of philanthropic funds available globally are still relatively small – despite all the media coverage on the topic. Kat notes that even the Gates Foundation’s endowment – the largest foundation out there – wouldn’t be able to pay for two years’ worth of public education in even one state alone, in the USA. 

Kat’s key takeaway for listeners: now, more than ever, any individual can practice high impact philanthropy. High impact philanthropy is not about how much you give but, rather, it’s about how you give. If you’re unsure of where to start your philanthropic journey, you should simply just start and take the first step. Use the wealth of resources available at the Center and elsewhere that are publicly available and get excited about the impact you can make over a lifetime.

Full episode notes, guest bios and useful links are available at Lidji.org  - Please subscribe to the podcast if you enjoy it. Thank you!

General Manager of PBS America in the UK, Richard Kingsbury, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss educational TV, impartial reporting and the value of public media.

PBS America (Public Broadcasting Service) was founded in 1969. There are more than 300 PBS channels in the US and 85% of their income comes direct from philanthropic donations; 15% comes from the government.  

In the US, PBS has been voted the most trusted institution for 10 consecutive years running.

PBS is a non-profit organisation, with a strong focus on educational TV. In the UK, some of the more prominent programs are Nova (science), Frontline (current affairs) and the American Experience (history), alongside high-quality documentaries.

Viewers of PBS in the UK tend to be intellectually curious and have a desire to learn -- not just relax -- as they watch TV. Richard notes that PBS programming is dense with information and insight.

PBS also serves a cultural exchange function, bringing programming with a strong American flavour to British audiences, while broadcasting many British shows to American audiences in the US.

Richard notes that many British viewers generally formulate their view of the US from Hollywood and, therefore, part of the appeal of PBS in the UK is that it brings in-depth, real-life stories that give British audiences a much more rounded picture of what America is like.

The impartiality of PBS is something Richard underscores clearly and he notes that public media exposes all sides to the debate and, therefore, has a real value at a time when many individuals tend to have a disproportionate exposure to likeminded views.

The key takeaway for listeners: Richard drives home the message that there is real value in public media and we need to appreciate its role in allowing people to come to informed and rational decisions. 

Full episode notes, guest bios and relevant links are available at Lidji.org  -  Please subscribe to the podcast if you enjoy it. Thank you!

Chief Executive of the Scouts UK, Matt Hyde, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss inclusivity, growth and why Scouting transforms lives in 193 countries. 

Matt Hyde introduces listeners to the global Scout movement and to the Scouts in the UK.  Scouting was set up in 1907 and today has approximately 50 million Scouts in 193 countries.  The organisation aims to prepare young people, aged 6 to 25 (exact ages vary in different countries), with skills for life. 

In the UK, there are 460,000 young people participating in the Scouts and 160,000 adult volunteers. Interestingly, there are currently 60,000 young people waiting to join the Scouts in the UK – this waiting list is due to a need for additional adult volunteers. 

Matt sheds light on how to join the Scouts, what it entails and how it transforms lives.  He gives listeners visibility into his own personal journey in the Scouts.  He got into the Scouts as a young child, which set him on a leadership development path and, now, he finds himself as the Chief Executive of the Scouts in the UK.

Matt also provides insight into their corporate strategy.  We hear how the Scouts in the UK are considering expanding their provision into the ‘Early Years’ for participants aged 4 and 5. Encouragingly, they have received funding to run 40 pilots from diverse funders. 

For the next four years, the Scouts are looking to add another 50,000 participants, reach out to and engage with people living in deprived areas; inclusion is of vital importance and they want to ensure that Scouting in the UK represents modern British society on all fronts -- gender equality, LGBT+ issues, race, ethnicity and more.

When defining success for the next few years, Matt is focused on growth, inclusivity, ensuring that the Scouts are shaped by young people, and achieving substantive community impact.

Full episode notes, links and guest bios are available at Lidji.org -- Please subscribe to this podcast if you’ve enjoyed it. Thank you!

Grant Gordon, philanthropist and Founder of the Reekimlane Foundation, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss high-net-worth (HNW) family philanthropy and responsible stewardship of wealth.

Grant encourages global listeners who are interested in philanthropy to take the first step and connect with likeminded individuals who are attracted by philanthropy.

Grant founded the Reekimlane Foundation, which grants out approximately $1m annually.  The foundation is a grant maker and also acts as a conduit for various other philanthropic endeavours launched by Grant. 

Child poverty and community regeneration are two thematic areas close to Grant’s heart.  Currently, he’s also exploring early childhood development as a potential area for more philanthropic engagement.

When asked about what prompted him to get into philanthropy, he notes that, for him, it’s about values. Grant grew up in an affluent family and he was brought up knowing that there are certain responsibilities associated with having wealth. Philanthropy came naturally to him.

For those individuals who are thinking about getting into philanthropy, but haven’t done so for one reason or another, he simply suggests one start by having a look around to see what issues resonate most so that what one really cares about is identified.   He references the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a good starting point -- Goal No.1 is about tackling poverty.

Everyone is different and determining how much money and resources one should donate is a personal decision. In Grant’s case, there’s an ongoing family discussion on what it means to be a responsible citizen which, in turn, helps him and his family decide what works best for them.

There are two key insights Grant brings from his private sector experience: one is the importance of ‘mission’ and ensuring that all Trustees on your board are fully aligned; the other pertains to leadership, where one needs a CEO who’s not just passionate but also who has the skills and resilience to do the job.

Grant’s takeaway for listeners: as a philanthropist (or potential philanthropist)  never regard yourself as being on your own. Go out and talk to others!

Full episode notes, links and guest bios are available at Lidji.org – Please subscribe to this podcast if you find enjoy listening to it. Thank you!

Club Director at Wimbledon's All England Lawn Tennis Club, Martin Guntrip, joins Alberto Lidji to talk about the Wimbledon Foundation and the inner workings of the world's most prestigious Grand Slam tennis tournament.

The Wimbledon Foundation was founded in 2013, and the All England Lawn Tennis Club has been involved in charitable work for many years prior.  One could say the Foundation was a way of formalising a philanthropic undercurrent that has been an important part of the Club’s ethos for many years.

Wimbledon wholeheartedly embraces gender equality and every aspect of the tournament is equal irrespective of gender. Interestingly, over 50% of those coming through the gates to watch the Championships in person are women.  About 40,000 visitors per day come in to watch the Championships during the two weeks.

Martin speaks candidly about the inner workings of the world’s most prestigious Grand Slam tennis tournament – we hear how tennis stars’ entourages are getting larger, how ice baths are now a default feature and how the strict dress code is a key differentiator that’s unlikely to change any time soon.

There’s a constant drive to improve the Club and the Championships.  We hear of the ‘Grand Slam Committee’, where representatives of all four Grand Slams engage with each other to exchange notes and improve how things are done. Indeed, Martin attends most Grand Slam tournaments every year.

Martin has been in the world of tennis for most of his life; having played in the Championships during the early 1980s.  His passion for the sport, and for the Wimbledon Foundation’s philanthropic work, comes through loud and clear.

The Wimbledon Foundation is active locally, nationally and internationally. They have established fruitful partnerships with the likes of WaterAid and Magic Bus. Most of the funding comes from the Club, the Championships and from members. 

Locally, through their ‘Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative’, they introduce approximately 14,000 children to the world of tennis annually – they work closely with primary schools in the boroughs of Wandsworth and Merton and make a point to support local causes – over 50% of their giving is local.

Sustainability has also become a key consideration. Last year, the Championships removed all plastic straws and this year their partner, Evian, is launching a 100% recycled water bottle.

Martin notes that the All England Lawn Tennis Club has 500 members and he jokes that the easy way to become a member of the All England Lawn Tennis Club is simply to win Wimbledon. 

Interestingly, many people don’t know that the All England Lawn Tennis Club is active throughout the year, as are most regular tennis clubs – not just during the two weeks of the Championships – and players like Andy Murray can be seen practising there throughout the year. Martin notes that sometimes it can be a bit embarrassing playing tennis when you have Andy Murray hitting balls in an adjacent court!

The 'Key Takeaway' he shares with listeners: find out what’s unique about you or your organisation and find a way to give whatever is special about you to others.  People are very appreciative when you do.

-- For full episode notes, guest bios and useful links, visit Lidji.org  Please subscribe to this podcast if you enjoy it. Thank you!

CEO of the Smollan Group, David Smollan, joins Alberto Lidji to share his thoughts on managing a global workforce of 80,000 in a caring and sustainable manner.

Being a mindful employer is important. David wants large-scale employers to think about “how mindful are we about the sustainability of human capital, and how we treat people, and how we develop them?” 

The Smollan Group employs 80,000 people in 50 countries.  The firm was founded in South Africa back in 1931 and has grown from modest beginnings into a successful venture representing some of the world’s best-known brand owners. David joined the firm in the early 2000s and he spotted an opportunity to deliver services around the world – not just in South Africa.

When the firm ventured into India, they noticed that in that market everything was being handled by manpower companies that provide labour to brand owners – these brokers simply charged a fee to brand owners and handled payroll. But, there was no consideration given to individuals' career progression, nor to their training, nor their development. 

This was in stark contrast to how the Smollan Group had been operating in South Africa, where those individuals providing field services where actually employees, who were receiving training, who had a career trajectory – this was a different type of engagement and led to different performance.

One of the biggest concerns when employing 80,000 people is the need to think beyond wages and to think about employees’ welfare, their future, their career development and their career trajectory. 

Treating people well and believing in people leads to increased staff engagement. We’ve all been in a relationship where someone made us feel engaged and we gave more; and we’ve also all been in a relationship where someone made us feel less engaged and we gave less. Think about how much more you’re willing to give people because of how they make us feel.

He expresses the view that the business of sustainability is a long-term game and that human capital results take time – you have to have patience.  Financial results are a lag indicator for operating results, which are a lag indicator for human capital results. If you have the patience, the will and the heart then the results will be there.

On the topic of why he is so passionate about sustainability, David is candid: we all do things because we get pleasure from them. He intrinsically finds sustainability satisfying and it makes him feel good.  He notes that: “it’s too small an achievement to build a commercially successful business, I think the real challenge is to build a business that is commercially successful, that is kind to the planet and is impactful on communities. That for me is the definition of great achievement”.

David’s key takeaway: for those listeners who have children, think about what the world will be like when these children have their own children; think about these little people who you really love and care about, and think about the challenges we have today with inequality and the environment – that should be enough inspiration for you to want to make meaningful change.

-- Full episode notes, guest bios and links are available at Lidji.org  Please subscribe to this podcast if you’ve enjoyed it – thank you.

Chairman of the Varkey Foundation, Vikas Pota, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss the Global Teacher Prize, Ed-Tech and universal access to quality education.

Vikas is passionate about quality education, advocacy, education technology (Ed-Tech) and political engagement. The Varkey Foundation is the driving force behind the Global Teacher Prize, which awards $1 million every year to an outstanding teacher.  They have made five annual awards thus far.

Moreover, the Varkey Foundation also convenes key stakeholders via their high-profile Global Education & Skills Forum in Dubai, where last year around 50 education ministers from around the world were in attendance.  

The $1 million award was presented by the well-known actor, Hugh Jackman, and is aimed at inspiring and increasing the status of teachers in every country. 

Advocacy is key and Vikas feels the philanthropy sector does a terrible job at communicating.  As a sector he feels there’s a need to step up and ask how do we capture people’s imagination – “communication is critical to everything that we do”.

The Varkey Foundation is a global foundation, which has been around for approximately 10 years. They’ve gone from being a CSR arm of GEMS Education, to being a corporate foundation and, now, to being a family foundation. 

Internationally, they engage with policymakers and key stakeholders on the ground. In Argentina, for instance, they have implemented a leadership and innovation program where nearly 6,000 school principals and directors have taken the course themselves – this is in partnership with five provinces in Argentina and Vikas notes it has been hugely successful.  

When asked whether ‘workforce’ was one of the key problems, Vikas replied that in the UK for example there is a recruitment and retention crisis. Teachers don’t want to stay in the job. UN Sustainable Development Goal Number 4 focuses on the provision of a quality education for all – Vikas notes it requires the recruitment of an additional 69 million new teachers to deliver SDG4 globally. 

While at Davos a few years back, Vikas had a discussion on whether teachers would be replaced by robots. Encouragingly, he notes the conclusion was that teachers’ jobs would not be replaced by robots – and that’s why it’s important to invest in capacity building for the teaching profession. However, Vikas recognises the tremendous potential of deploying education technology to improve outcomes.

In addition to being the Chairman of the Varkey Foundation, Vikas is also the CEO of Tmrw Digital, a for-profit vehicle aimed at education technology.  

On the Ed-Tech front, he recognises that the challenges are significant. He believes we don’t really understand the true potential that technology has in transforming lives in classrooms.  

While meeting Ed-Tech entrepreneurial start-ups and innovators every day to learn about productivity, personalisation etc, what he notes is: “the thing I found most interesting is how woeful the state of affairs is when it comes to ed-tech entrepreneurs, who actually treat ed-tech or the education sector just like they would treat the financial services sector, which is as a market place.”  His message to them is for them always to speak in terms of learning outcomes.  

He asks Ed-Tech entrepreneurs to show him the actual impact their solutions would have.   When he poses this question, three quarters if not more of entrepreneurs just drop away and that is why he has been “sorely disappointed with the state of start-ups” in this space.  

One of the key areas he feels requires our attention is political leadership: one of the challenges is in the way that schools and education systems procure products. Often the high cost of acquisition of a student is so high because one has to go from school to school individually, and that becomes challenging as a business model for Ed-Tech. He feels procurement shouldn’t be thought of simply as how many whiteboards are being purchased but, rather, those making the procurement decisions should think about how to procure the best numeracy apps, how best to bring in personalisation into the classroom.  This more enlightened type of conversation is happening in Brazil, it is also happening in the UK but, unfortunately, it is not happening in much of the world. 

On the topic of philanthropy, he views philanthropy “as courage capital”, to invest in areas where the public sector in particular will just not be able to. And by doing so he feels that philanthropy can strengthen the public sector – research, programming, knowledge-sharing etc.

He sees convening as being exactly the use of courage capital. Convening is very expensive and because it costs so much not many people do it, and they don’t do it well enough. That’s why the Varkey Foundation is keen to bring people together and getting them to talk about education.  At the last Global Education & Skills Forum, they had nearly 50 education ministers from around the world, 100 philanthropic leaders from around the world, teachers, academics – bringing a multiple range of perspectives. This leads to conversations that drive the field forward. Importantly, they invite and host those representing the whole spectrum of views, from teachers’ unions to for-profit private education providers, and everything in between.

On the question whether private, for-profit education providers have a role to play:  Vikas notes that over the years he has witnessed many ideological fault lines in education and, indeed, scepticism regarding the role of private, for-profit actors is one of them – one of many.

The answer lies on whether classroom outcomes are improved, whether kids end up doing better. If you keep this in mind then whether it’s private, public, not-for-profit, it really doesn’t matter, in his view. He observes that the conversation has matured over recent years and people do appreciate the private sector has a role to play. 

On the topic of political engagement, Vikas provides interesting insight, noting that there are only a few countries in the world where the education minister they have actually wants to be the education minister; as opposed to using that position as a staging post for something bigger or actually exiting a government. He sees it usually as a job on the way up or the way down. 

Because of this, they explored (and are exploring) the idea of having a Best Education Minister Prize. There is a need to show people what good education leadership looks like.  He prompts any interested listeners to get in touch if this is something they’d like to explore.

Vikas’ key takeaway for those in the education policy, foundation and Ed-Tech space: in education, nothing starts or ends without teachers. So, make sure you actually consult teachers and involve them in the design. These are the sort of conversations that he has found to be the most fruitful and eye-opening. 

-- Full episode notes are available at Lidji.org including useful links and guest bios. Please subscribe to this podcast if you find it useful and informative - Thank you!

Executive Director of the Bernard van Leer Foundation, Michael Feigelson, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss political engagement, diversity of leadership and support for Early Childhood Development.

Michael speaks passionately about engaging with global policymakers and diverse stakeholders in support of Early Childhood Development. We hear of Michael's early days as a consultant at McKinsey & Co, his non-profit work in Mexico and his subsequent rise to lead one of the world’s earliest and most effective advocates of Early Childhood Development -- the Bernard van Leer Foundation has been active in this field since the 1960s.

When asked about the tension between scalability and high quality in Early Childhood Development programs, he quickly points out that this tension isn’t confined to the world of Early Childhood Development exclusively; it is a general theme in life, in business, and in philanthropy.

Michael goes on to talk of their high scale work in Brazil, in conjunction with government and with the Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal Foundation.

He is candid that along with scale there certainly are many quality issues being identified, but this should not prevent one from aiming to scale.  Michael’s view is to go fast and go for scale, and work for quality in the meantime. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good – “the reality of scaling anything up is that it’s messy, and you’re going to have problems, and it’s going to fail in different parts.”

Michael notes that when driving forward programs at such scale and dealing with governments, you need to keep in mind that political contexts are fluid, and you need to get your program to a point -- in your window of opportunity -- where it’s irreversible and that means you need to get it big enough, so there’s a large enough number of people and constituents, from parents, to policymakers, to politicians who are invested in it. From “a political standpoint, pace matters, speed matters”.

Two tips from Michael if you’re looking to engage with governments:

(1) Government is a huge entity in any country with thousands of people. There’s a tendency to think about government as a sort of homogenous entity but like any institution of that size it’s not at all. It’s filled up with people, thousands of different types of people with different interests. In Michael’s experience there are always people inside government who deeply want to do something for babies and toddlers. And a lot of the work is just finding those people who are committed and passionate about Early Childhood Development -- it’s not about creating the leadership; it’s actually already there but just needs to be supported and augmented.

(2) Ensure there’s a diversity of leadership. You don’t want the program to be tied to a single political party; you wanted it to be tied to all of the political parties. You don’t want it to be just the national government; you want it to be the state an local government, too. You don’t just want it to be the public sector; you want it to be the private sector and civil society as well. So, you’re really trying to create a broad group of leaders who will all be advocating for Early Childhood Development in their own way.

As far as getting ministries to work with each other, Michael notes there is this insistence on having all the ministries talking to each other, and policies across all the sectors and somebody co-ordinating everything. Yes, once in a while this happens but more often than not, what he looks for is a good anchoring point to start with – either for a platform that already exists, or for a ministry that can act as the anchor, or for the top authority in the country to take the lead (ie the prime minister) and that’s the best way to get co-ordination.

The latter part of the conversation focuses on their Urban95 initiative, which aims to look at cities and urban planning from the vantage point of the height of a child – 95cm.  If you could experience a city from 95cm, what would you change?  Urban95 is active in more than 10 cities globally.

An interesting observation is that air quality came up as a key topic. About 93% of the world’s kids breathe air that is under the WHO standard today. And the exposure to polluted air doesn’t just have an impact on a child’s health today but also on their lung growth and brain function in the long-term. Moreover, the air is dirtier at 95cm (as opposed to an adult’s normal height); and to add to that babies and toddlers breathe about four times as frequently because they have shorter breaths than adults, so they’re taking in more dirty air than adults and they can’t filter it as well.

The key takeaway from Michael: Set goals that are far too big for you to reasonably achieve by yourself, because that’s what’s needed in the world and it forces you into a collaborative mode.

For additional links, guest bios and resources, visit Lidji.org  -- please subscribe to this podcast and recommend it to others if you find it enjoyable. Thank you.

Founder and CEO of Ethical Angel, Alex Fahie, joins Alberto Lidji to discuss social entrepreneurship and his platform connecting corporates and employees to good causes around the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Alex is a social entrepreneur and regular listener of The Do One Better! Podcast. 

He explains how Ethical Angel aims to create valuable experiences for individuals, and to mobilise the private sector and employees in ways to find challenges and causes that are trying to make the world a bit better. In the process, providing them with an easy conduit with ways to action them.

Ethical Angel is a young firm and recently went to market at the start of 2019. Their almost 20 clients are currently based mainly in the UK but, out of their 190 prospects, there’s a wide global footprint. Ethical Angel aims to serve a global client base.

They’ve raised approximately £230,000 from angel investors thus far. Alex talks candidly about the invaluable nature of his peer network in supporting him as he faces self-doubt and endures the emotional peaks and troughs.

The firm has attracted experienced and skilled individuals to their Advisory Board and as Ambassadors of the firm.  Their Ambassador Board initially formed around Sir Stephen O’Brien, who was the Founder and first CEO of Business in the Community. Other Ambassadors include Lord Michael Hastings who is KPMG’s Global Head of Citizenship.

Alex isn’t shy in letting us know Ethical Angel was initially meant to be something quite different.  The original idea was for it to be a fund for angel investors keen on ethical investing.

However, Alex noticed there was something much more valuable in trying to create a platform that brings the goodwill and resources of the private sector and tries to connect these with pressing social causes that are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Ethical Angel platform creates individual experiences for companies and their employees. There is an appreciation that interests and skillsets are unique, and the platform reflects this. It not only serves to connect but, importantly, it also captures data – currently approximately 30 metrics – that help to inform individuals, managers and corporates alike; demographics, geography, areas of engagement, tangible reach and impact numbers.

Alex concedes that in order for success to be achieved, Ethical Angel’s business model needs to tick several boxes for clients. Indeed, the benefit to clients stretches beyond doing good and ticks boxes around corporate optics, the bottom line and human capital retention as well.

Alex notes that for him success is about affecting as many individuals as possible with valuable experiences that result in a highly positive social impact. He’d love to be in a position where he’s able to present Ethical Angel’s data on what global businesses have done through their people to make a real difference in the world.

For episode notes, Alex’s bio and relevant links, please visit Lidji.org  Please subscribe to this podcast if you’ve enjoyed it – thank you.