Good Will Hunters

Welcome to Episode 15 of Good Will Hunters! This week I chat to Rosie Wheen, CEO of WaterAid Australia.

I firstly wanted to take a moment to thank you for your support since Season 2 kicked off a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been really enjoying recording these episodes and never take for granted what a privilege it is to chat with leaders in the sector every week, and to share my learnings with you. We’ve got a really exciting line up for season two, and I’m so thrilled to hear from more listeners every week.

Today on the show we have a woman I have admired for some time. Rosie has been on my podcast wishlist since the very beginning. She leads WaterAid, one of my favourite not for profits in Australia, and has a humble, grounded, servant style of leadership that really resonates with me. In this episode we chat about access to water, and the ways that water access impacts on gender equality. We chat about the importance of access to water and sanitation facilities for women, and we also chat about water futures. I feel incredibly passionate about access to utilities including water and electricity; it’s often a less attractive part of development when compared to discussions on health and education. But access to utilities, in particular water, can determine so much about the opportunities and the capabilities that a person will have in their life. And that’s exactly why this discussion is so important.

Enjoy!

Rachel and the GWH Team

Welcome to Episode 14 of Good Will Hunters, with Annabelle Chauncy, the Founder and CEO of School for Life Foundation.

Annabelle would be well-known to many of us in the not for profit community. I first heard of Annabelle and the School for Life Foundation at a conference a few years ago, and then my memory was triggered when I saw a segment on television about a year ago, showcasing the incredible work the Foundation is doing in Uganda. I resolved to get Annabelle on the show, and after a series of serendipitous events and chance meetings, it happened!

Annabelle was sincere, relaxed and incredibly clear on the vision she leads her Foundation towards. Emphasising the power of education, Annabelle and I chat about the origins of School of Life, the challenges of getting seed funding, why staying true to your mission is more important than gaining new investors, and how important a strong and united local team is. A true leader and pioneer in the international development sector, there is a lot to be learnt from Annabelle's visionary custodianship of her organisation.

As always, we love hearing your feedback. What did you learn? What surprised you? What could we do differently?

Enjoy! Rachel and the GWH team.

Welcome to Episode 13 of Good Will Hunters, and our first episode of Season 2! In this episode, I chat with Tom Perry, Pacific Communications Lead at the World Bank. Tom and I worked together years ago when I was also at the World Bank, and ever since I’ve been so impressed and inspired by his work.

Tom and I chat about virtual reality, investing in communications, creating platforms for storytelling, regionalism, communications for development, and what success looks like in ten years. This is one of my favourite episodes to date, and I’d love to hear your feedback as always.

Enjoy,

Rach and the GWH Team.

Welcome to Episode 12 of Good Will Hunters! This week on the show I chat with Jeremy Meltzer.

Jeremy is a socially and environmentally conscious entrepreneur and expert in ‘business for purpose'. He is the Founder of i=Change, the world's first cause-marketing platform and Australia's fastest-growing social enterprise tech startup.

i=Change partners with global brands, who give back a portion of profits from every sale and uniquely empower their customers to choose where it goes. The company has positively impacted the lives of over 90,000 people in 14 countries.

In this episode, we chat about how i=Change is transforming the buying journey of customers, by creating experiential purchases. In doing this, Jeremy and his team are connecting the retail sector to international development in brand new ways. We chat about radical transparency (one of my favourite concepts of 2018!) and Jeremy very generously shares the emotional journey that led him to where he is today. His courage to take on issues like gender violence, and toxic misconceptions of masculinity is utterly inspiring and it is abundantly clear to me (and no doubt you!) why Jeremy is such a revered speaker the world over.

Welcome to Episode 11 of Good Will Hunters! This week on the show I chat with Maddy Vaughan, the Senior Programs Manager at Adara Development. Adara is proof that the power of business can be used to improve the lives of people in poverty. The Adara Group consists of two Australian corporate advisory businesses, Adara Advisors and Adara Partners, whose sole purpose is to support the non-profit international development organisation, Adara Development. Together, the organisations work to improve health and education for women, children and communities in need. The Adara businesses fund all core support costs of Adara Development, allowing 100% of other donations received to go directly to our projects.

Maddy and I chat about Adara’s programs in Uganda and Nepal, and why being "100 metres wide and 100 miles deep" can be a great thing! Adara focuses on doing small projects to the highest possible standard, exemplifying best practice or “gold standard development” in all that they do. Their impact is being felt far and wide, and I was so moved by the incredible stories of success Maddy shared with me. From building neonatal intensive care units in Uganda, to educating girls at risk of trafficking in Nepal, this is an organisation that demonstrate the unbelievable impact the private sector and the not for profit sector can have when they work together and pioneer innovative, groundbreaking models of funding and operating.

Hello, all! Welcome to Episode 10 of Good Will Hunters! Can you believe we’re at 10 episodes?! I can’t think of a more perfect guest to mark this milestone with than the wonderful, bubbly, intelligent, hilarious Clare Press. Clare is the Sustainability Editor At Large of Australian Vogue and an absolute powerhouse in the world of ethical fashion. Our conversation is funny, timely and inspiring, for anyone who wears clothes (AKA most of us, right?!) and wants to be a more responsible consumer, and help change the world in the process.

Check out the Oxfam ‘What She Makes’ Campaign here - https://whatshemakes.oxfam.org.au

Asian Floor Wage Alliance - https://asia.floorwage.org

Ethical Fashion Initiative - http://ethicalfashioninitiative.org

To learn more about Mimco’s work with EFi, check this out - https://www.mimco.com.au/mimco-gives-back/ethical-fashion-initiative

And lastly, to pre-order Clare’s fantastic new novel, go here - https://www.mup.com.au/books/rise-resist-paperback-softback

Royalty free music by Bensound.

Welcome to Episode 9 of Good Will Hunters! This week on the show we have Giles Gunesekera. Giles is the CEO of the Global Impact Initiative (GII). The Initiative works with a variety of organisations to create impact investments, seeking both a positive financial return and a positive social or environmental impact. The business creates bespoke investment solutions that map the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The Global Impact Initiative is currently in the process of developing 10 different impact investing mandates totalling over $2bn AUD.

Giles has over 20 years’ experience building and development teams, businesses and distribution strategies for global enterprises. In 2017, Giles received an Outstanding Alumnus Award from Oxford University for creating an innovative, sustainable business that generates positive social impact.

In this interview, Giles provides a great “Introduction to Impact Investing" - I was learning new things in the first 5 minutes! We chat about the importance of aligning with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and why so much of the progress on the SDGs is actually made in the corporate sector. We chat about the UN Global Compact, and Giles’ experience attending the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in 2017. Most exciting to me, is our discussion on investing in women and girls - impact investment holds so much promise in this area. GII has developed a world first impact investment focused on both women and girls and I can’t wait to see how it unfolds in the coming years. If you work in the private sector, this interview is sure to make you think bigger about the potential you and your organisation have to catalyse immense social and global change. If you work in the not for profit sector, this interview will have you more eager than ever to partner with your friends in the private sector. Basically anyone who works anywhere will get a lot out of this discussion!

1:56 - Impact investing

3:42 - The foundations of the Global Impact Initiative

9:35 - Aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals

15:03 - The UN Global Compact

17:36 - The worlds first impact investment in women and girls

23:15 - Investing in renewable energy

30:40 - Slum regeneration and rethinking cities

To learn more about the Global Impact Initiative, check out their website at https://globalimpactinitiative.com.au

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Welcome to Episode 8 of Good Will Hunters! On the show this week we have Andrea De Almeida. Andrea is the Executive Director of B-Lab, the not for profit organisation which supports the community of B Corps in Australia. Prior to this, Andrea worked for Social Ventures Australia where she was the Director of Venture Philanthropy. In this role, Andrea was responsible for incubating and testing innovative solutions to complex social problems. Andrea holds a Bachelor of Public Policy and Management and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne. In addition, Andrea is a Vincent Fairfax Fellow, enabling her to work with other senior executives throughout Australia to undertake an advanced leadership experience.

In this episode, we discuss the rise of B-Corps in Australia, and why more and more businesses are looking for an independent certification that distinguishes them as being socially and environmentally responsible. In the wake of the Financial Services Royal Commission, many are questioning the ethics of some of our largest businesses. Yet, more and more businesses are taking steps to expand their corporate social responsibility, become a social enterprise, attain B-Corp certification or play with impact investment. In this interview, we discuss these trends and more, including why law reform in Australia would enable more businesses to legally enshrine their mission and protect their Directors in the process.

Andrea’s wealth of experience has equipped her with fascinating and important insights into the future of business and international development, and why we already have the tools we need to redefine profit, purpose and progress.

1:45 - What is a B-Corp?

2:55 - B-Lab

9:22 - Becoming a B-Corp

12:48 - Redefining business culture

16:30 - Building the B-Lab community

19:16 - The Benefit Company

20:25 - Impact Investment

25:50 - Why business MUST be a force for good

30:30 - Inclusive capitalism

36:00 - Business and international development

Check out our article on this weeks episode, over at the Lowy Interpreter - https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/business-aid-and-aiding-business

You can learn more about B-Lab Australia via their website - https://bcorporation.com.au

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Welcome to Episode 7 of Good Will Hunters! In todays episode I chat with Georgina Camp, the CEO of Huber Social, an innovator bringing a fresh approach to solving complex social challenges. Georgie was introduced to me by Caitlin Barrett, the CEO of Love Mercy Foundation who we had on the show a few weeks ago. Georgie and Caitlin worked together on assessing the impact of the Cents for Seeds Program in Uganda. Georgie’s passion for reinventing the way we measure social value and reconsidering what truly contributes to wellbeing is apparent from the moment she starts speaking! She’s a trail-blazing leader, innovator and thinker and I’m thrilled to introduce you to her today.

Georgie and I chat about the importance of measuring social value alongside financial value, and the method Huber Social uses to determine the contribution a product or service makes to an individuals wellbeing. We chat about Amartya Sen’s ‘Capabilities Approach’ and other methodologies for analysing wellbeing, and chat about what the future looks like for the world of impact measurement. It’s an inspiring, technical, thought-provoking discussion. Also, unfortunately we had some technical issues in this discussion which you may pick up on at times! We record via Skype so this is bound to happen occasionally.

To learn more about Huber Social, check out their website at www.hubersocial.com.au

1:40 - The origins of Huber Social

4:04 - Complex social problems

6:24 - Connecting wellbeing with wealth

9:03 - Measuring social value

14:08 - Huber Social’s work in Uganda

20:00 - Ensuring women participate meaningfully

22:30 - The New Economics

33:25 - Redefining value in the private sector

35:48 - Measuring development more effectively

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please leave us a review on iTunes. This podcast is hosted by Rachel Mason Nunn. Rachel has worked in development in Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and throughout the Pacific Islands, including as a consultant for the World Bank as well work in the not for profit sector. Rachel has a Masters in Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development from the Australian National University. She is passionate about reinventing the role of business and the private sector in international development, by reconceptualising notions of progress, profit and purpose.

Looking for some other great podcasts? Check out Humans of Purpose, Dumbo Feather, Inspiring Social Entrepreneurs, and Binge Thinking, to name but a few!

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Welcome to Episode 6 of Good Will Hunters! On the show this week we have Elliot Costello, the Co-Founder and Former CEO of YGAP. In this episode, Elliot and I chat about investing in entrepreneurs, why more not-for-profits should consider merging, the value of volunteering and where YGAP might be by 2028.

Since its inception, YGAP has invested in 397 impact entrepreneurs, on the basis that investing in local people is the most effective way to create impactful change in a community. The entrepreneurs receive ongoing guidance, and YGAP is there as a beacon of support, through success or failure. YGAP’s success throughout African and Asian countries has earned them a reputation of being true innovators and game-changers in the Australian development landscape. As always, we’d love to hear your feedback on this episode!

Also, check out this article for the Lowy Interpreter on the topic of entrepreneurship and the informal economy: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/aid-and-new-face-entrepreneurship

4:05 - Identifying the ‘Impact Entrepreneur’

6:18 - YGAP’s ten year journey

11:23 - Brand, Board and Ego

15:34 - Asking the existential questions

17:30 - Development ideologies

24:49 - The value of volunteering

27:56 - Working in the Pacific

31:04 - Entrepreneurship and the Informal Economy

34:34 - Successes in the sector

38:30 - YGAP by 2028?

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