Bill Drayton is Founder and CEO of Ashoka. Since 1981, Ashoka has launched and provided support to nearly 3,000 social entrepreneurs — individuals with systems-changing solutions to the world’s most urgent social challenges. Prior to founding Ashoka, Mr. Drayton held positions with McKinsey and Co. and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Drayton is also chair of Youth Venture, Get America Working! and Community Greens. He is a graduate of Harvard, Balliol College at University of Oxford, and Yale Law School.
2012 SESSIONS
Connect & Collaborate Sessions
Back again for 2012 we present our “Connect and Collaborate” sessions held at the Exam Schools in Oxford. These are facilitated conversations designed for small group learning, engagement and networking. Contributors will start conversations, but be prepared to join the discussion.
Note: These sessions will be repeated between 1:30 – 2:45 at the exam schools
Session Options (Friday 11:15-12:30)
Frugal Innovation :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 6)
Smaller, cheaper, faster and better? Join us to discuss how the needs of emerging market customers are put squarely in the centre to develop innovative new products and services. Proven practitioners of this approach will kick-start the discussion by highlighting how they went about designing, marketing and disseminating their innovations.
Session contributors: James Koch, Lesley Silverthorn, Shona McDonald, Marc Koska, Naganand Murty, Yusuf Randera-Rees
Branding: More Than a Logo – A Tool for Social Change :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 7)
Is your brand helping to achieve your goals? Is it clear and memorable? Does it differentiate you? Are you promoting it? Monitoring it? Does it authentically align with what you do? In this fun, practical, jargon-free and interactive session we will walk you step-by-step through the stages to (re)-defining, activating and monitoring your brand via case studies, new research and peer-review.
Session contributors: Lisa Witter, Alison Lucas
Organising Nonprofit Operations in Multiple Countries :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 8 )
Funders regularly encourage non-profits to increase scale across borders. International expansion generates, though, a new level of financial, administrative, and operational complexities—and the overheads associated with them. How are successful non-profits addressing these challenges and paying for them? Operations expert David Torres will discuss successes, failures and challenges.
Session contributors: Ed Diener, David Torres
Communities of Faith as Communities of Action :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 9)
Communities of faith are key actors in international development as religion often provides a moral framework that encourages concern for the vulnerable. What are some of the best examples of engaging faith communities and how can we leverage the values of service, sacrifice, and compassion to partner with them?
Session contributors: Christo Greyling
Managing Risk in a Warming World :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 10)
Many of the world’s poorest remain mired in poverty due to their vulnerability to natural shocks. Microinsurance is emerging as a promising tool to help the poor hedge against these risks. Join a lively discussion on its virtues and pitfalls as we focus on the role of public-private partnerships and emerging climate finance mechanisms to help those most in need.
Session contributors: Pablo Suarez
The Rise Of The 99% – Why? Who? And So What? :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 11)
A singular event — January 2011 in Tunisia — ignited a year of protests around the world. Claiming the streets, millions of ordinary citizens stepped out in solidarity to send an extraordinary message: We Want Change Now. Join a global and diverse delegate group to learn and share your perspectives on this phenomena and how it has changed our future forever.
Session contributors: Lakshmi Karan
Inspired by Faith: Wrestling with Your Calling :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 14)
Many social entrepreneurs feel inspired by faith to serve, yet they grapple with that calling as their courage and resilience are tested again and again. Join Matt Flannery (Kiva), Bart Weetjens (APOPO), and others to discuss how people of diverse beliefs cope with, and grow positively from, the spiritual wrestling match that is a common aspect of the social entrepreneurial journey.
Session contributors: Alex Hofmann
Empathy: How to Lead in an Everyone a Changemaker™ World :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 15)
How can today’s leaders keep up with and contribute to positive social change in a rapidly evolving world? Join Bill Drayton, CEO and Founder of Ashoka: Innovators for the Public and Mary Gordon, Founder of Roots of Empathy and Ashoka Fellow, to discuss empathy as a critical leadership skill.
Session contributors: William Drayton, Mary Gordon
Speakers: Yusuf Randera-Rees, Lisa Witter, David Torres, Pablo Suarez, Lesley Silverthorn, Naganand Murty, Shona McDonald, Alison Lucas, Marc Koska, Alex Hofmann, Christo Greyling, Ed Diener, Mary Gordon, James Koch, William Drayton, Lakshmi Karan
2012 SESSIONS
Connect & Collaborate Sessions (Repeated)
Back again for 2012 we present our “Connect and Collaborate” sessions held at the Exam Schools in Oxford. These are facilitated conversations designed for small group learning, engagement and networking. Contributors will start conversations, but be prepared to join the discussion.
Note: These sessions are a repeat of the earlier connect and collaborate sessions held between 11:15 – 12:30 at the exam schools
Session Options (Friday 1:30-2:45)
Frugal Innovation :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 6)
Smaller, cheaper, faster and better? Join us to discuss how the needs of emerging market customers are put squarely in the centre to develop innovative new products and services. Proven practitioners of this approach will kick-start the discussion by highlighting how they went about designing, marketing and disseminating their innovations.
Session contributors: James Koch, Lesley Silverthorn, Shona McDonald, Marc Koska, Naganand Murty, Yusuf Randera-Rees
Branding: More than a Logo – A Tool for Social Change :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 7)
Is your brand helping to achieve your goals? Is it clear and memorable? Does it differentiate you? Are you promoting it? Monitoring it? Does it authentically align with what you do? In this fun, practical, jargon-free and interactive session we will walk you step-by-step through the stages to (re)-defining, activating and monitoring your brand via case studies, new research and peer-review.
Session contributors: Lisa Witter, Alison Lucas
Organising Nonprofit Operations in Multiple Countries :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 8 )
Funders regularly encourage non-profits to increase scale across borders. International expansion generates, though, a new level of financial, administrative, and operational complexities—and the overheads associated with them. How are successful non-profits addressing these challenges and paying for them? Operations expert David Torres will discuss successes, failures and challenges.
Session contributors: Ed Diener, David Torres
Communities of Faith as Communities of Action :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 9)
Communities of faith are key actors in international development as religion often provides a moral framework that encourages concern for the vulnerable. What are some of the best examples of engaging faith communities and how can we leverage the values of service, sacrifice, and compassion to partner with them?
Session contributors: Christo Greyling
Managing Risk in a Warming World :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 10)
Many of the world’s poorest remain mired in poverty due to their vulnerability to natural shocks. Microinsurance is emerging as a promising tool to help the poor hedge against these risks. Join a lively discussion on its virtues and pitfalls as we focus on the role of public-private partnerships and emerging climate finance mechanisms to help those most in need.
Session contributors: Pablo Suarez
The Rise Of The 99% – Why? Who? And So What? :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 11)
A singular event — January 2011 in Tunisia — ignited a year of protests around the world. Claiming the streets, millions of ordinary citizens stepped out in solidarity to send an extraordinary message: We Want Change Now. Join a global and diverse delegate group to learn and share your perspectives on this phenomena and how it has changed our future forever.
Session contributors: Lakshmi Karan
Inspired by Faith: Wrestling with your Calling :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 14)
Many social entrepreneurs feel inspired by faith to serve, yet they grapple with that calling as their courage and resilience are tested again and again. Join Matt Flannery (Kiva), Bart Weetjens (APOPO), and others to discuss how people of diverse beliefs cope with, and grow positively from, the spiritual wrestling match that is a common aspect of the social entrepreneurial journey.
Session contributors: Alex Hofmann
Empathy: How to Lead in an Everyone a Changemaker™ World :
Location: Exam Schools (Room 15)
How can today’s leaders keep up with and contribute to positive social change in a rapidly evolving world? Join Bill Drayton, CEO and Founder of Ashoka: Innovators for the Public and Mary Gordon, Founder of Roots of Empathy and Ashoka Fellow, to discuss empathy as a critical leadership skill.
Session contributors: William Drayton, Mary Gordon
Speakers: Yusuf Randera-Rees, Lisa Witter, David Torres, Pablo Suarez, Lesley Silverthorn, Naganand Murty, Shona McDonald, Alison Lucas, Marc Koska, Alex Hofmann, Christo Greyling, Ed Diener, Mary Gordon, James Koch, William Drayton, Lakshmi Karan
2009 SESSIONS
Leadership Challenges: Balancing Creativity And Control
Social entrepreneurs may have comparative advantage in generating new ideas or innovations, but may struggle with execution and control. Is it possible to build innovative institutions that are around for the long haul without crowding out the charismatic element of social entrepreneurship? Can visionaries build high-performing teams, and if so how? In a climate of increased expectation around legitimacy, transparency and measurement, how can one get the balance right? Join leading practitioners and thought leaders for a candid discussion on this vitally important success factor.
Speakers: Estela Villarreal Junco, Gillian Caldwell, William Drayton, Samuel Azout, Maximilian Martin
2009 SESSIONS
Tomorrow’s News: Models For An Everyone Is Media World
We are witnessing the destruction of the old media order—and the noisy, thrilling invention of something new. Tectonic shifts in technology and human behavior have changed forever the way we create, deliver, and consume information. The result: a host of emerging models from around the globe that thrive on connection and community, promising previously unimagined opportunities to engage people as active, change-making citizens. This session will examine levers of power in a world where everyone can be an editor — and demonstrate why, far from mourning the demise of journalism, there’s reason to celebrate a new generation.
Speakers: William Drayton, Paula Ellis, Gregor Hackmack, Sanjana Hattotuwa, Sasa Vucinic
2008 SESSIONS
Empathy And Ethics: Drivers Of Our Shifting Culture
Technology has increased the flow of information and made our decision-making more transparent. This rapid shift presents us with an historic opportunity to create a global culture driven by the need for trust and inclusion. This is why it is so important for those who are defi ning the world’s future structures to consciously build the ethical skills necessary into their designs. The building of empathetic ethics has to begin with individuals and quickly move into the organisations we lead and ultimately the societies we serve. How are we doing this? And, more importantly, how do we make this happen more quickly?
Speakers: Mary Gordon, Keith Hammonds, Jill Vialet, Kirk Hanson, William Drayton
2007 SESSIONS
Closing Plenary of the 2007 Skoll World Forum
REFLECTIONS FROM A PIONEER IN SOCIAL INNOVATION
Larry Brilliant, MD, MPH, Executive Director of Google.org
SUPPORTING MORE SOCIAL INNOVATION
A facilitated discussion by John Elkington, Founder and Chief Entrepreneur, SustainAbility, to explore how society’s frameworks (public and private) need to change at local, regional, national and international levels to support more social innovation.
Bill Drayton, CEO and Chair, Ashoka: Innovators for the Public
Ed Miliband MP, Minister for the Third Sector, UK
SOCIAL INNOVATION: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
Leading social entrepreneurs in conversation with delegates reflect upon ideas and learnings for moving forward from the conference.
Moderator: Roger Martin, Dean, Rotman School of Management and Director, AIC Institute for Corporate Citizenship
Roshaneh Zafar, Founder and President, Kashf Foundation
Martin Fisher, Co-founder and CEO, Kickstart
Taddy Blecher, CEO, Cida City Campus
Mindy Lubber, President, Ceres
CLOSING REMARKS
Colin Mayer, Peter Moores Dean, Saïd Business School
Speakers: Taddy Blecher, Ed Miliband MP, Martin Fisher, Mindy Lubber, William Drayton, John Elkington, Colin Mayer, Roger Martin, Roshaneh Zafar, Larry Brilliant
2006 SESSIONS
Leading Efforts To Expand The Spectrum Of Social Investing
All aboard. This session will set out the spectrum of opportunities for social investing and leading efforts to forge the way. As such, it will examine new investment instruments, new strategies and the ways philanthropists and social investors can work together. It will begin to explore some of the differences and shared learning from working in developed and emerging economies and ask how these innovations are really making a difference. This session provides a structure for thinking about the landscape of finance for change and is designed to contextualise the breakout sessions that follow.
