David Bornstein

The Capacity to Aspire

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David Bornstein
By Elaine Gast Fawcett, on behalf of ASF

“The way we imagine the world will determine what we do.” —David Bornstein

What if we are closer to solving problems than we realize?

New York Times columnist and author David Bornstein believes that the solutions for the some of world’s biggest problems already exist. They may not be in your backyard, but they’re out there. It’s just a matter of finding them.

Bornstein addressed a roomful of leaders in philanthropy at Monday’s ASF 2012 National Conference plenary lunch. He spoke about the ways funders can find innovative solutions to major social problems by examining what works—and what doesn’t—around the globe.

“What if we could eradicate homelessness in three or four years? Change the foster care system so that 80, 90, even 100% of those kids came out fully functional? Or change schools so that children were kind instead of bullies?” he said. “We’re doing many of these things today. We have the solutions. It’s a blueprint—not a poem.” Continue reading →

Seeking Stories of Resourcefulness and Innovation

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By Hanh Le, ASF

David Bornstein, New York Times journalist and author of How to Change the World, will speak at the ASF 2012 National Conference, October 7-9.

It amazes me how resourceful people can be. Whether it’s in that crafty McGyver, “I’ll jump start this car with a wad of chewing gum and a used tissue,” kind of way, or in the Sal Khan, I’m going to provide “free world-class education for anyone anywhere,” kind of way. Amazing.

I love hearing stories of and seeing first hand resourcefulness. Why? It makes an impression on me, and it inspires me to be more resourceful myself. It challenges my brain to take nothing for granted and to appreciate all that is at my disposal in approaching life and the many challenges and opportunities that come with it.

I seek out stories of resourcefulness by observing and talking to people, watching TV (I love TV), paying attention to what others are doing through social media, and good old fashioned reading…of books.

A few years ago, I came across the book, How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas. Talk about being amazed by the resourcefulness of people. From Florence Nightingale’s work to improve health of the British army and ultimately revolutionize the nursing profession and hospital management, to the quiet resourcefulness of J.B. Schramm’s work to increase college access for low-income high school grads, the book is full of awesome and inspiring stories of regular people accomplishing extraordinary things through heroic resourcefulness. Continue reading →

Entrepreneurship in Philanthropy: More Than Just Risk?

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By Henry Berman, ASF

Henry BermanFor most of my life, and certainly all of my working life, I have always fashioned myself an entrepreneur. For a long time my definition, rightly or wrongly, focused on the word as a noun, describing someone who typically takes risks and tries new things – one who starts new ventures. In fact, one online dictionary defines the word entrepreneur as a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

As I began spending more of my time in the philanthropic sector I started questioning whether I was still an entrepreneur. After all, was I taking initiative and risk? Was I helping generate the big returns, in a social impact sense, that I imagined high-tech entrepreneurs reaped in terms of dollars for the risk they took? Continue reading →