Having been active in social justice movements since the 1960s, I would’ve liked for us to be further along than we are now. You might imagine that I’m a bit fatigued, even disheartened, six decades later. To the contrary, I’m as fired up as ever. I’m especially inspired by young activists around the world who are tackling myriad interrelated issues in new, dynamic, exciting ways. It’s called intersectional organizing, integrating, among much else: calls for an end to violent conflicts, enlivening the climate change debate, addressing gender inequality, demands for economic equity, actions for racial justice, demonstrations for LGBTQ rights, protests for gun control—all parts of a unified fervent appeal for a more inclusive, sustainable world. I had extraordinary mentors... more

2022: a year filled with sorrow and joy, losses and celebrations, tragedies and triumphs. We shared grief at the horrific toll of a pandemic, wars, environmental degradation. I was deeply honored to receive Catalyst for Change Award by Shirley Chisholm Cultural Institute that inspires me to keep on keepin on… Jerry and I keep promoting social causes in the long relay race for a more just world. I welcome your ideas on how to create mutually supportive connections at a time of growing inequity. Do you have projects that you’d like to promote? See what I’ve written in Forbes Councils and other places. Amidst our sorrow at a broken world, we celebrated the marriages of our two eldest grandchildren. Braedon... more

With 2021 drawing to a close, I’ve been reflecting on the “new normal” (or not normal) wrought by the pandemic, climate change and growing inequity worldwide. Despite these crazy times, Jerry and I have continued to promote social causes in the long relay race for a safer, more just and peaceful world, understanding that all of us are inextricably interconnected, so we have a sacred obligation to bring love, hope and peace to everyone everywhere. The work never stops. So, when the temperature drops and sunlight wanes, we can all take heart in knowing that every culture celebrates the power of light over darkness near the winter solstice. As the Brits say, we have to calm down and carry on.... more

beCause CEO Nadine Hack’s opening keynote at Stockholm Philanthropy Symposium – Other speakers will address with great wisdom myriad specifics on philanthropy, impact investing, corporate responsibility, social innovations, digital platforms, partnerships, gender equity and more. So, to start, I’ll share a meta framework about what I call connectedness because I believe it’s at the core of all those topics and, actually, everything. You can watch video of presentation. First, please turn to someone near who you don’t already know and introduce yourselves. Take a minute max each so the two introductions will take two minutes max. Go ahead! [participants interact] How many of you basically shared your name, where you’re from and what you do? That’s kind of like the... more

Guest post by Mary Mayenfisch-Tobin – So, with this part 6 (see links to parts 1-5 at end) you have come a long way to understanding how the world is operating and why respect for human rights is important, I hope. Let’s take a step backwards to try to understand even more clearly where we are and where we need to go. Government & Business as a force for good Let’s be practical:  governments and business can be and should be a force for good. But is this the case today? And if this is not the case what can be done about it? Going back to the beginning of our story let’s think again about the Universal Declaration of Human... more

By beCause Associate Ravi Chaudhry — Business has been the most powerful institution on the planet since the second half of the twentieth century. Dr Willis Harman, co-founder of the World Business Academy in 1987 put forward the view that the dominant institution in any society needs to take responsibility for the whole, as the church did in the days of the Holy Roman Empire. Built into the original concept of capitalism and free enterprise was the assumption that the actions of many individual enterprises, responding to the market forces and guided by the ‘invisible hand’ of Adam Smith, would somehow add up to desirable outcomes. But it is amply clear that the ‘invisible hand’ is faltering. It depended on a... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – A colleague once said to me, “I stand on your shoulders.”  I replied, “We all are part of a chain of progress that stretches far behind us and will continue long after us.”  This is how I view leadership in general and women’s leadership in particular. See video of presentation. Research by McKinsey, Harvard, Columbia, and myriad other consultancies, think tanks and universities show that organizations with diverse leadership are 35% more likely to have better financial returns.  So, advancing women’s leadership is a vital business imperative.  And, I hope men will share with all your male colleagues why “women in leadership” is not just a women’s issue. What’s valid for women’s leadership applies to all... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – In his 1859 classic, A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens compared life in Paris and London before and during the French Revolution when he wrote “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”  And if you look at the history of humankind at any time – particularly when we’ve made tectonic global transitions: the Agrarian Age, the Industrial Revolution, and now the Digital Revolution – you also see the best and worst simultaneously. There always have been opposing forces: “dark” (e.g.: nationalism, tribalism, fear and hatred of “the other”) vs. “light” (e.g.: empathy, bridge-building, inclusiveness and striving for freedom and human dignity of all human beings). It’s no different... more

by beCause Associate Robi Damelin – While watching the bereaved African-American mothers on the stage at the Democratic Convention, I thought just how much we mothers, who have lost children, have in common, regardless of color, creed or national identity.  I thought that all bereaved mothers in the world should rise up together and say, “Enough! Stop the killing! Let our children live out the course of their lives.  We cannot continue to have the dreadful task of burying our sons and daughters and of continuing our motherhood by tending to graves and pretending that planting flowers and plants brings solace.” I promise you, as one who has lost a child, the pain never goes away.  Yes, we put on our... more