The World that Changes the World: How Philanthropy, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship are Transforming the Social Ecosystem

Inasmuch as the social ecosystem is seeking to transform the world, it itself is being changed, thanks to the entry of neo-philanthropists, social entrepreneurs and other innovators, who bring new market and business practices that are transforming current social models and frameworks.

This astute observation forms the crux of a new book – “The World That Changes the World: How Philanthropy, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship are Transforming the Social Ecosystem” (ISBN: 978-0-470-82715-4) – which sets out, for the first time, a holistic, complete, and detailed view of the social ecosystem. Twenty-one international authors, including well-known and highly respected thought leaders, captains of industry, and experts in their fields, share their perspectives on, and insights into, the various facets of the social ecosystem, its change drivers, and its macro-trends. Edited by Willie Cheng and Sharifah Mohamed of Singapore-based Lien Centre for Social Innovation, the book delivers powerful insights into the new social ecosystem.

New ways, new practices, new possibilities

For as much as the social ecosystem is about change, it is also beset by the forces of change. The editors explain, “Neo-philanthropists entering the social space bring along new market and business practices, some of which appear to be at odds with the values of the social world. From within the sector, new heroes — the social entrepreneurs — are emerging to create social change on an unprecedented scale in new pattern-changing ways. Meanwhile, the power of technology and innovation to foment disruptive change is enabling new possibilities and outcomes. The demands of accountability placed by civil society players on corporations and governments are also rebounding on them. All these factors, and more, are transforming the social ecosystem even as it seeks to transform the larger world.”

Estimates put the total number of organizations in the new social ecosystem at 3 million, cross-border operations around 20,000, and US$1.9 trillion in annual spending. The workforce is equivalent in size to the world’s fifth-largest country. These very statistics, say the editors, is “the present face of social change and the new social ecosystem. It is a pulsating, thriving community of very diverse, at times divisive players, driven by a common mission: to change the world for the better.”

The World That Changes the World will be an important one-stop guide for observers of and all players within the social change space looking to make sense of the watershed events, change drivers as well as macro-trends facing the fascinating social ecosystem.

Check out the book’s website at: http://www.worldthatchangestheworld.com