Financing and Implementing Social Change is the Focus of Philanthropy Conference

The seventh annual Yale School of Management Philanthropy Conference will be held February 3 at the Omni Hotel in New Haven. The event, titled "Beyond Best Practices: Financing and Implementing Change," is planned and organized by student members of Net Impact, an organization committed to integrating business and social impact.

Philanthropists, nonprofit leaders, academics, and students will gather at the event to discuss trends and issues affecting the social sector. The keynote speakers are Jed Emerson, executive vice president of ImpactAssets, and Judith Samuelson '82, executive director of the Aspen Institute's Business and Society Program.

New to the conference this year is an interactive session facilitated by professional "innovationists" from the consulting firm Creative Realities. The purpose of the Interactive Lab is to apply a flexible ideation process to help participants identify actionable ways to improve how they track and measure impact. Four local nonprofits—Elm City Cycling, Connecticut Veterans Legal Center, New Haven Farms, and the AIDS Interfaith Network—will be guided through creative sessions that will help them design metrics to measure the social impact of their organizations.

Putting a personal touch on the practice of philanthropy, Susan Ford Dorsey, president of the Sand Hill Foundation, and Scott A. Schoen, vice chairman of Thomas H. Lee Partners, will discuss how personal motivations for giving and professional experiences can shape philanthropic decision-making at a lunchtime roundtable discussion. The conference will also feature breakout sessions on topics including developing successful partnerships across sectors, capitalizing on new technologies and business opportunities, and understanding when alternative funding models are most effective.

The conference will feature speakers from organizations including the Ford Foundation, the Environmental Defense Fund, McKinsey & Co., PepsiCo, Save the Children, and Venture Philanthropy Partners.

For the full agenda, list of speakers, and registration, please visit the conference website.