10 Great Social Innovation Reads: June & July 2017

Since I was on vacation (and off social media) for a chunk of June, I decided to combine the June and July 10 Great Reads lists into one.

But that proved to be a tricky feat, since there was no shortage of activity in the world of social change during those two months. From the U.S. leaving the Paris Climate Accord and cities stepping up in its wake, to a new book from philanthropy expert David Callahan, to a new approach to the healthcare debate, to ways nonprofits are using artificial intelligence for good, it was a busy couple of months. In my (limited) view, these were the 10 best reads in the world of social change in June and July.

But I am quite sure that I missed some great stuff during those months, so feel free to add to the list in the comments.

And if you want to see past months’ 10 Great Reads lists, go here.

1. President Trump announced in June that the U.S. would leave the Paris Climate Agreement, making us one of only three countries in the world that are not participating. Lest you think there’s nothing to worry about, check out this interactive map that projects how hot your city could be by 2100. But governors, mayors, and business and nonprofit leaders across the country defiantly stepped up to outline how they would fight climate change without the federal government.  Even on an individual level, there are things you can do to combat climate change, says a new study. And Tate Williams argued that philanthropy must now step up to fund a comprehensive social movement to combat climate change.
2. Speaking of philanthropy funding social movements, Kate Kroeger from the Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights explained how funders can support civic action in our current political environment,  and the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy put out a call to social movement leaders for ideas on how to do just that.
3. As Republicans in Congress continued to struggle to function as a party, some took a look at what’s going on with the Democratic party. Caroline Levine wondered if the Democratic party can change enough to effectively engage Millennials. And Lee Drutman argued that the Democrats are suffering from an inability to engage organizers at the local level.
4. The biggest example of our Congressional leaders struggling to lead may be their inability to fix healthcare, but Malcolm Gladwell suggested a new way to reframe the conversation that could move it forward.
5. As the Internet of Things, the increasing online connectedness of everyday things, continues to grow, Pew Research explored what the implications are. But at the same time, good old fashioned libraries are being increasingly used, particularly by Millennials.
6. Artificial intelligence can be a scary, new thing, but nonprofits (not Silicon Valley) are actually leading the pack in developing some pretty socially positive things with it. And Beth Kanter offered some ideas for how nonprofits can use bots to advance their missions.
7. Lucy Bernholz discussed the importance of a new report from Betterplace Labs that describes how Germany has used technology to integrate 1 million+ refugees. For Lucy, this report is a critical read because we all are, or will, face population displacements, and we must learn how to become resilient together: “This prospect – welcoming, receiving, moving forward together – is our collective future. Lessons learned now, about the politics, social challenges, technological realities of building welcoming and resilient diverse communities is information we can all use.”
8. David Callahan released a new book, The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age, which charts the growth over the past two decades in the number and scale of mega philanthropists. He argues they have a new kind of influence on public goods and public policy, perhaps to the detriment of broader, more inclusive civic engagement.  His book found some criticism, which Callahan himself answered.
9. But at the same time, some like Cathy Cha from the Haas Fund, would argue that we are witnessing a dramatic increase in civic engagement. As she wrote: “At a time when so much is on the line, people are stepping out of their comfort zones and becoming more involved in our democracy. We are marching, participating in spur-of-the-moment protests, volunteering, giving money, and contacting our elected representatives — all in unprecedented numbers, and all in an effort to show we’re paying attention and we care.”
10. A day before the big announcement that Amazon was taking over grocery giant Wholefoods, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced he was getting into the philanthropy game with a Tweet asking for advice about how to make a difference “right now.” His focus on the short-term, irked many (many, many) philanthropic thought leaders who argued that he should focus on long-term social change. But philanthropic historian, Benjamin Soskis argued that direct charity (like cash transfers to the poor) is actually seeing a resurgence and perhaps for good reason.

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