Join us on a Learning Journey to Silicon Valley

Explore how 5 cutting-edge institutions combine social innovation, design and technologies to create solutions that tackle poverty at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP).

Silicon Valley has become a hub for great thinkers and new ideas. The organizations we're visiting range from academic thought centers to design firms. Our focus is to explore the links between theory and practice and to map out the different approaches these organizations take in tackling development challenges.

1. UC Berkeley School of Information (I-School)
2. IDEO
3. Singularity University
4. Stanford's Institute of Design (D-School)
5. UC Santa Clara University's Global Social Benefit Incubator (GSBI)

3 Driving Questions:

• What is your approach, how is it distinct and why does it work?
• How do you measure success and results?
• How do you scale-up and increase reach?

We want to draw out:

• Any wholesaling approaches that have worked and why

• How they innovate internally to generate social good externally

• The role of networks and communities of practice that contribute to the success of the process and how they have been leveraged

• How they share lessons to generate the greatest impact

• Tools and systems for implementing projects

• The key aspects of systems and designs that have worked

• Potential allies or partners for our work

• How the WBI can serve as an entry point to the wealth of knowledge at the WBG

• Potential sources for 'outsourcing innovation' to groups such as students who stand ready to work on specific problems

• New ways of thinking about the challenges we are addressing

Who's going:
Eric Chinje
Craig Hammer
Kaushall Jhalla
Marilyn Markman
Katherine Park
Alexis Sampson
Kirsten Spainhower
and YOU