05/15/2013, Huffington Post

[video] Listen to Helen Keller speak in this rare newsreel footage from 1930 ow.ly/l9kSJ

— Smithsonian Magazine (@SmithsonianMag) May 18, 2013

May 17, 2013, Report Explores Opportunities for Syrian Refugee Students and Scholars, Inside Higher Ed 

A new preliminary report (PDF, 18 pages) on the situation facing Syrian refugee students and scholars, based on fieldwork in Jordan, finds that displaced students are deterred from entering Jordanian universities by higher tuition, fees, and living costs that put the country’s universities “out of reach for all but a small elite of Syrian refugee students,” as well as by a lack of official travel documents or academic transcripts. Syrian academics also find few opportunities in Jordan’s universities. Recommendations outlined in the report include the mobilization of international donors in support of a consortium of Jordanian universities committed to educating Syrian students, the development of a program to support Syrian students continuing their studies in other Arab countries, and the creation of short-term research fellowships for scholars in Jordan and the greater region...

May 17, 2013, WSJ.MONEY

A young Houston couple is planning to give away $4 billion—but only to projects that prove they are worth it. Can they redefine the world of philanthropy?

...

...Arnold, it turns out, had accumulated a fortune estimated at $4 billion in the past decade—only a handful of people on Wall Street made more during that time..

 ...the Arnolds want to try something new and somewhat grander...She calls it the "Moneyball" approach...

May 17, 2013, www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-17/spain-posts-first-trade-surplus-on-record.html

www.abc.es/economia/20130517/abci-espana-consigue-primer-superavit-201305171130.html

España se alza como el único de los cinco países del euro en el que crecieron las exportaciones en el primer trimestre. Un dato que se ha logrado gracias a un aumento de más de un 40% de las ventas fuera de la Unión Europea.

A Professor Walks Into a MOOC… | Psychology Today psychologytoday.com/blog/the-humor…

— danariely (@danariely) May 16, 2013

Scale-ups matter way more to the economy than Startups- read new study @svc2uktheregister.co.uk/2013/05/16/tec…

— Sherry Coutu (@scoutu) May 16, 2013

www.kauffman.org/uploadedFiles/DownLoadableResources/companies-that-matter.pdf (9 pages),

Paul Kedrosky

Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

May 2013,

...

INTRODUCTION

There are few constants in entrepreneurship—perhaps none. That is why when something appears to be even semi-stable across meaningful periods, it is usually worth further investigation. This short paper investigates just such an apparent constant. Specifically, it is often claimed that there only are fifteen to twenty information technology companies created per year in the United States that turn out to “matter,” where matter is defined as the company (relatively) promptly going from founding to $100 million in revenues. Further, and of real consequence to cities and regional economies, is that most such companies founded in any given year are thought to be in California. This paper tries to find out if the preceding is true.

...

For our purposes, companies that matter must meet (at least) the following three criteria:

- They must be scalable. They must, in other words, be able to grow to at least $100 million in revenues, and ideally, much larger.

- They must be disproportionate creators of jobs. They must be able to generate jobs quickly and broadly, even if they may not generate jobs in line with their revenue growth.

- They must be disproportionate creators of wealth. Both directly, through profits, salaries, and profit-sharing, and indirectly, through equity, options, and perhaps a public listing, they must put wealth back in the hands of the company’s ecosystem.

www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/unleashing_breakthrough_innovation_in_government

Public sector innovators are improving government by replicating the market conditions that have long fostered breakthrough innovation in the private sector.

...What we found confirmed our hypothesis: Breakthrough innovation in government is possible.

Unleashing breakthrough innovation in government: bit.ly/12dU9WY

— Clayton Christensen (@claychristensen) May 16, 2013

www.eif.org/what_we_do/equity/news/2013/Social Impact Accelerator

“A public/private initiative to support social enterprises”

The European Investment Fund (EIF), with the collaboration of private sector investors, has launched the Social Impact Accelerator (SIA), the first pan-European public-private partnership for social impact investing.

SIA is a pilot initiative which addresses the growing need for availability of equity finance to support social enterprises, a segment of the business world which is becoming increasingly instrumental in promoting social inclusion, providing alternative sources of employment for marginalised social groups and contributing to growth...

www.socialprogressimperative.org

"... don’t be too surprised if in 10-15 years everyone is talking about SPI and has a hard time remembering what GDP is."

(Michael Porter Presents New Alternative to GDP: The Social Progress Index (SPI).)

(Bill Gates: how GDP understates economic growth, 8 May), The Guardian

Numerous studies have found a high correlation between economic growth and a wide variety of social indicators, yet there is growing awareness that economic measures alone do not fully capture social progress.

..

The first major effort of the Social Progress Imperative is the Social Progress Index, launched April 11, 2013 at the Skoll World Forum in Oxford, UK.The Social Progress Index is a tool that we hope will be widely used to inform and influence policies and institutions around the world. The Index is founded on the principle that what we measure guides the choices we make. By measuring the things that really matter to people — their basic needs, their food, shelter and security; their access to healthcare, education, and a healthy environment; their opportunity to improve their live — the Social Progress Index is an attempt to reshape the debate about development.

Kenneth Roth(Wikipedia), has his critics.

Human Rights Watch (Wikipedia)

@KenRoth

@Benetech : We're a nonprofit that creates and uses technology to benefit humanity. Projects include Bookshare.org , Martus.org  and SocialCoding4Good.org .

Palo Alto, CA · benetech.org - Benetech CEO to Receive Highest Honor in Blindness. Field Prestigious "Migel Medal" Awarded by American Foundation for the Blind (AFB); Recognizes Exceptional Career-Long Accomplishments

Wikipedia: "DAISY Digital Talking Book"

DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System) is a technical standard for digital audio books, periodicals and computerized text. DAISY is designed to be a complete audio substitute for print material and is specifically designed for use by people with "print disabilities," including blindness, impaired vision, and dyslexia.

..., the format has advanced features in addition to those of a traditional audio book. Users can search, place bookmarks, precisely navigate line by line, and regulate the speaking speed without distortion. DAISY also provides aurally accessible tables, references and additional information.^[1] As a result, DAISY allows visually impaired listeners to navigate something as complex as an encyclopedia or textbook, otherwise impossible using conventional audio recordings.^[2]

The DAISY Consortium was founded in 1996...

DAISY books can be heard on standalone DAISY players,^[15] computers using DAISY playback software,^[16]mobile phones...

...

Software-based players include, in alphabetical order:

• AMIS - Adaptive Multimedia Information System: an open-source self-voicing player for Windows that works with several screen readers; available many languages; developed by the DAISY Consortium^[20][21]
• Android Daisy ePub Reader: an opensource project for the Android platform
• (Several for Mac OS and iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch))
• BREAKING: Amazon’s Kindle for iOS Updated with Accessibility

A note from me to my beloved mentor. The pioneering thinking of Chris Argyris - FT.com on.ft.com/10skbDp via @ft

— Roger L. Martin (@RogerLMartin) May 13, 2013

A list of some of our awesome speakers and judges is at bit.ly/17ToygY. Wise words indeed

— MBA WT + Startup DUB (@MBAworldtrophy) May 11, 2013

mbaworldtrophy.com/

Not just a global college startup competition. A movement to build sustainable businesses through Innovation-Finance-Growth & Leadership. Join us! May 2013 .

Who is Ireland's best female entrepreneur: startupdublin.ie/twitter-competition/