How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas - Hardcover

Bornstein, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0195138058 ISBN 13: 9780195138054

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2004

Synopsis

What business entrepreneurs are to the economy, social entrepreneurs are to social change. They are, writes David Bornstein, the driven, creative individuals who question the status quo, exploit new opportunities, refuse to give up--and remake the world for the better.
How to Change the World tells the fascinating stories of these remarkable individuals--many in the United States, others in countries from Brazil to Hungary--providing an In Search of Excellence for the nonprofit sector. In America, one man, J.B. Schramm, has helped thousands of low-income high school students get into college. In South Africa, one woman, Veronica Khosa, developed a home-based care model for AIDS patients that changed government health policy. In Brazil, Fabio Rosa helped bring electricity to hundreds of thousands of remote rural residents. Another American, James Grant, is credited with saving 25 million lives by leading and 'marketing' a global campaign for immunization. Yet another, Bill Drayton, created a pioneering foundation, Ashoka, that has funded and supported these social entrepreneurs and over a thousand like them, leveraging the power of their ideas across the globe.
These extraordinary stories highlight a massive transformation that is going largely unreported by the media: Around the world, the fastest-growing segment of society is the nonprofit sector, as millions of ordinary people--social entrepreneurs--are increasingly stepping in to solve the problems where governments and bureaucracies have failed. How to Change the World shows, as its title suggests, that with determination and innovation, even a single person can make a surprising difference. For anyone seeking to make a positive mark on the world, this will be both an inspiring read and an invaluable handbook.

About this title

About the Author:

David Bornstein is a journalist who specializes in writing about social innovation. His first book, The Price of a Dream: The Story of the Grameen Bank was selected as a finalist for the New York Public Library Book Award for Excellence in Journalism. His articles have appeared in the Atlantic Monthly and the New York Times, and he co-wrote the PBS documentary "To Our Credit." He lives in New York City.

Review:

"Wonderfully hopeful and enlightening.... The stories of these social entreprenuers will inspire and encourage many people who seek to build a better world."--Nelson Mandela

"The book is must reading for anyone who cares about building a more equitable, and therefore more stable, world."--William J. Holstein, New York Times

"The inspiring portraits that emerge from his in-depth reporting on the environments in which individual programs evolved (whether in politically teeming India or amid the expansive grasslands of Brazil) certainly show these unstoppable entrepreneurs as extraordinarily savvy community development experts."--Publishers Weekly

"A fascinating book.... Well-documented cases of grassroots entrepreneurial activities to tackle such diverse social problems as child abuse, disability, illiteracy, and environmental degradation give life to it."--Laura D'Andrea Tyson, Business Week

"Human progress has always been led by visionary individuals who seek a better future and dedicate their lives to realizing that promise. These social entrepreneurs tackle some of the world's toughest challenges with grit and determination. Bornstein has given us that rarest of gifts: a book about hope, about courage, and about the power of those extraordinary man and women who change the world."--Jeff Skoll, Founder and Chairman, Skoll Foundation, and first president of eBay

"The social entrepreneurs chronicled in this book are part of the vital generation of independent, creative leaders who are sparking social changes in the United States and in parts of world where people are most in need. We will be hearing much more from them in the years to come." --Bill Bradley

"David Bornstein's book will touch the hearts and minds of many. I hope it will get the wide readership it deserves. Without the effort and energy of civil society the odds are against the fulfillment of all the development needs of today's world, especially the developing world. Pick up a copy and spread the word!" --Arminio Fraga, Former Governor of the Central Bank of Brazil

"[A] splendid book.... A careful, monumental piece of work [that] so greatly transcends research and reporting because of [Bornstein's] common sense, good judgement and sympathy, which infuses the whole thing." --Jane Jacobs, author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities, on The Price of a Dream

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0195138058
• ISBN 13: 9780195138054
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336