WEBVTT
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All right.
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Thank you for the great introduction,
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and thank you to the Social Innovation Summit
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for bringing us all together.
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Good afternoon, everyone.
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I'm Gwyneth Gaul, Senior Director
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of Strategic Partnerships and Community Impact
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at Comcast NBCUniversal.
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I have the privilege of working with my colleagues
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to advance our $100 million commitment
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to social justice and equality.
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And our 10 year, one billion dollar commitment
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to digital equity.
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We believe that digital equity,
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the equal access to technology
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and the capacity to use it,
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is central to social equity.
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And our conversation today focuses on one aspect
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of our model for change.
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Supporting underrepresented entrepreneurs
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and leaders with the business resources
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and skills needed to create their own success.
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We believe working to foster the success
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of more entrepreneurs of color's
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one of the most consequential actions we can take
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in the fight for social and economic justice.
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And our panelists have a lot to say
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about putting this belief into practice.
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I could absolutely fill our entire session,
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celebrating the many accomplishments
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of these women on the stage.
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But to summarize it,
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these leaders have the same super power.
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They find, cultivate and champion ideas
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and innovators that will better the world.
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Let me briefly introduce our speakers.
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Melissa Bradley is the Founder
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and Managing Partner of 1863 Ventures.
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An organization that bridges the gap
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between entrepreneurship and equity
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by funding new majority entrepreneurs.
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She's also the Co-founder of Ureeka,
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an innovative tech platform for entrepreneurs.
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Cheryl Dorsey is the President of Echoing Green,
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the social impact powerhouse
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which supports next generation talent
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as they solve the world's biggest problems.
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And Dr. Angela Jackson is Managing Partner
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at the Venture Philanthropy Organization, New Profit,
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and leads their future of work initiative.
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Which seeks to close the career readiness gap
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for Americans from low income backgrounds.
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Thank you all for being here today.
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It is such an honor.
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So to kick things off,
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I think we'll start with Melissa
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and maybe all of you could follow on.
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We know black and brown entrepreneurs
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and small businesses are severely underfunded
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and under-resourced
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often preventing them from fully transitioning
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to the digital economy.
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Each of your organizations is tackling this challenge
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in a different way.
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But Melissa maybe you could highlight one approach
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you are taking to support more entrepreneurs of color.
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Thank you and I am honored to be here.
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Thank you for the invitation
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and great to see two amazing women
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who I can call friends.
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Some a little bit longer than others,
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but we're all in this fight together.
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I think it's a great question
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because I think too often people believe
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that entrepreneurs just need money.
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And the reality is they need a combination
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of financial and non-financial assets.
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So at Ureeka, we specifically started
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the tech platform because of emerging organizations
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like New Profit and like Echoing Green
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who are really focused on community
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and working in cohorts.
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But even whether they graduate
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from any of their organizations,
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(indistinct) someone else,
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they still always need some longitudinal support,
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oftentimes one-on-one,
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and that continued community.
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So, Ureeka was really created to complement
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and supplement the great work that these folks
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are doing on this call.
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But all across the country to say
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we have communities hosted.
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The purpose of Ureeka is to really de-risk entrepreneurs
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by keeping them connected
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to the communities they came from.
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So, having a Comcast community,
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having an Echoing Green community,
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but also infusing that with what we call,
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always on coaching.
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Which are experts across the country
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who are former entrepreneurs,
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corporate executives, et cetera.
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And then we obviously also provide training
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and programs through the platform.
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The best thing
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and the thing I'm most proud of is that,
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unfortunately post George Floyd,
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we've been able to deploy over
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$150 million to over 10,000 entrepreneurs
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through partnerships and grant programs
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such as yours and many others.
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And so I think what we find is that
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money is a great tool,
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but we also find that it's paralyzing.
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When you're a person of color,
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let me speak from my own space
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and I got my first cheque,
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I had never had that much money before.
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And unfortunately it still didn't account
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for all the things I needed.
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And so we realized that money is great,
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but those non-financial resources of helping them
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how to spend, how to be strategic,
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how to invest and build for scale,
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who was your first hire,
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that's the kind of support that entrepreneurs need.
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And they can get it through a formal organization
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or they can get it through
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informal mentorship and coaching.
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But while I would say entrepreneurs of color
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have amazing social capital,
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I didn't meet my first black CEO
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till I sold my first company.
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So we have different social capital.
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And so we need all hands on deck to help us navigate
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these very choppy and uncertain waters
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when you're trying to grow a business.
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Yeah. I can really appreciate that at New Profit,
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we really intentionally invest
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in what we call proximate entrepreneurs.
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So those who have lived the experience
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that they are trying to solve,
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or they have some hard one professional experience.
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So you see a lot of the entrepreneurs
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that we're investing in,
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they're coming from the communities
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that they're aiming to serve.
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And similar to what you said, Melissa,
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they may not have had the benefit
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of going to business school
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or a wide social network,
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and so when we're trying to work
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shoulder to shoulder with these entrepreneurs,
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we need to look at them holistically, right?
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What all do they need?
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Capital being one,
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but what does that technical support
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is actually gonna get them
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on the pathway to more success
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and doing more good in the world.
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And we recently did that
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with the Future of Work grand challenge.
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We put out a $15 million challenge to take entrepreneurs
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who we call proximate entrepreneurs
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to help people get back to work.
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So they really understand
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what are the barriers to work in their communities
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and how they, through their solutions,
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their entrepreneurial ventures could train people
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in their neighborhood
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to do jobs for the future.
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And all through the line we know immediately
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when you had them precedent numbers of unemployment,
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that you needed people,
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entrepreneurs with unique insights
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to solve this problem.
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Because it wasn't working,
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the workforce wasn't working for many before the pandemic,
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and certainly it's not working in the pandemic
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so we want to do something different.
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Gwyneth. It's so great to be here with you.
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Thank you for hosting us.
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I'm beyond honored to be here with my friends,
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Melissa and Angela.
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And in settings like these,
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I always like to start off by recognizing
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the indigenous people of the land where I now sit.
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The Nacotchtanks,
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and the name is actually derived
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from the word "anaquashtank",
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which means a town of traders.
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And I think we all know
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these kinds of land acknowledgements
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while important are not enough,
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but they're an important de-colonial practice
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that really promotes indigenous visibility.
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And in many ways,
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we're here together today to talk about visibility.
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So appreciate Comcast,
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really raising up this question about
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how do we support more entrepreneurs of color?
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I think all of us got into this work
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in part because we scoped the problem.
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So from my vantage point,
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when you look at the philanthropic marketplace,
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domestic grant dollars for people of color
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represent only 10%
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of the total domestic U.S. grant dollars.
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And it gets worse
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as you start to segment the audiences, Gweneth.
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Only 0.6% of these dollars
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go to women and girls of color,
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only 0.3% to men and boys of color,
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0.5% to the AAPI community
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and 0.02% of transgender people of color.
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So the need is big,
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which is why it's so important
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to have organizations like New Profit,
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1836, Echoing Green,
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sort of stepping into this void,
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doing the work that we do
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in the ways that we do it.
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And for Echoing Green
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in the aftermath of the murder of Mr. Floyd,
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the devastating impacts of COVID-19,
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we launched a racial equity philanthropic fund
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that is trying to tackle this issue
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from a systems level
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and really rests upon three pillars.
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One is, we've committed over the next three years
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to identify and launch and scale
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120 new social enterprises
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and another 380 existing social enterprises
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within our network,
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helping them to get to the next level of impact.
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We're also going out
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into communities around the country
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to mobilize and up-scale
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5,000 next generation leaders of color
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on social innovation principles and practices,
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including key settings like HBC use.
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And last but not least,
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we've made a pretty bold commitment
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to engage deeply with upwards of
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10,000 corporate leaders as critical
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and meaningful allies in the fight for racial equity.
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So a holistic approach,
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we all have to be in it together as Melissa said
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but this is a moment when we see a crack
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in the universe and I think we're all here today
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'cause we're equally committed to the work.
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Yep. I think that's spot on.
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And you brought up George Floyd's murder
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and I think in many ways it was a catalyst
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for a broad number of commitments
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that companies made, others made across the board.
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And so I think when we think about
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the efforts to support a broader movement
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for sustained change,
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not just a moment but a movement,
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particularly in the area
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of supporting diverse founders,
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are there some bright spots?
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Are there areas of help that
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you're seeing exposed in these cracks?
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And I'd say also what are maybe
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some of the biggest areas of opportunity?
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Angela, how about you start.
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Yeah Absolutely and so I am actually
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gonna tip to my friend, Cheryl,
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who's on with us right now.
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You know, the fund that she's putting together
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and the level of collaboration that we're seeing
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through what I would call
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ordinarily unlikely bedfellows coming together
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and putting their egos aside, right?
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In philanthropy and investing,
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sometimes we're siloed,
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we're all about what our money can do
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for our particular issue.
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What we're starting to see in this moment
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and I hope it continues,
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is that you've got funders who'd say normally
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they're workforce funders
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or other ones that say we're post-secondary funders.
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And we've seen them say,
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you know what,
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we were willing to drop that
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to be part of something bigger
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and to really make a change.
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And that's important too,
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because when you look at a learner, a worker,
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an entrepreneur, like those silos
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that we have the privilege of having
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in philanthropy and investing,
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they don't exist in the real world for real people.
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So that radical collaboration that we're seeing,
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the willingness for people to name racial equity
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and put their money behind it
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is what gives me hope right now.
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And now you just have to wait
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and see their receipts, right?
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With commitments, right,
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00:10:37.830 --> 00:10:39.580
we want actions and just seeing
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how that's gonna play out.
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Yeah that's a great point.
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Melissa, Cheryl might add a view up to that.
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I think there's a few bright spots.
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You know one I would say on the investment side,
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the growth of funds
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managed by black GPs is wonderful.
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Footnote I wish there were more black female GPs,
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but we'll take the black GPs.
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And I think that's been great.
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So at least
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while they're still considered micro-venture funds,
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I'd say we at least now have a source of capital
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for entrepreneurs for at least
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the next three to five years.
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Irrespective of what happens in the corporate world
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and I certainly hope that that continues,
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so that's been huge.
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I think the other piece is
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00:11:20.620 --> 00:11:22.260
the narrative is beginning to change.
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I think there has been a lot more positive press,
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00:11:26.010 --> 00:11:27.063
positive conversations,
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a lot more of these forums
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where we're not just talking about the problems,
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00:11:31.330 --> 00:11:33.060
but highlighting real opportunities.
331
00:11:33.060 --> 00:11:34.940
And I may not have the exact number,
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00:11:34.940 --> 00:11:36.960
but we've finally crossed over
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00:11:36.960 --> 00:11:38.690
beyond just the 30 black women
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00:11:38.690 --> 00:11:39.900
that ever have received venture funding,
335
00:11:39.900 --> 00:11:42.210
I think we're now almost at 50.
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So slow growth,
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00:11:43.370 --> 00:11:46.690
but at least it's steady which was prior sporadic
338
00:11:46.690 --> 00:11:47.950
and I think those are bright spots.
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00:11:47.950 --> 00:11:50.350
And I guess the final takeaway is,
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00:11:50.350 --> 00:11:51.610
and I think this is probably more
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00:11:51.610 --> 00:11:53.480
in the boardrooms where sometimes I'm invited,
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00:11:53.480 --> 00:11:54.790
but don't have a permanency.
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00:11:54.790 --> 00:11:55.900
I think Cheryl shows up
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a little bit more, I hope.
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00:11:57.050 --> 00:11:59.180
Is that the conversation is changing.
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00:11:59.180 --> 00:12:00.170
You know I know a lot of folks
347
00:12:00.170 --> 00:12:01.737
who have been in the DEI space for a long time
348
00:12:01.737 --> 00:12:02.690
and they're saying look,
349
00:12:02.690 --> 00:12:04.690
people still are not necessarily getting it right,
350
00:12:04.690 --> 00:12:05.927
but they're willing to put in the work.
351
00:12:05.927 --> 00:12:08.610
And so that causes a little level of optimism
352
00:12:08.610 --> 00:12:10.781
that this will not be a moment,
353
00:12:10.781 --> 00:12:12.733
that this will extend hopefully for the next
354
00:12:12.733 --> 00:12:14.880
50, 60, 100 years,
355
00:12:14.880 --> 00:12:17.180
well beyond hopefully we're having to do this.
356
00:12:17.180 --> 00:12:18.013
And I would say,
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00:12:18.013 --> 00:12:19.190
I think that's important for a couple of reasons.
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I think Cheryl's report,
359
00:12:20.420 --> 00:12:24.320
which is just so critical that we can no longer rely
360
00:12:24.320 --> 00:12:25.890
just on the philanthropic community
361
00:12:25.890 --> 00:12:28.010
to change what is happening
362
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because the funding doesn't exist.
363
00:12:29.820 --> 00:12:31.450
And we need people like Comcast
364
00:12:31.450 --> 00:12:33.020
and others to think outside the box
365
00:12:33.020 --> 00:12:36.040
of how do you really address the core inputs
366
00:12:36.040 --> 00:12:38.130
of racial and systemic injustice.
367
00:12:38.130 --> 00:12:39.650
And again it's not just dollars,
368
00:12:39.650 --> 00:12:41.160
but how do you create collaboration?
369
00:12:41.160 --> 00:12:42.410
How do you support community?
370
00:12:42.410 --> 00:12:45.670
How do you pull likely and unlikely suspects together?
371
00:12:45.670 --> 00:12:47.510
So I think there's been some signal effects
372
00:12:47.510 --> 00:12:49.840
by corporations across all sectors that says,
373
00:12:49.840 --> 00:12:51.221
we really wanna dive deep,
374
00:12:51.221 --> 00:12:53.520
this is more than a one-year commitment
375
00:12:53.520 --> 00:12:54.854
and how do we really get this right?
376
00:12:54.854 --> 00:12:57.210
And I think just those open, honest conversations
377
00:12:57.210 --> 00:13:00.270
and a greater risk tolerance of those dollars and times
378
00:13:00.270 --> 00:13:02.270
and investing in communities look like mine,
379
00:13:02.270 --> 00:13:03.603
that's a pretty big step.
380
00:13:04.694 --> 00:13:05.960
And Gweneth I will say
381
00:13:05.960 --> 00:13:07.190
and first I wanna thank you again
382
00:13:07.190 --> 00:13:10.660
for setting this table with such brilliant women.
383
00:13:10.660 --> 00:13:11.710
So to be able to draft
384
00:13:11.710 --> 00:13:13.340
in the wake of Melissa and Angela,
385
00:13:13.340 --> 00:13:17.150
like love, I wish all of my panels were this perfect.
386
00:13:17.150 --> 00:13:18.240
So thank you for that.
387
00:13:18.240 --> 00:13:20.450
And I couldn't agree with them more.
388
00:13:20.450 --> 00:13:22.880
I mean, I think I would characterize myself
389
00:13:22.880 --> 00:13:25.320
as a realistic optimist.
390
00:13:25.320 --> 00:13:26.153
So look,
391
00:13:26.153 --> 00:13:28.860
when we look at what has happened since last summer,
392
00:13:28.860 --> 00:13:30.643
there are still significant parts of this country
393
00:13:30.643 --> 00:13:32.520
that have actually become less supportive
394
00:13:32.520 --> 00:13:34.080
of efforts like Black Lives Movement
395
00:13:34.080 --> 00:13:36.510
than they were before the murder of Mr. Floyd.
396
00:13:36.510 --> 00:13:39.640
That trend seems unlikely to reverse anytime soon.
397
00:13:39.640 --> 00:13:42.697
So we're in it, it is a uphill battle,
398
00:13:42.697 --> 00:13:43.910
but we're in it.
399
00:13:43.910 --> 00:13:46.900
And I agree with both Angela and Melissa,
400
00:13:46.900 --> 00:13:47.990
there are bright spots
401
00:13:47.990 --> 00:13:49.400
and I'll just sort of add on
402
00:13:49.400 --> 00:13:50.233
to what they already said.
403
00:13:50.233 --> 00:13:52.380
So beautifully, I would say certainly
404
00:13:52.380 --> 00:13:53.820
a bright spot in philanthropy
405
00:13:53.820 --> 00:13:55.280
when you look at some of the research
406
00:13:55.280 --> 00:13:57.830
that has come out of CDP and Candid.
407
00:13:57.830 --> 00:14:00.250
You know, when they released that report last August,
408
00:14:00.250 --> 00:14:02.030
that show that there was like 12 billion
409
00:14:02.030 --> 00:14:04.060
that was moved in response to COVID,
410
00:14:04.060 --> 00:14:05.800
but only about 5% of it
411
00:14:05.800 --> 00:14:08.250
was explicitly directed to folks of color.
412
00:14:08.250 --> 00:14:10.030
When they came back in March,
413
00:14:10.030 --> 00:14:11.970
they actually looked at a significant uptake
414
00:14:11.970 --> 00:14:16.160
to about 23% of dollars in that interim period
415
00:14:16.160 --> 00:14:17.880
was explicitly designated
416
00:14:17.880 --> 00:14:18.960
for communities of color.
417
00:14:18.960 --> 00:14:20.870
So that shows real momentum,
418
00:14:20.870 --> 00:14:22.900
a sea change in how people are thinking
419
00:14:22.900 --> 00:14:26.530
about their work and bringing a race informed lens to it.
420
00:14:26.530 --> 00:14:28.110
So I'm excited about that.
421
00:14:28.110 --> 00:14:31.390
I actually also agree with what Melissa was saying
422
00:14:31.390 --> 00:14:33.500
about sort of getting into the capital markets.
423
00:14:33.500 --> 00:14:34.670
And I think sort of the way
424
00:14:34.670 --> 00:14:37.200
the ESG has shown up in this way,
425
00:14:37.200 --> 00:14:39.170
sort of showing that increasing preference
426
00:14:39.170 --> 00:14:40.340
to engage with businesses
427
00:14:40.340 --> 00:14:43.540
that prioritize purpose alongside profitability.
428
00:14:43.540 --> 00:14:45.100
And when I heard Larry Fink
429
00:14:45.100 --> 00:14:48.400
sort of raise up the S in ESG in Davos,
430
00:14:48.400 --> 00:14:51.120
that shows you that these conversations
431
00:14:51.120 --> 00:14:53.030
around diversity, equity, inclusion
432
00:14:53.030 --> 00:14:55.380
are now gonna be linked to business performance,
433
00:14:55.380 --> 00:14:57.590
I think that's a phenomenal, bright spot.
434
00:14:57.590 --> 00:14:59.070
And I think you Comcast
435
00:14:59.070 --> 00:15:00.540
have been an incredible leader in that.
436
00:15:00.540 --> 00:15:01.760
And then last but not least
437
00:15:01.760 --> 00:15:02.680
and I think, you know,
438
00:15:02.680 --> 00:15:04.400
certainly Angela and I see this
439
00:15:04.400 --> 00:15:05.438
all the time in our work,
440
00:15:05.438 --> 00:15:07.778
leaders of color doing social impact work
441
00:15:07.778 --> 00:15:09.580
are stepping up,
442
00:15:09.580 --> 00:15:10.840
they're raising their hand.
443
00:15:10.840 --> 00:15:14.060
They are owning their agency to drive work
444
00:15:14.060 --> 00:15:15.960
that they know needs to be done in their community.
445
00:15:15.960 --> 00:15:17.630
And, you know, we just closed
446
00:15:17.630 --> 00:15:21.770
the next selection round for our very early
447
00:15:21.770 --> 00:15:23.100
stage fellowship program
448
00:15:23.100 --> 00:15:25.540
and we received over 1500 submissions
449
00:15:25.540 --> 00:15:28.570
from NextGen voices all around the world.
450
00:15:28.570 --> 00:15:31.680
Folks are energized, mobilized and engaged.
451
00:15:31.680 --> 00:15:32.940
And I think ultimately
452
00:15:32.940 --> 00:15:34.823
that's a phenomenally good signal.
453
00:15:36.180 --> 00:15:38.163
Absolutely, absolutely.
454
00:15:39.030 --> 00:15:42.100
Sadly our time is starting to dwindle,
455
00:15:42.100 --> 00:15:44.410
but I think in closing,
456
00:15:44.410 --> 00:15:47.260
obviously the Social Innovation Summit brings together
457
00:15:47.260 --> 00:15:48.640
an extraordinary audience.
458
00:15:48.640 --> 00:15:51.400
There's funders and philanthropists
459
00:15:51.400 --> 00:15:54.330
and corporates and entrepreneurs.
460
00:15:54.330 --> 00:15:56.830
Can you share some paths for those in the audience
461
00:15:56.830 --> 00:15:58.160
that might wanna engage
462
00:15:58.160 --> 00:16:00.040
a bit further in your organization?
463
00:16:00.040 --> 00:16:02.180
So I know Cheryl we've talked about the,
464
00:16:02.180 --> 00:16:04.110
racial equity fund and the work,
465
00:16:04.110 --> 00:16:05.910
maybe specifically you wanna talk about
466
00:16:05.910 --> 00:16:09.560
something tangible for the audience to engage.
467
00:16:09.560 --> 00:16:11.510
Sure. And I think I really appreciate
468
00:16:11.510 --> 00:16:13.082
sort of the solutions
469
00:16:13.082 --> 00:16:16.180
or action orientation that you posed to us Gwyneth.
470
00:16:16.180 --> 00:16:19.577
So let me start off at a sort of a macro level,
471
00:16:19.577 --> 00:16:21.750
the leaders that you all have assembled
472
00:16:21.750 --> 00:16:23.930
have a really important role to play.
473
00:16:23.930 --> 00:16:26.610
And I'll ask for four things.
474
00:16:26.610 --> 00:16:29.610
One, please, please, please invest in intermediaries
475
00:16:29.610 --> 00:16:31.810
that sit between the rooftops and the grassroots.
476
00:16:31.810 --> 00:16:32.944
You've got three of us
477
00:16:32.944 --> 00:16:34.640
convened around this table
478
00:16:34.640 --> 00:16:35.680
who are doing that work
479
00:16:35.680 --> 00:16:38.530
and who sit in those interstitial spaces.
480
00:16:38.530 --> 00:16:39.580
We're good at what we do,
481
00:16:39.580 --> 00:16:40.800
please partner with us.
482
00:16:40.800 --> 00:16:43.500
The second thing is continue to dismantle structures
483
00:16:43.500 --> 00:16:45.200
that harm proximate groups.
484
00:16:45.200 --> 00:16:47.814
Like all of the onerous paperwork that's required
485
00:16:47.814 --> 00:16:50.740
and that often disadvantaged smaller organizations.
486
00:16:50.740 --> 00:16:53.040
Continue to be really flexible in your funding,
487
00:16:53.040 --> 00:16:55.370
it makes a difference to these extraordinary groups
488
00:16:55.370 --> 00:16:56.930
on the ground doing the work.
489
00:16:56.930 --> 00:16:59.176
As Melissa said perfectly change the face
490
00:16:59.176 --> 00:17:01.280
of who's giving money,
491
00:17:01.280 --> 00:17:03.990
akin to what we're seeing in the for-profit world.
492
00:17:03.990 --> 00:17:05.970
And it's diversification our fund managers
493
00:17:05.970 --> 00:17:08.370
is a great model for all of those,
494
00:17:08.370 --> 00:17:12.180
all of us in the social impact sector to model.
495
00:17:12.180 --> 00:17:14.601
And then we've gotta remain accountable
496
00:17:14.601 --> 00:17:17.040
to what we said we were going to do
497
00:17:17.040 --> 00:17:18.940
and promises need to be kept.
498
00:17:18.940 --> 00:17:21.350
So how do we set up our goals, our targets,
499
00:17:21.350 --> 00:17:23.890
and set up transparent and accountable systems
500
00:17:23.890 --> 00:17:24.920
to track those?
501
00:17:24.920 --> 00:17:25.970
Those are all the things
502
00:17:25.970 --> 00:17:28.240
that we all need to do collectively.
503
00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:29.780
Specifically to Echoing Green,
504
00:17:29.780 --> 00:17:31.010
thank you for mentioning
505
00:17:31.010 --> 00:17:32.860
the Racial Equity Philanthropic Fund.
506
00:17:32.860 --> 00:17:34.190
Gwyneth we wouldn't be able
507
00:17:34.190 --> 00:17:35.390
to do the work without you
508
00:17:35.390 --> 00:17:37.140
and Comcast as key partners.
509
00:17:37.140 --> 00:17:38.050
Please join us,
510
00:17:38.050 --> 00:17:41.240
this is as much about learning as it is about doing,
511
00:17:41.240 --> 00:17:43.257
and we need more folks to join us.
512
00:17:43.257 --> 00:17:46.260
In a few days, the Echoing Green Family
513
00:17:46.260 --> 00:17:48.680
will be convening for our annual gala
514
00:17:48.680 --> 00:17:51.380
that will raise up some of these proximate voices.
515
00:17:51.380 --> 00:17:53.817
So if you go to the Echoing Green website
516
00:17:53.817 --> 00:17:56.290
and click on the link to get involved,
517
00:17:56.290 --> 00:17:58.670
please join us for our virtual convening,
518
00:17:58.670 --> 00:17:59.850
our big, bold gala.
519
00:17:59.850 --> 00:18:00.968
We'd love to see all of you
520
00:18:00.968 --> 00:18:04.880
and just continue this really important conversation.
521
00:18:04.880 --> 00:18:06.080
So thanks for having me.
522
00:18:08.150 --> 00:18:09.890
Thank you, Cheryl.
523
00:18:09.890 --> 00:18:10.833
Melissa.
524
00:18:12.140 --> 00:18:13.070
I'll keep it quick.
525
00:18:13.070 --> 00:18:14.460
I think there's four things.
526
00:18:14.460 --> 00:18:16.000
One invest.
527
00:18:16.000 --> 00:18:18.344
To Cheryl's point invest in the organizations.
528
00:18:18.344 --> 00:18:19.413
'Cause we've been doing this a long time.
529
00:18:19.413 --> 00:18:21.010
There's a lot of knowledge
530
00:18:21.010 --> 00:18:22.360
and institutional history we have
531
00:18:22.360 --> 00:18:24.140
that just is not easily replicated.
532
00:18:24.140 --> 00:18:26.110
Invest in entrepreneurs themselves
533
00:18:26.110 --> 00:18:27.930
whether that's through investment capital
534
00:18:27.930 --> 00:18:29.060
or making a grant.
535
00:18:29.060 --> 00:18:30.640
I think buy, that's the biggest thing,
536
00:18:30.640 --> 00:18:33.380
sales are the best thing that keeps businesses afloat.
537
00:18:33.380 --> 00:18:34.850
So let's not subsidize their growth,
538
00:18:34.850 --> 00:18:36.360
but actually buy their products
539
00:18:36.360 --> 00:18:37.960
and tell other people to buy them.
540
00:18:37.960 --> 00:18:39.920
Promote what's working.
541
00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:41.050
Three of us on the phone,
542
00:18:41.050 --> 00:18:42.430
but there's many other organizations.
543
00:18:42.430 --> 00:18:45.020
We've got to stop assuming one person can do it all.
544
00:18:45.020 --> 00:18:48.250
So promote what is working and then educate.
545
00:18:48.250 --> 00:18:49.760
Education's a lifelong process
546
00:18:49.760 --> 00:18:50.593
and there's gonna be things
547
00:18:50.593 --> 00:18:51.426
that folks don't know
548
00:18:51.426 --> 00:18:53.010
so it's great to be an ally.
549
00:18:53.010 --> 00:18:54.010
But it doesn't stop,
550
00:18:54.010 --> 00:18:55.030
it's not check the box,
551
00:18:55.030 --> 00:18:55.960
I got my certificate.
552
00:18:55.960 --> 00:18:57.660
So continue to educate yourself.
553
00:18:57.660 --> 00:18:58.493
To Cheryl's point.
554
00:18:58.493 --> 00:18:59.830
there are so many challenges in their communities
555
00:18:59.830 --> 00:19:00.663
that are historical
556
00:19:00.663 --> 00:19:02.640
from a hundred years celebration of Tulsa
557
00:19:02.640 --> 00:19:03.880
to 400 years of slavery
558
00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:07.130
to the current marginalization of native peoples
559
00:19:07.130 --> 00:19:09.363
and so education is extremely important.
560
00:19:10.230 --> 00:19:11.160
And just to build on that,
561
00:19:11.160 --> 00:19:12.910
when I think of the ask,
562
00:19:12.910 --> 00:19:14.020
I probably have a couple of them.
563
00:19:14.020 --> 00:19:17.210
One is just as investors, as supporters,
564
00:19:17.210 --> 00:19:19.490
we just need to acknowledge the entrepreneurs,
565
00:19:19.490 --> 00:19:21.600
specifically proximate entrepreneurs.
566
00:19:21.600 --> 00:19:23.340
They need different access
567
00:19:23.340 --> 00:19:24.650
to different types of capital
568
00:19:24.650 --> 00:19:27.290
at different times throughout their life cycle.
569
00:19:27.290 --> 00:19:28.830
So just because you gave someone
570
00:19:28.830 --> 00:19:30.140
an entry-level grant
571
00:19:30.140 --> 00:19:32.569
or you made up friends and family investment,
572
00:19:32.569 --> 00:19:35.600
the lifecycle to build a sustainable building,
573
00:19:35.600 --> 00:19:37.860
a business is much longer than that.
574
00:19:37.860 --> 00:19:41.660
So I would just encourage people on the phone to dig in
575
00:19:41.660 --> 00:19:44.150
and be willing to go kind of the long game
576
00:19:44.150 --> 00:19:45.780
with these entrepreneurs and solutions
577
00:19:45.780 --> 00:19:47.010
that people leave in them.
578
00:19:47.010 --> 00:19:48.700
The second thing that I talk about
579
00:19:48.700 --> 00:19:50.940
is moving from this idea of charity.
580
00:19:50.940 --> 00:19:52.450
You know we have entrepreneurs out there now
581
00:19:52.450 --> 00:19:54.010
that are doing for-profit ventures,
582
00:19:54.010 --> 00:19:55.850
some of them are doing non-profit.
583
00:19:55.850 --> 00:19:57.850
It's really not about charity,
584
00:19:57.850 --> 00:19:59.460
it's about us, right?
585
00:19:59.460 --> 00:20:01.720
All of us in the room, all of us on the screen,
586
00:20:01.720 --> 00:20:03.440
how do we create a better world
587
00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:05.600
and more equitable world for us?
588
00:20:05.600 --> 00:20:08.320
I talk a lot about an equitable future of work.
589
00:20:08.320 --> 00:20:09.580
It's not only good for the folks
590
00:20:09.580 --> 00:20:11.110
who are living out in the margins,
591
00:20:11.110 --> 00:20:12.480
it's actually good for our country.
592
00:20:12.480 --> 00:20:15.420
And so a lot of what we're doing with new profit now,
593
00:20:15.420 --> 00:20:16.270
and our initiatives,
594
00:20:16.270 --> 00:20:20.160
we're bringing them under an economic mobility umbrella.
595
00:20:20.160 --> 00:20:22.090
There's two tactics that we're leading now
596
00:20:22.090 --> 00:20:22.980
with the future of work,
597
00:20:22.980 --> 00:20:24.430
but there'll be others.
598
00:20:24.430 --> 00:20:26.150
And you know our goal is really clear.
599
00:20:26.150 --> 00:20:29.810
How do we get more workers into middle wages?
600
00:20:29.810 --> 00:20:33.490
How do we get more workers having living wages?
601
00:20:33.490 --> 00:20:35.453
That's our mind mandate in this moment.
602
00:20:37.090 --> 00:20:38.120
Thank you all.
603
00:20:38.120 --> 00:20:41.010
I am so humbled to be on the stage
604
00:20:41.010 --> 00:20:44.329
with you three fine fabulous women.
605
00:20:44.329 --> 00:20:47.860
I, it has just been a true pleasure.
606
00:20:47.860 --> 00:20:49.780
Thank you to the Social Innovation Summit
607
00:20:49.780 --> 00:20:51.220
for bringing us together
608
00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:52.580
and setting this stage
609
00:20:52.580 --> 00:20:57.580
and look forward to more discussions in the future.
610
00:20:59.520 --> 00:21:00.510
Thank you.
611
00:21:00.510 --> 00:21:01.343
Thank you.