Why we Need Social Impact Education to Change the World
if you could change
one thing in the world what would it be
i want you all to really take a moment
and think hard
about this question the answer to this
question
defines many things it defines our
thoughts
our values our jobs
and our livelihoods but more importantly
it defines the world we live in and the
world our future generations
will live in now imagine that anything
is possible
allow your mind to dream let go of
constraints
and think big start with what if
and fill in the blanks
the truth of the matter is that most
people go through life
without ever thinking about this
profound question
now more than ever our world is facing
an incredibly tough reality
we’re dealing with a global pandemic
hunger
obesity social injustice
inequality poverty
climate change to name just a few
my name is misha and as an adjunct
professor
at ucla extension i’ve asked hundreds of
students
representing more than 50 countries
around the world
the same question if you could change
one thing in the world what would it be
when i share the statistics about 1
billion people
being hungry in the world and 2 billion
people
eating too much wrong food the
staggering rate of
childhood obesity that i reported on as
a consultant at the world health
organization
or the story of a five-year-old girl
called cheru
from kenya who needs to walk four miles
for three and a half hours with her
mother to get clean water
i see my students faces filled with
panic
and grief but i also see hope
ideas courage and a sense
of pursuing justice
at the end of the quarter each and every
one of my students
had found a problem in the world that
not only would better their own life if
they solved it
but also the lives of individuals
families
communities and the environment around
them
and that’s when i realized that their
youth is aware
of relevant issues that affect them and
the world around them but they wonder
how to go about
solving those issues
this talk is not about generating
immediate solutions for these problems
nor do i want to undermine the
complexity of these matters
i am simply here today because i want to
do my part
in empowering you our youth our change
makers of the future
to solve the world’s most pressing
problems
that’s where social impact comes in
social impact is defined as any
significant positive change
that addresses a pressing social
challenge
this can be in any shape or form whether
it’s a business
a government a non-governmental
organization
a non-profit or even a school project
if you’ve ever been involved in
sustainability
you may have heard of the three ps also
referred to as the three e’s
or the triple bottom line framework
this framework focuses not only on
making profit
but also improving people’s lives and
improving the planet we all live on
the triple bottom line term was coined
in 1994
by john elkington a management
consultant
who used this framework to measure
performance in corporate america
today this concept is still widely used
and implemented
and many experts have actually added a
fourth p
to the equation called purpose
interestingly society has uniquely
positioned youth as the change makers of
our future
we give them the role to renew and
refresh the status of our society
and we expect them to advance the
current health situation
technology education politics
and much more let’s face it
we’re in desperate need of their ideas
their courage
their creativity innovation and their
great energy
to shape a better world luckily the
research shows
that millennials in the workplace want
to feel meaning and purpose in their
lives
and 94 of them report that they want to
use their skills
to benefit a cause i can personally
attest to this as i packed up my bags
and moved for my home
in the netherlands to my new home in los
angeles
to pursue purpose and growth and then i
became the first student
in ucla extension sustainability program
who became an instructor
in the program because i wanted my
career to benefit the cause
and that was education and i can say
that teaching
is among the most rewarding things i do
very similarly 65 of gen z
which is the generation of teenagers and
young adults
want to personally contribute to
creating something that is world
changing they don’t want to work for
companies where the pursuit of the
almighty dollar is the only
outcome they want more
and it’s not just them 53 percent of
consumers think that brands
could be addressing more problems than
governments can
and 86 of consumers expect companies
to do something about social and
environmental problems
so our youth wants to change the world
and our society wants them to change the
world
so you think we’re in a win-win
situation
well almost
although some high schools colleges and
business schools
provide community-based projects
volunteer opportunities
and social impact programs and
curriculum
it has not been adopted widely yet
so here’s my question for you who is
teaching our youth the necessary
knowledge
mindset and practical skills to achieve
social impact
why aren’t we providing them with the
tools they need
to feel more fulfilled with their lives
and careers
while bettering the world for all of us
why aren’t we planting the seeds earlier
on
are we expecting them to learn about the
united nations
sustainable development goals on their
own
will they magically do a google search
to find a blueprint consisting of 17
interlinked goals that are designed to
achieve a better and more sustainable
future for all by 2030
and how do we set up our youth to be
social entrepreneurs
who understand economics as well as the
science behind sustainability
and equity to empower marginalized
underserved communities
are we teaching our youth about
different types of companies
such as b corporations that not only
focus on financial profit
but also look at how the company treats
people and the planet
how are we teaching our youth about
heroes and how are we connecting them
with mentors
in the social impact space
being confronted with all these
questions
became a turning point for me in my
career as someone
who had worked a decade at the
intersection of digital marketing
social impact and sustainability
i propose a need
to integrate social impact into the
educational system
to better prepare our future leaders
to drive social and environmental change
and i want to share my self-developed
framework with you today
this is what i call the egi curriculum
model
this model focuses on project-based
learning
around a specific social or
environmental issues
that students handpick and are
passionate about
there are three pillars in the framework
the e for empower
the g4 grow and the eye for impact
let’s review the first pillar
in order to empower students we need to
create a safe
and inclusive learning space everyone
has a voice
and everyone’s voice should be heard
secondly we need to encourage critical
thinking
we want our youth to question the status
quo
and we want to help them unleash their
curiosity
to learn more about the world around
them
we also need to help them discover their
why
i suggest developing a purpose discovery
lab
to dig deeper into their personal
aspirations
as well as their future goals
last but not least we need to provide
an educational toolkit that focuses on
real life
application rather than theoretical
concepts
that won’t help them get to that next
stage
of mastering concepts and growth
this brings us to the second pillar of
the egi model
what if you could learn how to grow into
a more powerful mindset
would you take that class dr carol dweck
of stanford university
studied human motivation and talked
about the power of
mindset nearly 30 years ago
she discusses two main mindsets we can
navigate a life with
a fixed mindset and a growth mindset
her theory of the two mindsets and the
difference they make in outcomes
is incredibly powerful
in a fixed mindset you don’t like to be
challenged
and you see failure as a limit of your
abilities
adopt a growth mindset and you will find
that challenges help you grow
and that failure is an opportunity to
grow as well
see how our view of ourselves can
determine
everything i advocate for education
and training around the topic of mindset
having a growth mindset is essential for
success
not only for an individual but also for
people planet and profit
it’s a win-win-win situation
so once we’ve helped unleash the growth
mindset
we dive into the four main topics of our
growth pillar
we want our students to laser focus
on one social or environmental challenge
oftentimes i encounter students
who want to focus their projects on
solving multiple issues
in different regions unfortunately we
can’t solve
all problems for everyone instead
targeting a specific challenge will
prove
more impactful in the long run
secondly we want to facilitate breakout
sessions we want to facilitate
peer-to-peer discussions
a scientific study showed that peer
discussion
improves student performance on in-class
concept questions
we want to make sure that students are
also able to receive and provide
constructive feedback
the benefits of feedback include
increased confidence
motivation and self-esteem and these are
all traits that are needed for someone
who leads the way to be a better future
for all
finally we want to make sure we give
them an opportunity to network and
connect with industry mentors
behind every successful person there is
a mentor
who cared i’ve been blessed with mentors
along my way
and i’m a mentor in several programs
it’s a privilege to discover our youth’s
drive for change and social impact in
the world
and help them grow
in our third and final pillar we look at
the
impact of our actions
first we want to empower you to present
their projects
and step outside of their comfort zone
when they’re acquiring those
communication and presentation skills
we want them to be able to effectively
persuade an audience
very similar to giving a tedx talk we
need to help them hone skills
and present to different audiences being
able to speak the language
of a business person an engineer a
sustainability expert
or members of the target population
we’re serving with our idea
is the key to getting your impact
message across
thirdly we want to raise awareness
through social media
as you all undoubtedly know social media
has become
fundamental in our lives and in the way
that billions of people
get information about the world and
connect with each other
this raises the stakes enormously
we can use the power of social media to
amplify
causes raise money and tell the stories
we can run ads for a fundraising
campaign and do so much more
the possibilities of digital marketing
are really endless
also we want to get organizations
involved with the project
there are so many organizations out
there that are doing great work
sometimes it’s not about reinventing the
wheel
but partnering up with the right
stakeholders
the important thing to remember is that
we’re all in this together
instead of competing we need to
collaborate
we need to work together and grow
together
finally in order to make an impact
we need to help our youth become a
champion for the cause
you can become an internal change maker
in any type of organizational role
you’re in
cheering on others who are in it with us
and make decisions
if you’re part of the decision making
team
the key takeaway is that social impact
education
can empower grow and impact our youth
to drive change we can help our youth
grow
and in turn they can help grow our
purpose
people planet and profit for a better
world
however let’s not forget that our role
as educators
as well as students it’s just the tip of
the iceberg
anyone can get involved in the social
revolution in any capacity
you can be the change
you can be the one who pursues impact
as part of your business you can be the
one
who shifts your business model
you can be an organization gen z wants
to work for
value their commitment to the cause
each and every one of us can create
opportunities for innovation
change and inclusion in our own lives
our workplace and our community
why now because our world needs it
why you because your growth can impact
our world
as a wise mahatma gandhi once said
in a gentle way you can shake the world
thank you