Community

Since 2019, I have interviewed more than 80 Social Venturers to talk about how they're supporting (social) entrepreneurs in their community, what challenges they encounter, and how they move forward despite the obstacles they face. These are their stories.

Kristina Notz

Nov 1, 2019

I remember the first time I met Kristina in 2015. Though both German we were in London for a conference of the then newly launched Global Social Entrepreneurship Network. After two days of conversations and story-sharing with some of Europe’s finest ecosystem builders for social change (you’ve already met Kaat Peeters!), Kristina and I both […]

Rob Lalka Tulane University

Rob Lalka

Oct 30, 2019

I first met Rob during my first phase of Social Ventures. Back in 2015, Rob was still with Propeller in New Orleans and has since moved on to Tulane University where he heads up the Albert Lepage Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Tulane’s Freeman School of Business. “My role is to teach entrepreneurship to […]

Kaat Peeters

Oct 12, 2019

I first met Kaat at a conference in London in 2015. She immediately invited me to swing by her organization Sociale Innovatiefabriek – Social Innovation Factory – on my first European trip for Social Venturers. An invite I happily accepted. Six weeks later I was in Brussels, interviewing Kaat for the first time, meeting her […]

Peter Ptashko

Oct 12, 2019

Peter and I first met in 2015 when he was working at Unltd in the UK. He has since struck out on his own as a consultant in London. I checked in with him in the spring of 2019 to see how self-employed life was treating him. “Overall, I worked with UnLtd for six and […]

Naomi Ryland tbd* book author

Naomi Ryland

Oct 7, 2019

“I wanted to be a hairdresser in the morning, a teacher in the afternoon and a ballet dancer at night.” Naomi Ryland has never been short of ambition or willingness to work. And while she has somewhat narrowed her focus since childhood, her dedication to making a difference in the world has remained untethered.  We […]

Lee Crockford

Lee Crockford

Sep 19, 2019

Lee Crockford and I go a long way back. A long way.  In 2013, I was helping run a global Fellowship program for young social entrepreneurs in Hamburg, Germany. Lee had just left the on-site part of the program and returned to Brisbane, Australia, where he was working to redefine masculinity for Australian men. His […]

Danielle Anderson

Sep 19, 2019

“I left London in June 2016 and spent some time in the US, Africa and Jamaica. In early 2017, I returned to Kenya and started exploring the ecosystem for startups. What I heard was ‘We love what you’re doing and we want it, but we need you full-time!’ Kenya thrives on face-to-face interaction and continuity. […]

Tom Allen

Sep 19, 2019

One of the very first people I called when I Social Venturers started to take shape was Tom. We had originally met in 2016 when I interviewed him during the first phase of Social Venturers in Brisbane. At the time, Tom was focused on creating the right mindsets to tackle big problems and was bringing […]

Hannah Gay Impact Boss

Hannah Gay

Sep 1, 2019

I first came across Hannah on social media. Then I checked out her website. Then I fell in love professionally. “Social Impact without the B.S.” is Hannah’s M.O. Why hadn’t I come up with that? Because I’m not Hannah and she is incredible, that’s why! Hannah lives in Denver, Colorado, and is a teacher turned […]