A Supportive Environment for all Changemakers

With time we have come to realize that for changemakers to successfully implement systemic changes, they need more than strategic support and knowledge. They need an entire supportive environment – including funders who understand why and how to finance systems change efforts and intermediaries (incubators, accelerators, networks and door-openers) who are willing and able to offer suitable support.

We have thus started our ecosystem endeavors to unlock more funding for systems change initiatives and enable intermediaries to effectively support changemakers in their systems change work.

Interested in collaborating on an ecosystem level? Contact us.

Our Systems Change Ecosystem Initiatives

Catalyst 2030

Catalyst 2030 is a network of social entrepreneurs that collaborate to improve the conditions for social entrepreneurship around the world and to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Members of the Globalizer team accompanied the very early development process and still support the network as founding members today. As of June 2022, Catalyst has over 1,300 member organizations.

Investors in Change

Investors in Change is a learning opportunity for donors who want to become more effective supporters of social entrepreneurs. It focuses on systemic initiatives and the funding practices that are needed for that work. Co-initiated by Ashoka Globalizer and other partners, it was first implemented by the Forum for the Future in 2021 with more cohorts planned in the years to come.

Social Innovation in the European Commission

The European Commission is developing new ideas for supporting social innovators and changing philanthropy in Europe. Over the course of 2022, Ashoka Globalizer has been helping their team to understand the perspective and needs of social entrepreneurs.

A Systems Change Funding Platform

A Systems Change Funding Platform is being developed by Catalyst 2030 to help donors find the right social ventures, and to help social entrepreneurs get the resources they need to change social systems for the better. Ashoka Globalizer has been part of the task force that has been developing the ideas in 2021 and 2022, together with Ashoka’s President Emerita Diana Wells.

Invite us to Speak at your next Event

Get inspired by our past sector events

Catalysing Change Week, Catalyst 2030. May 2022. Systems Change applied to strategy development with guest speakers and social entrepreneurs Nalini Saligram and Gretel Uribe.

Skoll World Forum Ecosystem Event (recording). April 2022. Interactive session on report "Influence for Good: How highly resourced individuals can work towards positive systemic change".

Wirkung Hoch 100 Summit, German Donor Association and Project Together. November 2021. Systems Change Training for finalists of the funder program Wirkung Hoch 100 (eng.: impact times 100).

Fireside chat with Audrey Tang, Digital Minister of Taiwan (recording). May 2021. Part of Catalysing Change Week hosted by Catalyst 2030.

European Social Economy Summit #RoadToMannheim. April 2021. Panel discussion on how foundations should fund social entrepreneurs. Based on report "Embracing Complexity -- towards a shared understanding of funding systems change".

"#innovationsland Deutschand" by the Federal Ministry of Education. April 2021. Panel on Corporate Social Innovation.

UNDP event on funding systems change (recording). August 2020. Olga Shirobokova, Panel with Jeroo Billimoria. We asked the UN to create a contact person for social entrepreneurs, as suggested in the report "From Crisis to Systems Change." Watch the recording here.

Skoll World Forum. April 2020. Interactive session on report "Embracing Complexity -- towards a shared understanding of funding systems change". Recording available here.

Side event at World Economic Forum. January 2020. Launch of the report "Embracing Complexity" (see Publications) together with colleagues from Ashoka, Catalyst 2030, Co-Impact, Echoing Green, McKinsey, Schwab Foundation, Skoll Foundation, and SystemIQ.

Social Innovation Summit Stuttgart. September 2019. Panel on “Digital social innovation and systems change” as well as a workshop on how to measure impact on a systems level.

Ecosystem event Skoll World Forum. April 2019. Panel “Measuring the Multibillion-Euro Potential for Funding Systems Change”. Together with Jeroo Billimoria (founder of CYFI) and François Bonnici (Head of Schwab Foundation).

Social Impact Investment, Social Innovation Lab. October 2018. Panel. Together with Andreas Paust from the Bertelsmann Stiftung, Johannes Weber from the BMW Foundation, Marika Baur from SoEntBW, and Thomas Goldfuss from the GLS.

Social Innovation Summit Stuttgart. March 2018. Panel “System Change –
Going Beyond Symptoms”. Together with Katherine Milligan (Head of Schwab Foundation) and Markus Sauerhammer (Chairman at the German Social Entrepreneurship Network). There is also a video recording of the session.

Berliner Stiftungstag. November 2017. Panel “Investing Limited Resources For Maximum Impact". Together with Jan Wulf-Schnabel (CEO and Founder of Institut für Inklusive Bildung) and his team.

Invite us to Speak at your Event

Invite us to your Podcast to spread the word on systems change

Get inspired and listen to our existing external podcast interviews

Interview at “Changemaker Podcast”. May 2021. German. We talk about the personal and career pathway to social impact and ways to deal with complexity in a fast-paced social entrepreneurship work environment.

Ashoka Systems Change Podcast. June 2020. 6-part mini-series on systems change, featuring social entrepreneurship luminaries like Jordan Kassalow, Jeroo Billimoria, Michael Sani, Kendis Paris, and Silvia Bastante. Together with Fergal Byrne.

Interview at "Strategists of Social Change". March 2022. German. We talk about the differences between treating symptoms and addressing the root causes of social problems.

Interview at "Changemaker Podcast". February 2021. German. We talk about working as an intermediary, the benefits of frameworks, and the role of social entrepreneurship in overcoming deep societal injustices.

Interview at podcast “Helden und Visionäre”. October 2020. German. We talk about the relationship between new work, inner work, and systems change, as well as the joy of changemaking.

Interview at podcast “Benefits of Systems Thinking”. August 2019. We talk about how systems thinking can inform impact strategies of social entrepreneurs, as well as the barriers for systemic initiatives.

Interview at podcast “In Too Deep”. June 2019. We talk about the economic impact of small systemic changes, as well as how Lord of the Rings can help you get there.

Interview at podcast “Impact Boom”. June 2018. We talk about how to create system change as a social entrepreneur?

Interview at podcast “Inspiring Social Entrepreneurs”. May 2018. We talk about system change, the qualities of systems entrepreneurs, and funding systemic initiatives.

Invite us to your Podcast