Social Innovation

Why business can be good at solving social problems... This is an interesting TedTalk from a business school professor - he works with businesses to make money.  He applies his perspective to applying business perspectives to non-government and social organizations.  The problem he sees is that we are not making fast enough progress.  The progress is incremental, but they aren't scalable. Things can be made better, we are helping, but we can't make large scale impact because there's not enough money to make enough impact.

We know that money doesn't buy happiness, but it can buy security, which can make room in our lives to be happy and fulfilled.  And more money provides opportunities to be able to help others. 

 In order to be able to help others, our needs need to be met.  As in the preflight instructions recited by every flight attendant on every flight - we are to put on our own oxygen mask before we can help others.  We can do no good, we cannot help others, if we are losing consciousness because we don't have air to breathe.  This applies in many facets of our lives, to our spiritual growth, to our ability to care for others, and in our ability to lift others. 

While there are many facets to the question:

What does it take to make changes in the world?

Ideas, passion, help, are all important, but it all takes money.  Money is required to pay rent, to make photo copies, to allow a social innovator to eat and have a place to live so that they can go do good things.  And money is needed to create a presence, to share ideas, to grow the ideas, to scale the passion and the innovation.  There is money out there, but a common phrase - applicable in business as well as in social innovation is that "It takes money to make money."  There is very little impact that can be made without funding and a source for revenue to make a difference. 

Child and Family Advocacy INSIGHTS:  As you seek to understand and promote the truth about children and families, you will need to the guidance of the Holy Spirit to discern errors in science and reason. The Holy Ghost's role is to testify of truth, and He is no respecter of sources, meaning, whether a truth comes from scripture or a research study, He will testify of it because it is truth. President Russell M. Nelson summarized it well in his talk, Let Your Faith Show,   when he boldly declared:

"I had such a test decades ago when one of my medical faculty colleagues chastised me for failing to separate my professional knowledge from my religious convictions. He demanded that I not combine the two. How could I do that? Truth is truth! It is not divisible, and any part of it cannot be set aside.

"Whether truth emerges from a scientific laboratory or through revelation, all truth emanates from God. All truth is part of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Yet I was being asked to hide my faith. I did not comply with my colleague’s request. I let my faith show!"

I have always loved and appreciated the views of the gospel and the wise counsel of the apostles and prophets to help us understand the truths of our existence by using science and faith.  Understanding that the more we learn, via science and faith, helps us learn and have deeper understanding of both.

IMPLICATIONS:  It is frustrating that there are so many pro-science arguments against having faith.  I think that it is pride and ignorance of those that are unwilling to consider divinity and faith (and I’m sure they would say the same about religious people…) as a valid prospect in all aspects of the universe. As stated in the video Does Science Argue For or Against God?  By Eric Metaxas, he asks “at what point is it fair to admit that science itself suggests that we cannot be the result of random forces?”  Those that argue against God require proof, however cannot accept the lack of evidence not disproving it as proof.  All the while claiming that “science is not settled,” etc.  I also loved this phrase in the reading: “Latter-day Saints should not fear or avoid using science and research in their advocacy work.“

INQUIRIES:  We are in such a trying time, with so much “science,” and “facts” and “evidence,” but so little trust in any of the reported results due to corruption, propaganda, bias, etc. While we, as Latter-day Saints, know to lean on the promptings of the spirit, how can we take that “evidence” into the public square?  I know, for me, the COVID19 situation is so divisive, political, corrupt, and emotional, it is so difficult to discern fact from fiction, news from propaganda, fear from faith.  The state of our liberty, the world’s economies, and future are on the brink of peril because of all of the division, politics, corruption, and lack of trust.  While I am consciously working to overcome my fear with faith, and understand that we are living in a time and experiencing things that have been prophesied about, the anxiety that accompanies this makes feeling the spirit difficult.