At WINGS we have heard nothing but fantastic things about AVPN’s Conference this year, which is going to take place from the 24th of May in Hong Kong. We spoke to the CEO of AVPN, Naina Subberwal Batra, to find out more about the conference this year. 1) Tell us about this year’s AVPN Conference!…
Giving circles in Asia are an important and timely development in Asian philanthropy, but they are dispersed and unconnected across a vast geographical region. A new project will set the stage for a network of circles to collaborate on solutions to the region’s complex social issues.
WINGS member AVPN has been fast expanding its portfolio of resources and services. Now the Singapore-based network’s membership is searchable by beneficiary type, investee type, and country of operation.
Paul Shoemaker (Social Venture Partners International) looks forward to the positive future for social change he sees in Asia. “The level of CSR, impact investing, strategic and venture philanthropy being explored and implemented is quite impressive.”
Abbie Jung (Synergy Social Ventures) recaps the recent AVPN conference in Singapore, describing synergy as beneficial to the impact ecosystem in Asia, and how overcoming fear o failure can help. “Despite the old Chinese proverb, 失敗為成功之母 or ‘Failure is the mother of success’, fear of failure is still a major impediment to risk taking and social innovation in Asia.”
Stacey Choe, member services director at AVPN, previews the 2015 Conference and explains the network’s new Capability Development Model for the social investing community, a tool it hopes will also speak to organizations who aren’t yet fully familiar with the venture philanthropy concept.
WINGS membership and development coordinator Laura Fernandez reports on the 2014 EVPA Annual Conference in Berlin. “Collaboration was a key theme throughout the conference, drawing on the history of the host city, which illustrates the power of collaboration to confront challenges when building communities around a common purpose.”
The conference promoted a culture of information-sharing about social investing in Asia and many delegates went away with many more connections, which hopefully will go a long way beyond. Article by Stacey Choe.
October will see the 3rd annual AVPN Roadshow travelling to the cities of Hong Kong, Mumbai, Seoul, Singapore and Tokyo. The theme for this year’s roadshow is ‘Mobilising Human Capital’, a timely reminder of the importance of organisations’ most valuable assets. AVPN News spoke to Fiona Halton, Chief Executive of Pilotlight, about the upcoming roadshow.
The reality that measuring impact is still a relatively new phenomenon means there is still insufficient data available to develop standards. However, the enthusiasm of the participants showed that the market was definitely eager to move beyond checking off outputs, and to truly understand the wider social impact of their work. Article by Stacey Choe.
Missed the great networking and content at the AVPN Conference? Session videos are now uploaded on each of the individual session pages, along with the presentations and session reports, and you can view selected photos at the AVPN gallery.
Conducted by Marlon van Dijk of Social Evaluator, the AVPN workshop will go in depth into the conduct of social impact assessment using the web social e-valuator tool. By understanding that social impact matters, organisations can focus their activities and improve their strategy.
The inaugural Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) summit, more than any other gathering I’ve been to, provided concrete answers to the question: ‘how do business and philanthropy mix?’ Typically, they don’t. Yet social entrepreneurship, impact investing and venture philanthropy broadly blur the ‘two pockets’ into one by solving social problems with business models. If business—primarily entrepreneurship—and philanthropy blur into one pocket, the conference addressed the question: what’s the role of each? Article by Ross Baird.
What’s needed to create an enduring sector? 1) Government and legal enhancements that do not hinder the sector; 2) professional networks and qualified human capital; and 3) knowledge and evidence, including precise language. Article by Victor Kuo.
The European Venture Philanthropy and Social Investment sector continues to evolve. A new report published by the EVPA, provides key statistics and raises awareness so as to attract further resources for the sector. We met with Ruth Jones, Executive Director of Social Venture Partners (SVP) and WINGS board member, to recap her involvement with Asian Venture Philanthropy Network and talk briefly about what makes SVP different.
In a 2008 interview AVPN Chairman Doug Miller likened philanthropy to “a drug which produces feelings of both fulfillment and personal happiness: the more you do, the more you want to do.” We couldn’t agree more. In February, WINGS sat down with Miller to look at the sector through a business lens, and to preview this year’s inaugural AVPN Conference—what will be the network’s first conference in Asia.
Philanthropy in Focus 