Social Innovation in a New World: A Rapid-Fire Overview with Christopher Marquis and Benjamin Stone

Over the last decade, society has increasingly demanded that corporations (public and private) and their investors not only pursue profits but also strive to generate positive social impact. In the face of a global pandemic, economic uncertainty, and a heightened focus on inequality, this emphasis on social innovation has dramatically accelerated.

You may have heard many different terms related to social innovation: ESG, DEI, JEDI, social entrepreneurship, social enterprise, public benefit corporations, B-Corps, CSR, greenwashing, conscious consumerism, impact investing, and stakeholder primacy, among others. But what do these actually mean, and how are they related to each other? Join Christopher Marquis, a professor who teaches about sustainable enterprises and management at the Cornell SCJ Johnson College of Business and author of Better Business: How the B Corp Movement Is Remaking Capitalism, and Benjamin Stone, a Mintz corporate attorney and a former social entrepreneur and executive, for a broad discussion of the social innovation landscape. Our speakers will break down these concepts and provide a rapid-fire overview of the exciting, complex, and quickly evolving world of social innovation.