Emerson Collective

“At Emerson Collective, we are honored to invest in entrepreneurs and innovators who are working to create a world of abundance for future generations. As we bring 2024 to a close, it’s my pleasure to highlight a few of these leaders, whose unwavering sense of purpose will inspire us in the new year and for many years to come." -LPJ Read a year-end letter from Emerson Collective Founder and President Laurene Powell Jobs: https://lnkd.in/eeHUqhJV

"Music is sometimes the thing that allows you to stand up when people say sit down, it's a thing that allows you to speak when people say be quiet. There’s a power in it." — Bryan Stevenson, Founder of Equal Justice Initiative, in conversation with EC’s Founder and President Laurene Powell Jobs at The New Orleans Book Festival. Bryan spoke about the music he loves—jazz, gospel—and the critical role music plays in movements for a more just society. You can see the entire conversation here: https://lnkd.in/eDAAvvDw

"Music is sometimes the thing that allows you to stand up when people say sit down, it's a thing that allows you to speak when people say be quiet. There’s a power in it." — Bryan Stevenson, Founder of Equal Justice Initiative, in conversation with EC’s Founder and President Laurene Powell Jobs at The New Orleans Book Festival. Bryan spoke about the music he loves—jazz, gospel—and the critical role music plays in movements for a more just society. You can see the entire conversation here: https://lnkd.in/eDAAvvDw

“You’ve probably heard that it takes a village to raise a child, but who raises the village?” That's Reginald Dwayne Betts, Esq. musing about the ways the places we're from shape us—and the ways we shape them. It's an inquiry he explores in the upcoming season of Almost There, the Emerson Collective Fellows' podcast, which drops in April. And it's a question I took to heart in writing this month's Fellows Forward newsletter. Tami Pyfer, who has had a long career in public service, helps people disagree better. It’s something she learned a little bit about all the way back in her first job in representative government: PTA president. Aisha Nyandoro draws on the history of resilience, resourcefulness, and radical imagination in her city, Jackson, Mississippi, as she supports moms raising the city’s next generation. Dwayne developed a law practice, a nonprofit organization, and most recently, a one-man show that all aim to create new opportunities for incarcerated people. You can read their stories in this month’s newsletter. The point is: We all have the power to help raise the village. How are you raising yours? Shout-outs: Teddy Abrams Cal Crosby Karen Washington Rahsaan Thomas Abel Acuña Kimie Miner Chuck Yarborough Wendy Red Star

Three EC partners have been named as winners of the 2025 Skoll Foundation Award for Social Innovation! 👏 Community Health Impact Coalition, EarthEnable, and Healthy Learners are driving transformational change in sustainable housing, community health, and child health. These organizations are dedicated to social change around the world, through a variety of tools.  A huge congratulations to all the award winners! Read more: https://lnkd.in/ev7Axf6R

Efficiency and empathy don't need to be opposing forces, but essential partners. ICYMI 🗞️ In a Chicago Tribune op-ed, Emerson Collective's Chief Technology Officer, Raffi Krikorian, explores how we can build systems that center on both better technology and humanity.    Read the story: https://lnkd.in/eWDbMhfi

Many companies are scaling back community commitments—but evidence shows that strategically designed impact initiatives can fuel business growth.   Emerson Collective's Susy Schöneberg, in Harvard Business Review, writes that in today’s increasingly complex business landscape, integrated impact-driven strategies can unlock new markets, strengthen brand loyalty, and create competitive advantages that drive measurable business results.   Susy breaks it down to four key principles to guide leaders designing impact growth engines: 1️⃣ Listen before leaping 2️⃣ Deploy your core strengths 3️⃣ Make impact drive value 4️⃣ Design for the long run   Read more: https://lnkd.in/ebMf9sN3

🏡 Meet the newest cohort of EC Fellows—each taking on a hyperlocal project to help their community come together and solve problems. Follow their stories, and read more about each project at https://lnkd.in/eMGzmrHG. Rachel Reynolds | Todd Richardson | Natalia Crujeiras Trujillo | Terry Tempest Williams | AlexAnna Salmon | Molly Hemstreet | Djamil Djibril Bah traore, CHIA, MHM | Bri Stensrud | Nina Chase | Chris Merritt | Salamishah Tillet

"Governments must prepare for continued climate migration. When millions of people are forced to abandon their homes due to extreme weather, the consequences ripple within and beyond borders." Climate Migration Council member Leon E. Panetta's op-ed, out this week, argues that climate change is a grave security threat. The former U.S. Secretary of Defense and director of the CIA shares a multi-faceted approach that proposes a forward-looking approach to stabilizing populations in light of the current climate crisis. Read the piece in Just Security: https://lnkd.in/e8FgVKtn

The Inc. Magazine #FemaleFounders500 list is out, and we have incredible leaders to celebrate! 🎉 The list recognizes exceptional business entrepreneurs.   Rebecca Hu-Thrams, an Emerson Collective Dial Fellow, is the co-founder of Glacier, a company transforming recycling with AI-powered robots 🦾 that rescue 130M items from landfills each year.    EC Dial Fellow Shara Ticku co-founded C16 Biosciences. They created Palmless™, a palm oil alternative made from yeast rather than trees, addressing a major driver of tropical deforestation. 🌴   And Dawn Lippert is Emerson's own Senior Climate Advisor and CEO of Elemental Impact. Under Dawn's leadership, Elemental has pioneered an approach to bridge the climate technology Scale Gap, investing in 160+ climate companies with deep community impact.    Read more about these leaders: https://lnkd.in/gEb9rQb9