Jessica Jackley speaks on “Entrepreneurship as a Tool for Social Change”
Entrepreneur
and investor Jessica Jackley, a pioneer in the field of microfinance, delivered the most recent Tanner Lecture on Ethics, Citizenship, and Public
Responsibility, which is now available online, on Tuesday, March 18 in Maxwell Auditorium.
Jackley is
cofounder and former chief marketing officer of Kiva, the world's first
peer-to-peer microlending website, which allows users to lend as little as $25
to individual entrepreneurs, providing affordable capital to help them start or
expand a small business. Kiva has been
one of the fastest-growing social benefit websites in history and, since its
founding in 2005, has facilitated over $500 million in loans among individuals
across 216 countries.
Convinced
that social change happens across all sectors, Jackley has worked in public,
nonprofit, and private organizations including the Stanford Center for Social
Innovation, Amazon, World Vision, Village Enterprise Fund, Project Baobab,
Potentia Media, and others. She currently
serves as an investor and advisor with the Collaborative Fund, investing in
entrepreneurs who want to change the world through emerging technologies. She is also a Visiting Practitioner at
Stanford’s Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society.
Jackley has
taught Entrepreneurial Design for Social Change at Drew University and Global
Entrepreneurship at the Marshall School of Business at the University of
Southern California. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations; a
2011 World Economic Forum Young Global Leader; and has served as an active
board member or advisor for numerous organizations championing women,
microfinance, tech, and the arts including Upstart, International Museum of
Women, Allowance for Good, Global Health Corps, Opportunity International,
Vittana, Fuse Corps, and others.
She holds an
MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business with Certificates in Global
Management and Public Management, a BA in Philosophy and Political Science from
Bucknell University, and honorary PhDs from Centenary College and Quinnipiac
University.
The Tanner
Lecture Series on Ethics, Citizenship, and Public Responsibility provides a
public forum for exploring questions about ethical citizenship in provocative
and challenging ways. The series has
been generously endowed by alumnus W. Lynn Tanner '75 PhD, founder, CEO, and
chairman of TEC Canada, a leadership development organization dedicated to
accelerating the growth and development of outstanding 21st-century leaders.
A reception
will be held immediately following the March 18 event. A reduced parking rate is available in the
Irving Parking Garage, when mentioning the event. 03/06/14