I swear, this is not what I typically spend my weekend nights doing. Really.

Great trailer on How To Be A Philanthropist In The 21st Century. This short clip gives a general overview of where philanthropy is heading in our lifetime.

The creators write, “Despite us still being in the midst of a global recession, the number of super-wealthy individuals is on the rise, increasing by 8 per cent a year for the last 10 years, according to Merrill Lynch, and there are now 450,000 millionaires in the UK alone.”

(That seems to make basic sense to me. Money leaves one place, it must go somewhere else, right? Or maybe not. I’m no smartie pants.)

But even for the average non-millionaire, we need to really assess how we’re giving. As one woman (Dame Stephanie Shirley) says in the video, it’s not about how much we give, but how we give.

“Billions are wasted on ineffective philanthropy. Philanthropy is decades behind business in applying rigorous thinking to the use of money.”
- Michael Porter

People get offended when I criticize or question (tactfully!) an organization. But the truth is, we need to be wise when it comes to investing in a better world — or else we just end up throwing money and effort at the world and hoping it sticks.

Last week, I had the great opportunity to meet with Simon Höher (@jimmiehu) and Emanuel Schwarz (@emustweet), founders of Knowable. The two Berlin boys were in town for the Social Good Summit, but thanks to the infamous Christian Vanizette (MakeSense.org), we were able to squeeze in some coffee and chat about development work and their start-up adventure.

The purpose of knowable.org is to connect creative ideas in order to solve everyday problems in developing countries. Currently, the guys are in start-up mode and therefore doing some crowd-funding. Check out their recently released video that better explains their pretty fabulous idea:

I can attest to the fact that knowable.org is not only a great idea, but it’s also run by some really great and super chill guys. I’d recommend checking them out and perhaps donating a few bucks to help get this idea off and running. If you can’t give money but have experience or connections on the ground in developing countries, don’t be afraid to reach out to them also. And if you ever find yourself in Germany, they’re hiring!

It’s official. The Adventure Project is having a Cocktail Party next week in Soho, and it looks like it’s going to be awesome. The crowd expected to attend will be mostly young leaders and entrepreneurs in the tech, media, socent, and international nonprofit industries, amazing supporters, and folks who just like a good party.

Complimentary cocktail drinks + time to hear from Becky Straw and Jody Landers, two incredible women working on making a lasting impact. They’ll be sharing about the work being done with entrepreneurs in Haiti, India, Kenya, and Uganda.

Details of the party:
When: Wednesday, September 21, 2011 — 7pm to 9pm
Where: 1534 (20 Prince Street, between Elizabeth and Mott)
Why: Support entrepreneurs in developing countries
Cost: $20

Honestly, complimentary drinks + doing good? Not a bad combo for an evening.

Hope to see your beautiful faces there.

I had posted this TED Talk a while back on my previous blog but recently came across is again. I think it’s great, and Jacqueline, as I had said in that old post, is an amazing woman.

The video is a bit lengthy but it’s really great, I assure you. Among the many inspiring stories she tells is one of a little girl during the United States’ early stages of desegregation (around 14:25 in the clip), which is a favorite for me.

Jacqueline Novogratz is the author of The Blue Sweater and the founder of Acumen Fund.

I just came across a post from The Adventure Project‘s co-founder Becky Straw. She writes about why you shouldn’t start a nonprofit, highlighting really simple but true points — the lack of income, the rate of failure, the overall difficulty, etc. But I think her sixth and last point, Prepare for the “why,” is probably the most important one to take into consideration. I remember hearing the statistic that there are 300 million people in the United States and 1 million registered non-profits, and I thought, “That’s silly.” Because it is.

Anyways, I’ll stop talking about it and just let you read it because I think it’s good and simple and to the point. And it’s written by someone who has had experience starting up two non-profits. That’s two more than me.