The Power of WE: Meet Keynote Speaker David Haskell

Imagine sleeping in a three-by-two meter space with nine other members of your family and standing sewage on your floor.

It was to tackle housing conditions like this that Habitat for Humanity Egypt was founded. In Egypt, an estimated 20 million people – 20% of the population – live in substandard housing. However, for the first several years of operation, Habitat for Humanity Egypt's legal nonprofit registration was delayed. This precluded them from hiring staff, holding assets, making loans…

“Our weakness proved to be our greatest asset,” begins David Haskell, former regional director for Habitat for Humanity. The Habitat Egypt national director envisioned a different way forward, “An Egyptian proverb says, ‘The basket with two handles is meant to be carried by two.’ There are over 17,000 nonprofits registered in every corner of Egypt. We’ll team up.”

Habitat Egypt built a network of organizations that have a shared vision to provide adequate housing for every Egyptian. “Weak, we couldn’t go it alone,” says David. “So we cultivated friends. And explored networks. We assessed values alignment. And trusted volunteers. We forged collaboration. And empowered allies.” Even now, many of the houses built are not funded through Habitat, but through the network.

The result has been phenomenal success with minimal resources. Worldwide, Habitat had built 200,000 houses in its 30 year history. Habitat Egypt is on pace to build double that number of houses in just 25 years. And today, the repayment rate for the houses is 99.7% - exceptional by any standard.

His belief that the world’s problems are far bigger than any one organization can handle has led David Haskell to become a leading practitioner in network weaving, now as CEO of Dreams InDeed International, focusing on building networks of social entrepreneurs in “hard” places. At the conference, David will illustrate the power of networks to combat societal challenges, and how when well-intentioned, well-run nonprofits become nodes in a network, outcomes can improve dramatically.

Tactical Philanthropy's
Sean Stannard-Stockton

As a Chronicle of Philanthropy columnist and the author of the Tactical Philanthropy blog, Sean Stannard-Stockton has a finger on the pulse of everything that’s happening in philanthropy – and has carved an important role as one who shines a light on trends, needs and opportunities in the sector.

A long-time observer, supporter and challenger of the activities of SVP, Sean will give a plenary speech on the role of influence in philanthropy and lead a brainstorming session on how SVP can best use its influence to increase philanthropic impact. During a recent interview about the Giving Pledge on WHYY, Sean said, “My interest is in… those of us who may not be billionaires changing the way we’re giving… I think people approach philanthropy far more reactively than they approach investing.”

SVP’s engaged philanthropy model uniquely positions us to usher in a new wave of thoughtful, deliberate, effective donors. “[SVP Partners] are deeply passionate about philanthropy and the causes they support. They are so passionate that they want to be sure that the work they do actually produces results.” We’re thrilled to have Sean challenge and inspire us at the conference this year!