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Agenda


8:30  Registration

9:00  Welcome and Introductory Remarks

  • Steven Knapp – President, George Washington University

  • Christopher Meyer - Founder and CEO, Nerve; Author, Standing on the Sun | Conference Facilitator

  • Joseph Firschein - Deputy Associate Director and Community Affairs Officer, Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

  • Joseph Cordes - Professor of Economics, Public Policy and Public Administration, and International Affairs; Associate Director, Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration

  • Elizabeth Boris – Director, Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, The Urban Institute

  • Rajiv Joshi – Managing Director, The B Team


9:30  Framing the Discussion: Fourth Sector Economic Development

  • Heerad Sabeti – Convening Trustee, Fourth Sector Networks


9:50  Advancing The Fourth Sector: The Leadership Perspective
Enterprise executives discuss how to scale the fourth sector’s contributions to economic development, job creation, and community problem-solving from a practical, on-the-ground perspective. 

  • How does the fourth sector contribute to economic, social and environmental development?

  • What opportunities do these firms present for investors seeking blended returns?

  • How does operating a for-benefit enterprise differ from running a traditional for-profit or nonprofit?

  • What key structural and policy challenges do for-benefit enterprises and investors face?

  • How has the fourth sector ecosystem evolved over the past 10-20 years? What are the key trends and growth opportunities?

  • What data are needed to help practitioners improve decision-making and effectiveness?


Moderator: Kathy Calvin - President and CEO, United Nations Foundation; Leader, The B Team 

Contributors:
Ross Baird - Executive Director, Village Capital
Victoria Bjorklund - Founder, Exempt Organizations Group, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP 
Jean Case - CEO, Case Foundation 
Thomas Policelli - CEO, Minuteman Health

Commentary: “The Invisible Heart of Markets”
Sir Ronald Cohen – Chairman, Big Society Capital; Chair, G8 Social Impact Investment Taskforce 

11:00  Break

11:15  Advancing The Fourth Sector: The Policy Perspective
Senior policy makers discuss how legal, regulatory and measurement frameworks can evolve to support the growth of the fourth sector.

  • How can for-benefit enterprises help address key priorities like healthcare, education, energy, fiscal reform, foreign policy and others?

  • What innovative policy approaches exist to support for-benefit enterprises and catalyze impact investing?  How are they working?

  • How can policymakers at the local, state and federal levels better leverage the potential of the fourth sector? What are the obstacles and opportunities?

  • What data are needed to help policymakers improve decision-making and effectiveness?


Keynote Address:

  • Congressman John K. Delaney


Moderator: Russell Sullivan - Partner, McGuireWoods LLP; Former Staff Director, Senate Finance Committee

Contributors:

  • Don Graves - Deputy Assistant to the President and Counselor to the Vice President

  • Mark Prater - Deputy Staff Director and Chief Tax Counsel, Senate Finance Committee

  • Richard Geisenberger - Chief Deputy Secretary of State, State of Delaware


12:15  Break 

12:35  Harvard Summit Video

12:40  Design Lab: Defining and Mapping the Fourth Sector
Interactive design sessions focused on clarifying the boundaries of the fourth sector, differentiating among different types of for-benefit organizations, and identifying the data required by policymakers, economic developers, investors, enterprises, and other key stakeholders in the fourth sector. Participants will analyze the sector from multiple perspectives, surface areas of agreement and divergence, and identify priorities for further development. 

Part 1: The Building Blocks
Members of the Fourth Sector Mapping Initiative will share the results of their deliberations to-date and highlight key issues for consideration. Questions and discussion to follow.

Contributors:

  • Elizabeth Boris – Director, Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, The Urban Institute; Co-Lead, Fourth Sector Mapping Initiative

  • Arturo Gonzalez - Manager, Consumer & Community Development Research, Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System: Use Cases

  • Nathan Dietz - Senior Research Associate, Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, Urban Institute: Drafting Process Overview

  • Allen Bromberger – Partner, Perlman & Perlman, LLP: Definition and Taxonomy Development

  • Andrew Hewitt - Founder & CEO, GameChangers 500: Survey Instrument Design


Part 2: Definition and Taxonomy of For-Benefit Organizations 
Working groups examine different perspectives on the fourth sector to identify areas of agreement and divergence:

  • What characteristics do all for-benefit organizations have in common?

  • What characteristics distinguish for-benefit organizations from traditional nonprofit, for-profit, and governmental organizations?

  • What attributes provide useful distinctions among different types of for-benefit entities, from the perspectives of policymakers, investors, researchers, and other key stakeholders?


Part 3: Data Requirements
Working groups analyze and prioritize data required on for-benefit organizations and their supportive ecosystem, from the points of view of different stakeholders:

  • What data are needed to help policymakers, economic developers, investors, managers, funders, and other fourth sector stakeholders make better decisions?

  • What data requirements are common to all stakeholders? What may be some specialized data needs?


Reporting of highlights from working group discussions.

2:50  Break 

3:10  Design Lab: A Fourth Sector Data Commons
Explore how an open, participatory “Data Commons” can enable mapping efforts and accelerate the development of knowledge about the fourth sector.

Contributors:

  • Joel Getzendanner - Principal, Commons Consulting: Data Commons Architecture

  • Jeffrey Gedmin - Senior Fellow, Georgetown University, and Senior Fellow, Institute for Strategic Dialogue: Data Commons in Practice


3:30  Action Lab: Building the Commons
Interactive session exploring how to accelerate and support growth of the Fourth Sector. Participants have an opportunity to weave together and build on the ideas initiated in the Design Labs, identify opportunities for collaboration, find potential partners and supporters, and make commitments to action.

Contributors:

  • Rajiv Joshi – Managing Director, The B Team

  • Robin Raj – Founder and Executive Creative Director, CitizenGroup: Global Outreach and Engagement

  • Matt Bogoshian – Senior Policy Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Regional Fourth Sector Development Efforts


4:45  Closing Plenary
Recap of the day’s highlights, significant commitments to action, and potential next steps.

Reception

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