One Campus. One Weekend. 2 Conferences :: Papua New Guinea Development & Social Entrepreneurship

I'll be hoping around Stanford's campus this weekend, dropping into the following two conferences. Looking forward to it!


photo: Papua New Guinea

Stanford - Papua New Guinea Conference on Development
Taking place on Stanford's campus from February 26 - 28th, the conference will bring together students, faculty, and experts from Stanford, as well as institutions across Australia and Papua New Guinea.

The conference aims to look at the many challenges of international development – and the intersection of health, environmental, governance and education concerns and policies – through the case study of a single country, and to inspire discussion and research on the future development of Papua New Guinea.

Panels include:
* Challenges in Public Health: Infectious Disease and Community Solutions
* Education as Empowerment: Creating Infrastructure for Universal Access and Achievement
* Conservation and Corruption: Toward Environmentally Sustainable Development
* Building A State: Governance, Civil Society, and the Rule of Law

More info about the schedule here.

Register here. The conference is free for Stanford Community Members, and $15 for members of the public.

The conference will be streaming live online, here. Viewers will be able to type questions for panelists to be read aloud by the moderator. For viewers in PNG, do note that PNG time is 18 hours AHEAD of California time. Viewing requires internet access and a free, quick registration; no additional programs or drivers necessary. All videos will be archived on the website.




The Annual Entrepreneurship Week @ Stanford
This is a chance to bring the Stanford community together for a week (February 21 - 28) and focus on a theme that is taken rather for granted around here - the importance of entrepreneurial leadership and the role it must play in helping to solve some of the world's most pressing problems.

Most E-Week events are free and open to all students, parents, alumni and members of the public. No RSVP's needed, but arrive early - the organizers expect the events to fill up, and they must follow the fire code regarding room capacity.

Of the conference's weekend events, this one interests me the most. I'm also psyched about the showcase -

Structures for Social Enterprise: Panel and Showcase
Sunday - 3:00-5:00 PM, Wallenberg Hall Learning Theater, Building 160

Sponsored by the Center for Social Innovation, this lively panel discussion features social entrepreneurs Kjerstin Erickson (FORGEnow.org), Eve Blossom (Lulan.com), and Esther Kim (REDF.org). Moderated by Kriss Deiglmeier, executive director for the Center for Social Innovation, the panel will discuss nonprofit, for-profit and hybrid models for starting and growing a social enterprise. From 4-5 p.m., mingle with entrepreneurs at a fair showcasing their intriguing early-stage social ventures, sponsored by Neerja Raman of Media X at Stanford University.

Social entrepreneurs available for interaction during the showcase are:

* Lloyd Nimetz: Blitz Bazaar: Starting and Creating a Movement
* Akshay Kothari, Kapeesh Saraf: Design for Extreme Affordability Workshop
* Varun Jain: E4SI: Engineers for Social Impact
* Anu Mahal: Development Alternatives
* Carlos Miranda Levy, Margarita Quihuis: How Social Media Allows Us to Instantly Organize for Crisis Intervention
* Viji Dilip: Bookshare International: Reaching Out to the Print Disabled in Developing Nations
* DC Jayasundera: Rural Returns: Better Value Chains for the Rural Poor
* Rodrigo Santibanez: Puentes Global: Non-Profit International Employment Agency for Low-Income Workers

Hosts: Center for Social Innovation, GSB, and Neerja Raman of Media X at Stanford University