Podcast Episode 16
#016: We Made This System Up, We Can Change It.
Criterion is a systems change organization. We’ve been working with governments, investors, and civil society for over two decades to create systems change that reduces inequities, by using or changing systems of finance and investments. We have figured out a lot about how to do systems change works. But undergirding that is the assumption that systems can change. Even finance. Markets and monetary flows are often naturalized, described as if they happen with out any interventions… but the reality is these are systems that humans operate. A gentle but important reminder that humans like us made this system up, so we can change it. We just need to believe it’s possible, and be willing to use our own power in the process.
On this episode, we start by looking back to what teaching high school in Brooklyn New York taught Joy about systems change and continues to inform her 'Why’ at Criterion. Then, Joy unpacks why, in order to be able to reimagine systems of finance, you need to begin by breaking it down into its component parts – and a few places you might start. Finally, some reflections on a recent workshop Criterion did with WUSC in Kenya and who sees themselves as able (or unable) to change those systems.
Episode Highlights:
Relevant Links:
The Blueprints demonstrate how a variety of social change organizations can design strategies that use systems of finance as tools to create positive social change.
These roadmaps lay out insights for how finance can be used to address gender-based violence in a range of sectors, asset classes, geographies, and investor types.
The TOOLKIT is designed to support your journey as you explore how finance can be used as a tool to create social change.
1K Churches was launched in 2012 to galvanize a movement in the faith-based community and engage US churches to invest in the local economy.
These gender-based violence due diligence tools analyze existing due diligence categories – including political, regulatory, operational, and reputational risks – and show how they can be affected by gender-based violence.
Gender-based violence is ubiquitous. More than 1 in 3 women worldwide experiences physical or sexual violence, and millions of men, boys, and gender-diverse individuals are affected by physical, sexual, and emotional abuse daily.