Innovative Philanthropy
“The Children’s Prize is not innovative in creating target products, but instead is innovative philanthropy; the Prize creates a holistic approach and follow-up that ensures a positive donor experience.” -John Oddy
On the 24th of January in Miami Beach, Florida several of the Children’s Prize Judges gathered for a strategic workshop. With backgrounds in global health, entrepreneurship, and philanthropy, the judges discussed the 2013 million-dollar competition and strategized the future of the Children’s Prize.
Our expert panel included Physician and Chair of Pediatrics for Emory University School of Medicine Dr. Barbara Stoll, Global Health expert for Save the Children Dr. Francesco Aureli, Managing Director at Fundsforngos.org and Founder and Managing Director at Philantropia Inc. Erik Detiger, Co-founder and head of Epiphany School Rev. John Finley, Senior Philanthropic Director at Foundation Source Mr. John Oddy, and Founder/CEO of Agora Partnerships Mr. Ben Powell.
Judging Committee and CCP Team
The workshop commenced with a discussion led by Dr. Anita Zaidi on her winning project, a five point package intervention for perinatal and child healthcare in Rehri Goth a rural fishing village just outside of Karachi, Pakistan. Dr. Zaidi elaborated on the impact that the Children’s Prize will have, “even after the one-million dollars for the project runs out, long-term effects will still be generated in Rehri Goth.” The judges interacted with Dr. Zaidi by posing questions regarding the implementation and sustainability of her project, asking her thoughts on the future of the Prize, and extending their support to ensure the success of her project in Pakistan. When asked to comment about her decision to apply for the Children’s Prize, Dr. Zaidi stated, “the attraction was that the application was to the point, and completing the application did not require an extensive amount of time.”
Throughout the day, the judges engaged in a variety of focused mini-sessions that gave key input to the Children’s Prize. This included reviewing the current prize process and brainstorming ideas for improvements. We received a range of suggestions that we will explore further including strategic partnerships, the structure and growth of the Prize, the application/judging process among many other points. For example, Dr. Barbara Stoll suggested, “what about specializing the Prize every year?” Each focused mini-session of the workshop generated genuine, lively, and meaningful discussion among all of those participating.
“The Caplow Children’s Prize is a terrific experience for public good.” –Dr. Barbara Stoll
As the workshop came to a close, the conversation focused on the valuable lessons learned in 2013 and the variety of challenges and opportunities which these present. One such opportunity is to leverage philanthropy – “if an organization cannot measure the impact of their intervention with a credible degree of accuracy, then money is being inefficiently spent,” expressed Dr. Ted Caplow. The Children’s Prize encourages scientific excellence in saving the lives of children under five.
We look forward to hosting future workshops that connect with individuals from different backgrounds and perspectives that share a unified goal of saving the lives of children under-five. The Children’s Prize wishes to thank all of those involved with this workshop for their time and commitment. The content and ideas generated are being carefully reviewed and considered for future implementation.
It is with great pleasure that we’d like to take a moment and announce that our global call for proposals will open in April of 2014. We invite you to join us, connect with us, and Think Biggest!
2014 Children’s Prize Announcement