Jacqueline Novogratz Quotes & Sayings

I think I still have a great sense of adventure and trust, and am surprisingly idealistic given all the horrible things I've seen since I was 25. I think how I have changed is that I have a much deeper understanding of the dark forces in the world, of power. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Wealth today has been created by a world view dominated by fast-moving networks, open information, bottom-up entrepreneurialism. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Sometimes very small investments can release enormous, infinite potential that exists in all of us. — Jacqueline Novogratz

My first grade nun had instructed me that from those to whom much is given, much is expected. I was learning that this lesson had to be combined with Shakespeare's wisdom that one must 'to thine own self be true.' Add to this humility, empathy, a sense of curiosity, courage, and plain old hard work, and I was finally seeing the real path to leadership. Of course, humor is always a plus. (158) — Jacqueline Novogratz

I've been working on issues of poverty for more than 20 years, and so it's ironic that the problem that and question that I most grapple with is how you actually define poverty. What does it mean? — Jacqueline Novogratz

Acumen Fund's patient capital investment in Western Seed is intended to enhance the food security and economic independence of Kenya's smallholder farmers. — Jacqueline Novogratz

If there's one value that is immutable, it's integrity or respect, for others and for yourself. — Jacqueline Novogratz

It's about all of us, and the kind of world that we, together, want to live in and share. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The human spirit is extraordinary. If we give the 3 billion people who live in poverty the opportunity to change their lives, they will. For too long, we've looked at needing to "save" these people - with an emphasis on "these people" - rather than removing the constraints keeping them from solving their own problems. — Jacqueline Novogratz

When people gain income, they gain choice, and that is fundamental to dignity. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Philanthropy is no longer about writing a check for $10,000 to the opera. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Each of us can work to change a small portion of events. And it's in the total of all those acts that the history of this generation will be written. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Why do some people stop growing at age 30, just going from work to the couch and television, when others stay vibrant, curious, almost childlike into their nineties? — Jacqueline Novogratz

Grief releases love and it also instills a profound sense of connection. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Poverty is not only about income levels, but for lack of freedom that comes from physical insecurity — Jacqueline Novogratz

I was encouraged to break all the rules but to take the best of philanthropy, the best of investing, and the best of development finance, and experiment with new ways to create this venture capital model of using philanthropy to back patient capital investments, and then build solutions that were measured in terms of the kind of impact and change they were making on people's lives and in the world, not just on the financial return. — Jacqueline Novogratz

People need to believe that they can participate fully in the decisions that affect their lives and have a stake in the societies in which they live — Jacqueline Novogratz

People have to understand that unless social enterprise is experimental, it will not succeed in making a difference. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Too often people view idealists as naive. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I was an accidental banker. To please my parents, I went for an interview with Chase Manhattan Bank in 1983. They promised to send me into their offices in more than 40 countries and essentially audit the practices. It was an extraordinary job. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Entrepreneurs are the seekers of solutions, and that they will go into these places where both market and traditional aid has failed or traditional charity has failed. — Jacqueline Novogratz

When we deny the poor and the vulnerable their own human dignity and capacity for freedom and choice, it becomes self-denial. It becomes a denial of both our collective and individual dignity, at all levels of society. — Jacqueline Novogratz

What we call people so often distances us from them, and makes them little. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The only way we really create change is to enter any situation with the humility to listen and to recognize the world as it is, and then the audacity to dream what it could be. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Every day we have a choice. We can take the easier road, the more cynical road, which is a road sometimes based on a dream of a past that never was, fear of each other, distancing and blame, or we can take the much more difficult path, the road of transformation, transcendence, compassion, and love, but also accountability and justice. — Jacqueline Novogratz

In India, we now see many highly qualified professionals ready to work in the rural hinterland and in their own towns and cities to tackle development issues directly without depending much on the government. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I dream a world in no one feels the need for or fear of predatory behavior, in which each of us walks with the knowledge of how beautiful - and valuable - is each human life. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I am an insomniac. Most of my nights include a moment of wakening. Often I will make my way to the kitchen to make tea and read for awhile. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Traditional charity and aid are never going to solve the problems of poverty. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We see very, very high rates of C-sections, Cesarean sections, in India. Lots of reasons for it, high levels of malnutrition have meant that women have very small pelvic areas often, so if they have larger babies, it's very hard to deliver. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Honour what is most beautiful about the past and build it into the promise of the future. — Jacqueline Novogratz

One of the first things that surprised me in a positive, wonderfully positive way, is that this works - patient capital works. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Standing with the poor means walking away from unethical leaders, even when their companies are 'succeeding.' — Jacqueline Novogratz

I am so happy, too, though I never married. You know, there are many paths in a life. But the best ones are the ones where you are living the truth and search for good and giving to others. — Jacqueline Novogratz

If indeed we can create systems that allow individuals to access goods and services like health and housing and energy and water, in a way that they can afford, they'll all have greater choice, greater opportunity, greater dignity. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I think we so often equate leadership with being experts - the leader is supposed to come in and fix things. But in this interconnected world we live in now, it's almost impossible for just one person to do that. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I wrote 'The Blue Sweater' to inspire more people to become engaged in working to solve the problems of global poverty. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Africa can stun you in an instant. It can throw floods and drought and disease at you, sometimes all at the same time. In the next moment, it will tease you with its magnificent beauty, so even if you don't forget, you can find a way to forgive. Ultimately, it keeps you coming back for more. — Jacqueline Novogratz

There is power in creating a small model, and then you can create an alliance of other small models. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Rockefeller viewed his philanthropy through the lens of his business, and it really mirrored the Industrial Revolution. It was highly centralized, it was top down, it was based on experts, and it was big-picture. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Today, poor people the world over are seeking opportunity and choice to have greater dignity in their lives - and they want to do it themselves, even if they need a little help. Today we have the tools and technologies to bring real opportunities to people all across the world. — Jacqueline Novogratz

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting. - BUDDHA — Jacqueline Novogratz

Today, 30-year-olds are becoming social entrepreneurs. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Despite the hundreds of non-governmental organizations and the continued outpouring of foreign aid, East Africa remains as a region overwhelmed by extreme poverty. — Jacqueline Novogratz

For too much of history, we've viewed the world's precious resources - both environmental and human - as things to extract, to make the most of in order to maximize their potential. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Being poor doesn't mean being ordinary. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I have seen that traditional approaches to charity and aid don't solve problems of poverty. In fact, too often they create dependence. — Jacqueline Novogratz

May each of you live lives of immersion. They won't necessarily be easy lives. But in the end, it is all that will sustain us. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Hope is a path on the mountainside. At first there is no path. But then there are people passing that way. And there is a path. - LU XUN — Jacqueline Novogratz

What is the cost of not daring? What is the cost of not trying? — Jacqueline Novogratz

I've learned that there is no currency like trust and no catalyst like hope. There is nothing worse for building relationships than pandering, on one hand, and preaching, on the other. And the most important quality we must all strengthen in ourselves is that of a deep human empathy, for that will provide the most hope of all
and the foundation for our collective survival. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Honorata's story reminds me of the extraordinary power of the human spirit to withstand almost anything. Her story also speaks to the power of service, to living a life of purpose, and to keeping the flame of hope alive. (175) — Jacqueline Novogratz

We need leaders, we ourselves need to lead from a place that has the audacity to believe that we ourselves can extend the fundamental assumption that all men are created equal to every, man woman and child on this planet. And we need the humility to recognize that we cannot do it alone. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The poor also are willing to make, and do make, smart decisions, if you give them that opportunity. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The best change that comes to the world is when all parties are seeing each other as equal, and all parties have the opportunity to be transformed. That really goes back to the idea of dignity. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We are connected, but the weave is sometimes fragile. (192) — Jacqueline Novogratz

Our lives are so short. And our time on this planet is so precious. All we have is each other. — Jacqueline Novogratz

There are probably no more market-oriented individuals on the planet, than low income people. — Jacqueline Novogratz

What would the world look like if we asked ourselves the following more often; are our actions helping others find a way to feel more freer, more dignified and more beautiful? — Jacqueline Novogratz

As a 25-year-old banker, I decided to leave my career and change the world. This sounds like a move that a 25-year-old banker might make today - to escape the chaos. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We need moral leadership and courage in our world. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Africans didn't want saving, thank you very much, least of all not by me. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Freedom is what beauty feels like when it can most express itself. — Jacqueline Novogratz

To be part of building a movement, you have to keep moving. — Jacqueline Novogratz

As our world becomes increasingly interconnected, we need to find better solutions that will include everyone in today's opportunities. (197) — Jacqueline Novogratz

The time for us to begin innovating and looking for new solutions is now. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We live in a world in which we're seeing an increasing gap between the haves and the have-nots. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Dignity is more important than wealth. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I feel like I'm a relentless, pragmatic, determined optimist. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I'm relentless in that I deeply believe in people. — Jacqueline Novogratz

If we have learned anything, it is the horror that can happen when people don't think for themselves, but instead follow authority blindly. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Impact investing has become a broad umbrella that includes all investing with a focus on both financial return and social impact, but in its best form, impact investing prioritizes impact over returns and achieves outcomes that traditional investing cannot. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I was going to save the world, and I thought I would start with the African continent. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Even when early innovations start to succeed, it is not uncommon to see growing businesses sabotaged for threatening the status quo. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Very small investments can release the infinite potential that lies in all of us. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Poverty is too complex to be answered with a one-size-fits-all approach, and if there is any place that illustrates that complexity, as well as a better way forward, it is Rwanda. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Don't let people tell you to do it this way. You are on the verge of figuring out hybrid models
with companies and nonprofits, markets, government, crowd-sourced philanthropy. The capitalist system as we know it is not working. — Jacqueline Novogratz

People really don't want handouts, that they want to make their own decisions. — Jacqueline Novogratz

There's a real moral imperative in being an organization that takes the time to sit and listen to the customers and the people they're serving. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Acumen Fund is my prayer in response to genocide and what happened in Rwanda. — Jacqueline Novogratz

My dream is to find individuals who take financial resources and convert them into changing the world in the most positive ways. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Companies like Husk Power Systems are working to impact positively not only the environment, but to ensure that someday everyone, including the poorest of the poor in rural India, will have access to clean and affordable electricity. — Jacqueline Novogratz

People across the world are yearning to be connected to stories of hope. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The Pakistanis are very resilient people. — Jacqueline Novogratz

So many low income people have seen so many failed promises broken and seen so many quacks and sporadic medicines offered to them that building trust takes a lot of time, takes a lot of patience. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Our actions - and inaction - touch people we may never know and never meet across the globe. — Jacqueline Novogratz

As a young woman, I dreamed of changing the world. In my twenties, I went to Africa to try and save the continent, only to learn that Africans neither wanted nor needed saving. Indeed, when I was there, I saw some of the worst that good intentions, traditional charity, and aid can produce ... — Jacqueline Novogratz

When Jeff Sachs says every poor person should receive a free bed net, I agree - but in reality, many end up not receiving one. And I don't live in a world of shoulds. — Jacqueline Novogratz

They say a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. I took mine and fell flat on my face. As a young woman, I dreamed of changing the world. In my twenties, I went to africa to try and save the continent, only to learn that Africans neither wanted nor needed saving. Indeed, when I was there, I saw some of the worst that good intentions, traditional charity, and aid can produce ...
I concluded that if I could only nudge the world a little bit, maybe that would be enough.
But nudging isn't enough. — Jacqueline Novogratz

When systems are broken, it's an opportunity for invention and innovation. — Jacqueline Novogratz

The older I get, the more determined I feel to do whatever I can to help release that human potential somehow. Not in a fluffy way nor in a hardcore way. But in that middle ground, that marriage of love and power. I'm not afraid of either. — Jacqueline Novogratz

Sproxil will help combat the multi-billion dollar counterfeit drug market, empower customers, and give them the resources to make informed pharmaceutical purchasing decisions. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We run Aravind like McDonald's," he explained, "clean and organized, with every process known and understood so that we get maximum efficiency. Two-thirds of the patients pay nothing or nearly nothing, and yet the hospital is consistently profitable - and growing. — Jacqueline Novogratz

If you're looking at distributing alternative energy in Nigeria, for instance, what gets in your way is not people's ability to pay, not people's desire for a clean solar lamps or biomass opportunities. But there is a strong status quo that really depends on selling diesel. — Jacqueline Novogratz

I've learned that generosity is far easier than justice and that, in the highly distorted markets of the poor, it is all too easy to veer only toward the charitable, to have low
or no
expectations for low-income people. This does nothing but reaffirm prejudices on all sides. — Jacqueline Novogratz

This idea of universal access to basic healthcare has to be figured out as a world. No country has figured it out in part because it is driven by ideology. — Jacqueline Novogratz

What farmers gain most of all from the increase in agricultural productivity, of course, is choice. — Jacqueline Novogratz

We are connected to each other not only as humans, but to every living thing on the planet. — Jacqueline Novogratz

In today's world, the elites are growing even more comfortable with one another across national lines, yet at the same time, less comfortable with low-income people who share their nationality. How we create those bonds of community that are truly global as well as national is one of our generation's great challenges. — Jacqueline Novogratz

On the one hand, I loved being a banker. I loved how numbers could tell a story and how you can invest in ideas and see them translate into products and services and create jobs. What I didn't like, particularly where I was working in Brazil during the debt crisis of the early '80s, was how the poor were excluded from the banking system. I made the decision to try and experiment with whether we could use the tools of banking to extend the benefits of the economy to the poor. — Jacqueline Novogratz