Brown Bag Lunch Talks

Brown Bag lunches allow guest speakers and members of the Harvard community and interested members of the public to interact and discuss ideas in an informal atmosphere.

Upcoming events are listed on our Event page and calendar.

Past events appear under the side navigation and in our archive.




MONTHLY BROWN BAG SERIES 2011

February 8, 12:30 to 2pm – Belfer Building, Lobby Level, Room 4, Harvard Kennedy School
"AIDS NGOs in China: Leading the Way in Forging New Working Partnerships with Government"

PRESENTERS: Qiushi Liu, Associate Professor, NGO Research Center, Tsinghua University, Hauser Visiting Fellow and Joan Kaufman, Director AIDS Public Policy Project, Harvard Medical School and Hauser Center Principal

The AIDS NGO sector has seen explosive growth in China, aided by donor governance mandates and global NGO counterparts engaged in transnational organizing. There is increasing acknowledgement by government AIDS officials of their value, as well as contracted service provision to high risk groups like gay men. China's AIDS NGO sector is opening political space for other NGOs working on social justice and humanitarian issues. We will review the overall picture of AIDS NGOs engagement and China's AIDS response and reflect on how these benefit the NGO sector overall.

March 8, 12:30 to 2pm – Belfer Building, Lobby Level, Room 4, Harvard Kennedy School
“To Tell The Truth: Combining Corporate Financial and Sustainability Reporting on a Global Scale”

PRESENTER: Robert K. Massie, former president of Ceres, co-founder of the Global Reporting Initiative, Hauser Senior Visiting Fellow
FACILITATOR: Steve Lydenberg, Hauser Senior Research Fellow

As we rocket forward into the 21st century, questions have erupted around the world about whether the financial and economic information used by corporations, investors, and governments is guiding us towards -- or away from -- sustainable prosperity. This debate in turn has raised fundamental questions about the purpose of the modern corporation, the relationship between shareholders and stakeholders, and the alignment of corporate actions with long-term public policy objectives. Global accounting societies and firms are actively pursuing a merger of financial and sustainability disclosure; the results are likely to shape the structure of the global economy for decades to come. Bob Massie, will review the state of the international debate and what it means for the future of capital markets and public policy.


March 23rd, 4:30 pm-5:30 pm – Allison Dining Room, 5th floor, Taubman Building, 15 Eliot Street

City Week: Helping Urban Areas Thrive

A Conversation
Rip Rapson
President of The Kresge Foundation
Moderated by
Jim Bildner
Managing Director of the Center for Applied Philanthropy
MPA/MC ’11 and Hauser Center Fellow

The Kresge Foundation is a $3.1 billion private, national foundation that seeks to influence the quality of life for future generations through its support of nonprofit organizations in six fields of interest: health, the environment, community development, arts and culture, education and human services. The Foundation is headquartered in metropolitan Detroit, in the suburb of Troy, Michigan.

Cosponsored by the Office of Career Advancement and The Hauser Center for Nonprofit

Organizations at Harvard University


March 24, 2:30–4:00 PM – Weil Town Hall, 1st Floor, Belfer Building, Harvard Kennedy School
(Entrance at the corner of JFK Street and Eliot Street)
“The Human Rights Movement: Prospects for the Next Decade”

A Conversation
Martín Abregú
Ford Foundation
Director of the Human Rights and Governance Program

Christopher Stone
Faculty Director of the Hauser Center
Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Professor of the Practice of Criminal Justice and Director, in Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management

Martín Abregú will share his perspectives on today’s human rights movement and directions for its development over the next decade. This exchange with Professor Christopher Stone, Faculty Director of the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations will be followed by an open discussion with participants.

Beverages will be served


April 7, 1:30 to 3:00pm – Weil Town Hall, 1st Floor, Belfer Building, Harvard Kennedy School
“Hybrid Organizations: The New Face of Social Enterprise?”

PRESENTERS: Marion Fremont Smith, Hauser Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer in Law, Harvard Law School, Luther M. Ragin, Jr., William H. Bloomberg Lecturer in Public Management

In recent years, a number of commentators have suggested that traditional forms of legal organization have constrained the development of a robust social enterprise sector. New legal structures -- L3Cs and B Corporations to name the best known -- have been introduced with the intention of better catalyzing resources for social benefit. What are these hybrid forms and are they part of the solution?

May 3, 12:30 to 2:00pm – Belfer Building, Lobby Level, Room 4, Harvard Kennedy School
“Trends, Trajectories and Future of International NGOs”

PRESENTER: Ramesh Singh, former chief executive of ActionAid International,
Hauser Visiting Fellow
FACILITATOR: Sherine Jayawickrama, Hauser Domain Manager, Humanitarian and Development NGOs

International NGOs (INGOs) have been on the rise and rise for decades now. They are bigger, sleeker, professional, visible, noisier and influential. However, the world around them have changed and have been changing in many big ways presenting all kinds of crises, competitions and challenges, The presentation will discuss whether and how INGOs and the sector are responding or not and will explore what kinds of INGOs will survive, thrive and emerge.