Sustainable Philanthropy

Michele L. Sullivan, Caterpillar's Director of Corporate Social Innovation, as well as the Caterpillar Foundation's President, considers how different sectors of society can collaborate to promote the welfare of all people in her talk on perspective.

Throughout her 29-year-old career, Sullivan has learned firsthand that it's vital to put human needs first when beginning new initiatives. She starts out by explaining her first day as school, when she found that her confidence was whittled away as her school mates refused to accept her for how she looked. As she grew older, she continued to face issues, as she discovered that "the real world was not built for someone of my size, both literally or figuratively." She continues by clarifying that some people's struggles can be seen, while others simply can't be, and seeing doesn't mean that someone is able to understand what another is going through. With this, she argues that "The only shoes you can walk in are your own."

In her talk on perspective, Sullivan shows the importance of being supportive of one another, and to adopt new ways of giving so that a sustainable philanthropic society is created. To do this, there needs to be collaboration between private, public, and non-profit entities, so that people can share experiences together, and live free from judgement.