The Skoll Foundation drives large-scale change by investing in, connecting, and celebrating social entrepreneurs and innovators who help them solve the world’s most pressing problems.
Our Values
The following core values inform our mission; guide our actions; and undergird our culture:
- We trust those closest to the challenge to lead the change.
- We believe diversity is a strength and difference is a teacher.
- We can’t do it alone. It takes a community to drive enduring impact.
- We strive for action over perfection.
- We learn from our successes and failures and admit when we don’t have the answers.
- We embrace a profound sense of responsibility.
This was the advice John W. Gardner gave Jeff Skoll and Sally Osberg as they were starting the Skoll Foundation to help drive significant and lasting impact on the world.
Our Story
Jeff Skoll created the Skoll Foundation in 1999 to pursue his vision of a sustainable world of peace and prosperity.
Led by CEO Sally Osberg from 2001 to 2018, and now led by Donald H. Gips, our mission is to drive truly transformative change—equilibrium change—by supporting the social entrepreneurs who recognize the systems in need of change and then advance social progress by developing powerful models for change that disrupt a suboptimal status quo and transform our world for the better.
By identifying the people and programs already bringing positive change around the world, we empower them to extend their reach, deepen their impact, and fundamentally improve society on a local to global scale. Since 1999, the Skoll Foundation has led the charge for social entrepreneurship, buoyed by the knowledge that social entrepreneurs are the world’s best bet for solving some of world’s thorniest problems.
The Skoll Foundation has invested approximately $800 million worldwide, including the Skoll Award to 144 social entrepreneurs and 116 organizations on five continents.
