What the world doesn't need is another non-profit | John Levy | TEDxAmherstCollege

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. As both an early stage technology venture capital investor and a social justice activist, John Levy outlines different frameworks for social change, impact and scalability. He describes his double bottom line experience of combining venture investment with social change in the context of an investment in BioLite, an off-grid energy company that has the potential to improve the lives of the 3 billion people who rely on cooking with traditional means by reducing black carbon output while using less fuel and co-generating electricity. John Levy graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College with a degree in American Studies, and received his M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School. While at Amherst, Levy began a film series called Sparkling Celluloid, and has since continued to stay true to this spirit of entrepreneurship. For over 30 years, he has been working at the intersection of technology and finance. Mr. Levy was a founding partner of L Capital Partners’ where he led investments and served on the boards of WiSpry, OnPATH Technologies, HiGTek, Simparel, Evogen, and Peek. From 2001-2005, Mr. Levy was a partner in the Shalom Equity Fund, a seed stage tech fund based in the US and Israel. Since 1989, Mr. Levy has served on the board of Bend the Arc and was chairman of the organization from 2000-2006 overseeing the merger of two nonprofit organizations. Since 2010, he has served as the chairman of BioLite, a distributed energy company. In 2011 he was named the Chairman of Hypres, a digital RF and quantum computing company, and in 2012 became the founding Chairman of PlusN, a carrier aggregation software company. About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)