Collaborator’s Wanted – with “City Possible” Through Mastercard…

Collaboration is the name of the game according to the article in CityLab’s “City Possible a New Approach to Solving Cities Systemic Problems.” By 2050 the majority of people will be living in urban areas though the needs of the people in the the city, at the rate we’re going, will not be met. A new model is emerging with the help of MasterCard to make informed systemic changes. How you might ask. Well, the approach is similar to other very successful models of health, that is, –include the people your providing services to in the decision making process for the very services, and innovation of solutions to be delivered.  Mastercard is calling on Collaborators to Partner with the development of urban infrastructures to do just that stating “Putting people first is paramount…Today’s problems call for a more holistic approach to problem solving that puts people at the center of innovations.”

According to the article, some of the difficulties in urban settings has been a result of a mismatch between innovation and needs, or solutions and services, and this is happening because; people have been working in solos, key voices are not being heard, or we’re not in conversation with each other.  Mastercard created a Center for Inclusive Growth, a nonprofit, which helped Mexico’s retail sector with a 94% increase in sales for the 7,600 pilot outlets by partnering  with FUNDES (a social enterprise) and INADEM (a government agency providing financial support to entrepreneurs).  The University of California Berkeley, is now examining ways to duplicate this process on a global scale, so this means cities near you.  Mastercard’s “City Possible” initiative is calling for Partnerships with Businesses to help Create, Co-Develop, Pilot and Scale Solutions for Cities throughout.

Mastercard is partnering with the Urban Institute in Washington DC to answer questions related to inclusive services and wants help from the public. This Approach is asking for Wide Ranging Partnerships to inform, work in and scale solutions…, First Hand!  Platforms like DataKind (as referred to by Solomon Green, below), helps non-profits collect data for good, and can help inform applicable needed services. Read the full, interesting article here, “City Insights: Tapping Private Sector Data for Inclusive Growth.”  In it Solomon Green, Senior Editor, at the Urban Institute speaks further about inclusivity in discussions with Sandy Fernandez, Mastercard’s, Center for Inclusive Growth, Director of Programs, for the Americas. Read more about new discoveries on UrbanWire “The voices of Urban Institute’s researchers and staff.”