How it began
SEE Change Magazine was founded in 2009 by Elisa Birnbaum and Nicole Zummach. Through our work as journalists and researchers covering the social impact sector, we were inspired by the social enterprise models we saw emerging. Armed with a mutual passion for storytelling and the desire to see change in the way people do business, we embarked on our journey. The result is SEE Change. Its inaugural issue was published in February 2010.
SEE Change today is a global digital publication for and about social entrepreneurship – and beyond. Much like other entrepreneurial endeavours, it was created in response to a need – the need to spread the word about an important business movement that has the capacity to change the way we live and engage with our communities. After ten years producing content in this space, SEE Change has witnessed its readership grow across North America, the UK and beyond, thanks to contributors and stories from around the world.
The birth of the podcast
In 2017, SEE Change launched the podcast, In the Business of Change, hosted by SEE Change publisher & editor, Elisa Birnbaum, who interviews social entrepreneurs tackling challenges in their communities and around the world. You can listen and subscribe to the already popular podcast via this website and iTunes.
An evolving mission of social change
Over the years, we’ve witnessed a demand for broader stories that go beyond strict “social entrepreneurship” to the “social change” issues that underpin the work of these entrepreneurs or changemakers. We started to see that focusing ONLY on social entrepreneurship without tackling the questions and concerns at the heart of the “why” of their ventures, was limiting our capacity as storytellers. In response, we have expanded some of our content to explore the deeper issues of social change and to include voices of experts – whether on our podcast or our written content – who can help us understand the deeper societal and socioeconomic context of these social issues more comprehensively.
Helping you tell your story: walking the talk
A social enterprise ourselves, SEE Change also runs a communications division where our team of experts offer storytelling workshops and communications services for changemakers looking to tell their story more effectively, for greater impact. We also work with partners to produce sponsored content that help them promote their work.
And with the help of partners, we produce related storytelling projects, such as the Canadian History of Social Change. The digital storytelling project, produced with the generous support of the Government of Canada, documents Canada’s social movements – through the eyes and words of their key players – that have transformed the country. We’re constantly searching for new collaborations and projects. Please connect with us to discuss your idea.
Our mission
To inform, educate, and inspire social entrepreneurs and anyone who wants to see change in our world.
Our vision
For social enterprise to become an accepted standard for business practice in our society, and for all people to benefit from the work they participate in, and the products and services they purchase.
Listen to Elisa’s 2017 interview with Tony Loyd on his social entrepreneur podcast to hear about the journey of SEE Change and her passion for storytelling in this space
Learn more about how SEE Change Magazine got started in this radio interview for So Fine Canada on April 28, 2011.