When a person’s passions include changing the way things are done in their chosen industry and community, life’s work goes beyond philanthropy to innovation. You may not have known their names before, but these South Florida locals are powerhouse influencers who are revolutionizing our world in both big and small ways.

The Elevate Prize Foundation has announced the recipients of its inaugural Elevate Prizes. Launched in April in partnership with MIT Solve, the competition provides up to $5 million annually to help extraordinary purpose-driven leaders increase their impact and catalyze transformational change. Selected from nearly thirteen hundred applicants, the ten inaugural winners will receive $300,000 in prize funding, as well as professional development […]

CHICAGO (CBS) —Two Chicago-area problem solvers are getting $300,000 each to work on global change.They are “Elevate” prize winners. It’s a competition to find leaders and give them resources to increase their impact. Naperville resident Trisha Prabhu. The 20-year-old came up with “Rethink” at the age of 13. CHICAGO (CBS) —Two Chicago-area problem solvers are […]

Naperville resident Trisha Prabhu invented an app to curtail cyberbullying, and Wilmette native Chad Bernstein helps students find their path to purpose through music. Each is now $300,000 richer, having won spots in the inaugural cohort of 10 Elevate Prize winners.

Two Chicago area natives are among the 10 inaugural winners of an award that aims to further their work. Winnetka native Chad Bernstein, who founded Guitar Over Guns, an organization that combines mentorship and guitar lessons, and 20-year-old Naperville native Trisha Prabhu, inventor of ReThink, an anti-cyberbullying app that has about 500,000 downloads to date and is […]

A junior at Harvard University is about to receive a big payoff for her seven-year campaign against cyberbullying. Trisha Prabhu, 20, will get at least $300,000 from the Elevate Prize Foundation to further develop ReThink, a smartphone app that nudges people into using more courteous language online.

The love that we invest in others comes back to us multiplied. Service to others is also service to ourselves. But don’t take my word for it. Experiment. Give of yourself and see what happens. Start small. Give a sincere complement and see how it makes you feel and how that seed blossoms in others… and gets paid forward. Then try something a little bigger that resonates for you. Have fun with it!

As a part of our series about “Social Impact Investors”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Joseph Deitch. Joseph, (who most call Joe) has built a billion-dollar business. He’s the founder and chairman of Commonwealth Financial Network, the Tony-award winning Broadway producer of The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, an enthusiastic philanthropist, and a man Financial Advisor magazine once selected (alongside Warren Buffett) as one of the 35 most influential leaders of the financial planning profession over the previous three-plus decades. He’s also the author of #1 Amazon bestseller Elevate: An Essential Guide to Life.

When we launched the Elevate Prize Foundation just under a year ago, we had no idea what the world had in store for us and how the events of the past months would inform and impact our inaugural year. As we worked to build this new foundation, we leaned into our values of radical diversity, […]

The Elevate Prize Foundation, which launched last year in partnership with MIT, is now accepting applications for its Elevate Prize. Established by business leader, philanthropist and author Joseph Deitch, the prize will award $5 million to 10 social entrepreneurs tackling problems across healthcare, poverty, racism, and more this fall. “We're looking to change the way we change the world," Deitch said.

More New CEOs Carolina García Jayaram, president and CEO of the National YoungArts Foundation, has become the founding executive director of the Elevate Prize Foundation, which will award $5 million in grants to 10 leaders worldwide who are successful in addressing major global problems.

NPR Miami Heard on Sundial (radio program) What if you were given at least $300,000 to develop solutions for some of the biggest problems facing our planet? The inaugural Elevate Prize includes $5 million in funding going to 10 applicants with projects from around the globe. Transcript of the radio interview Luis Hernandez: … there’s […]