Heinz College Guest Lecture

Sonal Shah, Thursday, January 13, 2011

4:30 pm, Hamburg Hall 1000

Ms. Sonal Shah heads the White House Domestic Policy Council’s Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation (SICP). President Obama tasked SICP with engaging individuals, non-profits, the private sector, and government to foster innovation and work together to make greater and more lasting progress on our Nation’s challenges.

In creating the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation (SICP), housed within the Domestic Policy Council, President Obama recognized that the best solutions to our challenges will be found in communities across the country. He tasked SICP with engaging individuals, non-profits, the private sector, and government to foster innovation and work together to make greater and more lasting progress on our Nation’s challenges. The Office is focused on doing business differently by promoting service as a solution and a way to develop community leadership; increasing investment in innovative community solutions that demonstrate results; and developing new models of partnership. These three mission areas together comprise SICP's community solutions agenda.

Sonal Shah heads the White House Domestic Policy Council’s Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation. She also served on President Obama's Transition Board overseeing the Technology, Innovation, Government Reform working group.

Prior to joining the White House, Shah led Google.org's global development efforts, focusing on transparency, openness, civic participation, and entrepreneurship development, especially financial access. Before joining Google, she was Vice President at Goldman Sachs, Inc., where she developed and implemented the firm's environmental strategy.

Shah also co-founded a non-profit, Indicorps which offers fellowships for Indian-Americans to work on development projects in India. Prior to that, she worked at the Center for American Progress, and developed and managed policy and advocacy programs for the Center for Global Development. She previously worked in the Federal Government from 1995-2002, at the Treasury Department and the National Security Council.

Shah received her MA in Economics from Duke University and BA in Economics from the University of Chicago. She is an Aspen Crown Fellow and a Next Generation Fellow.

This talk is sponsored by the Heinz College.