Alex Nichols, Professor of Social Entrepreneurship, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford:
From the beginning, we wanted the centre to be about teaching and research and community building. And as we develop the centre over the years, we did that. So we built the first ever course in social entrepreneurship in the world in a business school here, we built the Skoll forum with our colleagues in Palo Alto, which was all about how we bring people together globally. And in terms of research, you've built that out of the teaching, really. So in recent years, the set has developed enormously, and with within the boundaries of those three original ambitions, it's probably been above all research, that's really flourished. And that's thanks a lot to leadership, and Mariah and Jessica and other people in the centre, who really brought in collaborators from within the school and outside, to think about big issues in social entrepreneurship, to present research, and to build their thinking into the centre strategy. So huge, huge change, but a really positive one. For

Tara Sabre Collier, Skoll Scholar (2012-13) and Skoll Centre Visiting Fellow, Director, Chemonics
For me, the Skoll Centre is a knowledge repository. It's a platform for thinking through how to solve some of the world's wicked problems. And most importantly, it's a community of practice. It's a community of engaged and committed leaders who then go on to support each other, to create and do amazing things.

Susana Frazão Pinheiro, Skoll Scholar (2005-6) and Skoll Centre Impact Education Advisory Committee member, Programme Director, Healthcare and Life Sciences
To see the community coming together, seeing that how their community has grown in size, and in terms of ambition, that the community as a whole has, it brings me a lot of hope. And that's something that I'm very grateful for, and I greatly value.

Nathania Aritao, Map the System judge and Skoll Centre contributor, TAYO founder
So I definitely think of learning when I think of Skoll, I think of a place to come back to and it's some space within Oxford, that has been one that I can return and keep growing in and keep challenging myself and the work that I'm doing.

Ashraf Mizo, Skoll Scholar (2021-22), Nayla Prosthetics founder
At the beginning of the programme, it meant the world, it was my ticket to Oxford. But it was also sort of a second home. And I think the value of this core community for me is going to grow as I grow and sort of detach from the Oxford community, I think that is something that always have, and I'm really looking forward to furthering the relationship.

Abrar Chaudhury, Skoll Centre Senior Research Fellow
My relationship at Skoll really began when I first came to Oxford. And this is, you know, over 13 years ago, in 2009, came as a MBA student here. And I came from Pakistan, we have a lot of, you know, social environment, political issues. And when I came to Oxford, you know, I really wanted a community, I really wanted to understand, fine, people have conversations on these big deep issues that was, you know, I grew up with, and instantly, you know, I was enamoured by the place, because suddenly I felt, okay, this is where my community is, right? This is where I feel, if I have a challenge, if I have an issue, if I want to bring the program, that that's where I immediately go towards, because then I can have those conversations there. But also develop, you know, a deeper understanding of what happened.

François Bonnici, Skoll Centre Visiting Fellow, Director, Schwab Foundation for Social Enterprise
System thinking, indeed, can change the world, getting articulate about how we start to adapt, and use, what the origins of system thinking have tried to articulate for us in the ways that we work in every single organization, I think, is really one of the core fundamental steps towards the systemic change. I see the Skoll centre also being a gathering of people who are individuals who represent important institutions, but also recognize that they are here to create the change in those institutions and amongst us, so we're here with many different hats on, but we get to take those hats off and think critically about them.

Bridget Kustin, Skoll Centre Senior Research Fellow and Director, Ownership Project 2.0
I think that combination of a research led strategy, plus the commitment to then translating that for practical applications, and particularly policy applications, I think is a tremendously exciting possibility for the Skoll Centre.

Marya Besharov, Skoll Centre Academic Director, Professor of Organisations and Impact
What really excites me about social impact, and the work we're doing right now, in the moment we're in is that despite all the mounting challenges, and perhaps because of the mounting challenges, what we're seeing is that impact has become a central issue. A central concern is central priority. It's what keeps CEOs up at night. And that gives us a tremendous opportunity. They're thinking about the need to transform their own organizations, and they're thinking about their role and their firms role in transforming systems more broadly. And it's a moment and an opportunity that we have to capitalize on to seize and to really take advantage of that energy and make a meaningful difference.