Matthew Bishop

Fmr. Managing Director, Bellagio & Fellows Program

The Rockefeller Foundation

New York, NY, USA

Biography

Matthew Bishop is the former Managing Director of the Rockefeller Foundation's Bellagio Center on Lake Como, Italy, where he built and led a global institute focused on assembling global leaders to work toward solving some of the world's biggest challenges. Prior to Rockefeller, he was an award-winning writer and editor at The Economist for over 25 years, including a decade as the magazine's New York Bureau Chief.

Whether on stage at the World Economic Forum or at a leading global conference, Matthew is a highly sought-after thought leader and speaker on trends and innovations shaping global business and politics. He is a leading expert on how to reform capitalism to better serve all members of society and was on the G8 Taskforce on Impact Investing. Matthew is best-known for his work on "philanthrocapitalism", a word he coined in The Economist to describe how businesses and philanthropists can make a significant difference in the world.

Matthew is the co-author (along with Michael Green) of ‘Economics A to Z’ and ‘Philanthrocapitalism: How Giving Can Save the World and The Road from Ruin: A New Capitalism for a Big Society’. He co-founded the Social Progress Index, an influential index of how well a society serves its citizens, and the #GivingTuesday movement, which uses social media to celebrate giving and drive more effective charity. He also co-founded 17 Rooms, an initiative created to work toward meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

He has made frequent appearances on NPR, BBC, and PBS and other media outlets. He has also interviewed many well-known leaders, including Elon Musk, Bill and Melinda Gates, Muhammad Yunus, Arianna Huffington, George Soros, Warren Buffett, Bill Clinton, Sheryl Sandberg, Bono and Angelina Jolie.

Matthew holds a BA Politics, Philosophy and Economics from the University of Oxford and was a faculty member at London Business School. He was also honored by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader.

Matthew Bishop’s Newsfeed

Financial Times

Special Edition: Bloomberg’s big day, impact bonds, the ‘other’ SDGs

Matthew Bishop of the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Center was mentioned in a Financial Times article regarding his new report titled "Getting to the Global Goals: A Radical Yet Realistic Route to 2030."

The Fourth Sector Group wants to transform the future of business

Matthew Bishop, a managing director on the global policy and advocacy team at The Rockefeller Foundation, brought leaders working on a range of initiatives to support for-benefit enterprises together at Rockefeller’s Bellagio Center in February. "A number of trends, and a wide range of initiatives from Conscious Capitalism to the Global Impact Investing Network to benefit corporations are linked to the vision of the Fourth Sector Group, even if not explicitly", Bishop said.

The Rockefeller Foundation

Fmr. Managing Director, Bellagio & Fellows Program

Jan 2018 - 2020

New York, NY, USA

The Rockefeller Foundation advances new frontiers of science, data, policy, and innovation to solve global challenges related to health, food, power, and economic mobility.

Social Progress Index

Co-founder, Board Member

2012 - Present

London, UK

The Social Progress Index (SPI) measures the extent to which countries provide for the social and environmental needs of their citizens. In combination with GDP it allows a much more rounded assessment of how well a country is performing.

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Philanthropy

#GivingTuesday

Co-founder, advisor

2012 - Present

New York, NY, USA

Entering its seventh year, #GivingTuesday is a global day of giving fuelled by the power of social media and collaboration.

Media

Newswire.fm

Host, Philanthrocapitalism

New York, NY, USA

Launched in 2011, Philanthrocapitalism is a series featuring the generation of leaders who reshape the way we think, live, work, and give. Philanthrocapitalism allows for unique deeper insights into some of the most important trends of our time.

Publications

Getting to the Global Goals: A Radical Yet Realistic Route to 2030

Author

2019

New York, NY, USA

In this report for the Rockefeller Foundation, Matthew Bishop sets out a radical yet realistic route to achieving sustainability goals by 2030. The report urges leaders of the world to unite behind the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and outlines how substantial, systemic change can be achieved.

Philanthrocapitalism | How Giving Can Save the World

Co-Author

New York, NY, USA

Philanthrocapitalism is a book Matthew co-wrote with Michael Green. It is an examination of how today's leading philanthropists are revolutionizing the field, using new methods to have a vastly greater impact on the world.

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Awards & Endorsements

World Economic Forum

Young Global Leader

New York, NY, USA

Matthew Bishop was honored as a young global leader by the World Economic Forum.

Speaking Engagements

Social Value Investing with Howard W. Buffett and Matthew Bishop

Speaker

Feb 2020

New York, NY, USA

Matthew Bishop joins professor and author Howard W. Buffett to discuss how Social Value Investing presents a new way to approach some of society’s most difficult issues. They will discuss how solutions can be found through new partnerships in the public, private, and philanthropic sectors.The event is sponsored by the Gabelli Center for Global Security at Fordham University.

17 Rooms Global Flagship Meeting

Co-organizer and Speaker

Sep 2019

New York, NY, USA

17 Rooms is an event designed to focus attention on identifying practical steps to accelerate progress on meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.