Social Impact Conferences in 2025
Go-To Guide for Entrepreneurs, Startups, Impact Investors & Sustainable Business Leaders
For nearly a decade, the team has shared key insights on the latest social impact trends from leading global conferences. 2025 will be no different as we continue to implement our innovative tech tools — along with our professional expertise — to curate and consolidate the latest information that high social impact business leaders and investors need to know.
We’ve already kicked off 2025’s event coverage with the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. Here are the other conferences we’ll be paying attention to this year, including links to our past reporting.
- SXSW EDU (3–6 March) and SXSW Conference (7–15 March)
- Skoll World Forum (1–4 April)
- Solve at MIT (22 May)
- Aspen Ideas Festival (25 June — 1 July)
- AI For Good Global Summit (8–11 July)
- ACCP Annual Conference (15–17 September)
- United Nations Global Goals Week (19–26 September)
Gates Foundation Goalkeepers | Concordia Annual Summit | UN Global Compact Leaders Summit | DEVEX @ UNGA | Clinton Global Initiative | Business Fights Poverty Global Goals Summit - GIIN Impact Forum (7–9 October)
- SOCAP (27–29 October)
World Economic Forum Annual Meeting
20–24 January 2025 | Davos, Switzerland
The Annual Meeting 2025 convenes global leaders to address key global and regional challenges. These include responding to geopolitical shocks, stimulating growth to improve living standards, and stewarding a just and inclusive energy transition.
Read our #WEF25 coverage:
- Excitement and Trepidation at WEF 2025
- WEF — Did a Year Make a Difference?
- A Primer on the State of AI
- Reimagining Development
- Spurring Growth in Fragile Markets
- Fixing Blended Finance
- Startups in the AI Era: Balancing Innovation and Resilience
- AI and the Rise of the One-Person Enterprise
- Top 10 Social Entrepreneurship Sessions at #WEF25
- AI at the World Economic Forum
SXSW EDU
3–6 March 2025 | Austin, TX
Don’t let the name fool you — this conference encompasses more than education. Get to Texas early for great sessions covering the digital divide, artificial intelligence, community impact, entrepreneurship, and sustainability.
SXSW EDU is the only event that delivers a world-class learning festival where the learner, the practitioner, the entrepreneur, and the visionary come together in Austin, Texas to share ideas, network, and create the future of teaching and learning.
Read our recap of last year’s SXSW EDU coverage: Insights for Social Entrepreneurs at SXSW EDU 2024.
SXSW Conference
7–15 March 2025 | Austin, TX
There’s something for everyone at the SXSW conference, including dedicated tracks for:
Startups (7–10 March)
Be inspired, be motivated and be captivated by the successes and failures of a diverse array of founders, as well as the funders who backed their often unconventional entrepreneurial efforts. If you want to translate your great startup idea into a successful reality, then this track will give you a competitive advantage for the long adventure ahead.
Check out this insightful session from our 2024 coverage: The Science of Scaling Startups to learn how to use data to calculate when to scale revenue and how fast.
Government & Civic Engagement (7–10 March)
Functional government and civic engagement are imperative to ensure that everyone’s voices and needs are understood in today’s complicated societies. This track covers a myriad of topics that help shape a more positive, equitable, and engaging world.
Artificial Intelligence (9–13 March)
The rise of artificial intelligence introduced a new era of technological innovation. Alongside its rapid growth have come questions about responsibility, capability, and impact. This track explores not only technological advancements but also the numerous implications that continued adoption will have on society.
Amy Webb will headline again in 2025. Read our recap of her presentation last year: Amy Webb Launches 2024 Emerging Tech Trend Report.
Climate and Sustainability (10–13 March)
Explore the most promising, solution-based innovations and strategies to mitigate climate change. From sustainable building solutions to cutting-edge climate technologies, learn how you can help in the fight to end climate change and build a sustainable future for generations to come.
Check out the startup lessons we uncovered at SXSW 2024: Insights for Startups at SXSW 2024.
Skoll World Forum
1–4 April 2025 | Oxford, U.K.
The Forum shines a spotlight on some of the most promising solutions and impactful social innovations and connects leaders who are driving social progress around the world. Attendance is curated by the Skoll Foundation team, with free virtual participation open to everyone.
Get ready for one of the preeminent global social impact events by reading Insights for Social Impact Leaders from the 2024 Skoll World Forum.
Solve at MIT 2025
22 May 2025 | Cambridge, MA
Solve at MIT is an opportunity to foster new and existing connections. It’s also a launching point for our 2024 Solver Class who will be wrapping up their nine-month support program and preparing for scale.
Aspen Ideas Festival
25 June — 1 July 2025 | Aspen, CO
The Aspen Ideas Festival brings brilliant minds from around the globe to discuss the ideas that will shape tomorrow and help us understand today. From sunup to sundown, we’ll explore critical issues and uncover ideas that spark wonder.
The 2024 Aspen Ideas Festival introduced innovative approaches for changing times at the sessions New Philanthropy for More Impact and ESG Promises to Carbon-Cutting Progress.
AI For Good Global Summit
8–11 July 2025 | Geneva, Switzerland
The Summit is “the United Nations’ leading platform on Artificial Intelligence for sustainable development.”
We only have 5 years to achieve the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, and AI is impacting people and the planet. We are the AI generation, and it is our responsibility to ensure that no one is left behind. AI for Good is identifying trustworthy AI applications, building skills and standards, and advancing AI governance for sustainable development.
We covered the 2024 Summit in depth: Recapping Our Coverage of the AI for Good Global Summit.
ACCP Annual Conference
15–17 September | Atlanta, GA
The ACCP [Association of Corporate Citizenship Professionals] Annual Conference is the pinnacle event for corporate social impact professionals to connect and learn from field leaders and experts, as well as one another.
United Nations Global Goals Week
19–26 September 2025 (tentative) | New York City, NY
The countries of the United Nations made a universal promise to leave no one behind in achieving a peaceful and prosperous world by 2030. Global Goals Week is a shared commitment between 170+ supporters across civil society, business, academia, and the UN system to accelerate action on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially during the UN General Assembly High-level Week. It is also an opportunity to speak out as one voice, share ideas and transformative solutions in the fight to recover better from global challenges.
Check out our AI insights from Global Goals Week 2024: Top AI Reports Shaping the SDG Agenda.
Timed to coincide with the UN General Assembly, Global Goals Week serves as the foundation for numerous more specialized events directly focused on our interests:
Gates Foundation Goalkeepers Event
September 2025 | New York City, NY
The Goalkeepers community is a global collective of collaborative and diverse changemakers. Members include both emerging and well-known leaders who live all over the world and represent an eclectic range of cultures, professions, and interests.
Concordia Annual Summit
21–24 September 2025 | New York City, NY
With over a decade of experience bringing together heads of state, leaders of the private and NGO sectors, and new and diversified perspectives to explore tangible solutions to local and global challenges, the 2025 Concordia Annual Summit will maintain its position as the largest and most inclusive nonpartisan forum alongside the UN General Assembly.
Check out our coverage of the Gates Goalkeepers and Concordia events from back in 2017.
UN Global Compact Leaders Summit
23 September 2025 | New York City, NY
During the UN General Assembly high-level week, this year’s UN Global Compact Leaders Summit will again convene business leaders, UN officials, Government leaders, SDG stakeholders and civil society professionals from across the globe committed to raising the bar on sustainability. The 2025 Leaders Summit will provide global sustainability leaders the tools, network, knowledge, and inspiration needed to scale the impact of private sector contributions to the 2030 Agenda.
Devex @ UNGA
23–25 September 2025 | New York City, NY
Join us for Devex’s events on the sidelines of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly and Climate Week. In a rapidly changing world, addressing global challenges is more urgent than ever. The future can’t wait for solutions to health crises, climate change, technological risks, and systemic inequalities.
Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting
24–25 September 2025 | New York City, NY
The annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) focuses on what’s working to drive global progress.
This year will be a time to celebrate the progress and impact we’ve made together. But the focus at the Annual Meeting won’t be the last 20 years — it’ll be on the needs of today and your ideas for tomorrow. We hope you’ll join us to build on all that we’ve achieved together.
~ President Bill Clinton
https://www.clintonfoundation.org/clinton-global-initiative-september-2025-meeting/
Find out how Social Entrepreneurs took Center Stage at CGI 2024.
Business Fights Poverty: Global Goals Summit
23 — 25 September 2025 | New York City, NY
With just five years left to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, join peers from business and the international development community during UN General Assembly Week for our annual flagship event. Learn how business partnerships can accelerate progress and deliver a fairer, more resilient future.
GIIN Impact Forum
7–9 October 2025 | Berlin, Germany
The Global Impact Investing Network (The GIIN) is a leading voice in promoting impact investing.
The GIIN Impact Forum is a global impact investing event with unparalleled opportunities to learn from thought-provoking speakers, participate in interactive sessions and network with impact investing leaders from six continents… With more people recognizing the importance of societal and environmental impact in investments, now is the time to position yourself at the forefront of this rapidly evolving industry. Attending the forum will help you foster valuable connections and learn about innovative strategies and industry developments.
Read our coverage of two 2024 GIIN reports that revealed more money flowing to impact from larger asset owners: New Impact Investing Heavyweights Reshape the Market.
SOCAP
27–29 October 2025 | San Francisco, CA
SOCAP is one of the world’s largest convenings of the impact ecosystem.
This event will bring together a global audience of funders and founders, plus people from philanthropy, government, education, media, finance, science, faith-based organizations, NGOs, creatives, nonprofits, community leaders, and others to power meaningful impact.
We’ve covered SOCAP extensively over the years. Read some of our past coverage here.
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