September 1, 2005

Skoll Foundation Appoints Victor d’Allant to Lead Social Edge

PALO ALTO, Calif.—September 1, 2005—The Skoll Foundation announced today that Victor d’Allant has been named Executive Director of Social Edge, the global online community where social entrepreneurs, nonprofit professionals and other social sector practitioners connect to network, learn, inspire and share resources.

D’Allant is a global media executive and cultural anthropologist who has worked for large corporations, international organizations and entrepreneurial startups in many parts of the world.

His executive positions have included Chief Executive Officer of Ascribe, a public interest newswire, and Vice President - Business Development of AudioBasket, a provider of personalized audio news on the Internet. He was also Advertising Sales Director for Reader's Digest in Europe and Managing Director of San Francisco magazine.

Before his involvement in digital media, Victor built and ran his own international media consultancy, helping communications companies and technology-based ventures expand their global operations. His clients included Newsweek, Bloomberg, Nokia Innovent, Wired, Outside magazine and Deloitte & Touche.

His work as a cultural and business anthropologist included field research on French truck drivers working in the Middle East, mental health issues in India for the World Health Organization and agricultural development in Burkina Faso for the World Bank.

He started his career as a Paris-based photojournalist reporting on economic and social issues from Brazil, India, Turkey, Yemen, Burkina Faso and Bangladesh. He received the Air France Award for Photojournalism and his work was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, Paris.

Victor served for four years on the Advisory Board of the Women’s Technology Cluster in San Francisco. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the French American International School in San Francisco.

He has a B.A. and an M.A. in social anthropology from the Sorbonne in Paris and an M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley. He resides in San Francisco.

About the Skoll Foundation

The Skoll Foundation advances systemic change to benefit communities around the world by investing in, connecting and celebrating social entrepreneurs – individuals dedicated to pioneering new solutions that result in lasting improvements to complex social problems. The Skoll Foundation invests in social entrepreneurs through Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship. It connects them through Social Edge, an online community at www.socialedge.org and via the annual Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship at the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Oxford University. It celebrates social entrepreneurs through projects such as The New Heroes, a public television documentary series that tells 12 dramatic stories of social entrepreneurs who bring innovative, empowering solutions to intractable social problems around the world. For more information, visit www.skollfoundation.org.

About Social Edge

Launched in 2003 by the Skoll Foundation, Social Edge is an online community at www.socialedge.org where social entrepreneurs, nonprofit professionals, philanthropists and others in the social sector connect to network, learn, inspire one another and share resources. The site strikes a balance between the visionary and the practical with spirited discussions, online workshops, and access to resources and experts. Social Edge is committed to fostering frank dialogue, building mutual respect and creating a sense of community among members of the social sector.