NEWSBYALEX BUDAK

Ten thousand years ago, our ancestors began gathering together in makeshift villages and using the most primitive of tools to improve their day-to-day life. Ten millennia later, it's hard to comprehend how dramatically technologies have evolved and changed not only human society, but the planet as well. Still, though, the AshokaTECH podcast is trying, and in our most recent episode, we were happy to host Change.org's founder and CEO Ben Rattray to be a part of that conversation.

This week, Ben joined us in a discussion of how to harness the power of technology and social entrepreneurship to improve the world. In the episode Ben and I put aside our Pac-10 sports rivalries, and get to the heart of how his experience leading Change.org can inform us all about the intersection of technology and social entrepreneurship.

In our conversation, we delve into how running an online social enterprise differs from running a purely for-profit endeavor. We talk about the challenges it entails, from placating investors to recruiting top talent. I get Ben's take on "slacktivism" and question whether organizing online really can manifest itself in concrete change beyond the internet's world of ones and zeros. We also touch on how social entrepreneurs can take advantage of the fundamental shifts occurring today -- the product of incredible online technologies -- and how entrepreneurs can stay competitive and make their vision go viral by embracing the new web.