The Shuttleworth Foundation is a small social investor that provides funding to dynamic leaders who are at the forefront of social change. We look for social innovators who are helping to change the world for the better and could benefit from a social investment model with a difference.

The Foundation is at its core an experiment in open philanthropy and uses alternative funding methodologies and collaborative ways of working to ensure that every fellow receives the necessary support to succeed.

Our ideal future is one where it is much easier to find solutions to social challenges in a global open knowledge society with unhindered access to essential information and limitless opportunities for innovation and replication. Knowledge is open if it is free to use, reuse and redistribute without legal, social or technological restriction. In this sense an open knowledge society is one in which a superset of open data, open content, open access and open source is available to all.

Mark Shuttleworth started the Foundation in 2001. Known for pushing boundaries in every sphere he becomes involved in, Mark continues to drive change in the world through the Foundation. The Foundation prides itself in investing in initiatives and individuals who challenge the status quo and actively contribute to positive change.