 Good morning! Certainly this is the fundamental underpinnings of EBBF that really the two are very much interconnected and there's a very important role that the Baha'i faith in particular can play in terms of shaping the role that business plays in society. So I'm going to talk about three things today. Firstly, why EBBF exists. Secondly, what EBBF looks like in practice, sharing a few examples of this from around the world and thirdly how you can get involved. Much of the answer in why EBBF exists comes in the tagline of EBBF which is mindful people meaningful work. Given that the theme of this year's conference is advancing the life of the mind we've had a good chance over the past few days to really reflect on the role of mindfulness in our lives and of course mindfulness is a term that's been used a lot in society right now whether it's in business or in education or by spiritual gurus. And of course there are many different definitions of what mindfulness can mean. Some think of it as being sitting on a mountain top removed from society and others think of it as being how do we actively engage as a sense of mindfulness within our daily lives. In a Baha'i context in my opinion being mindful relates to being aware of our surroundings and the repercussions that our actions have on our daily lives. Shogi Effendi says the more we search for ourselves the less likely we are to find ourselves and the more we search for God and to serve our fellow men the more profoundly will we become acquainted with ourselves and the more inwardly assured. This is one of the great spiritual laws of life. So that's mindful people but what do we mean by meaningful work? The Baha'i international community stated Baha'is believe that human beings are inherently noble and that the purpose of life is to cultivate such attributes skills virtues and qualities as will enable them to contribute their share to building an ever advancing civilization. So meaningful work in the Baha'i context and in the charter of EBBF is inextricably linked to using one's education and skills to advance civilization. So why does EBBF exist? We know that the word business has different connotations for different people. Some think of business as inherently corrupt and to be avoided. I have a friend from London who was very skeptical about the role of the business can play in society and went to live in Egypt during the revolution and was just totally shocked and dismayed to see how many talented young people weren't able to find jobs and were left despondent. Seeing this situation inspired him to see the role that business can play in shaping a civilization and really helping to rebuild a society. There's one example of many of the role that business can play. Some think of business as a chance to get ahead and raise that income level or status to a more comfortable life. We're in LA right now where of course money and status in many ways is the name of the game. And some look at the vast inequality of rich and poor and feel helpless and resentful if they are at the lower end of the scale. The UN Commission for Social Development in February of this year stated that the extremes between rich and poor internationally have grown to become a threat to global stability. Ambassador Valero from Venezuela said these calamities can only be effectively addressed by attacking the structural causes that generate them. A consumerist, selfish and predatory global system that is based on the commodification of man and nature. In the Bahá'í teachings we of course have general guiding principles on economics, justice and the elimination of extremes of poverty and wealth which of course has been a theme running throughout this conference, but it is up to us to translate these principles into reality. The Universal House of Justice says, the inordinate disparity between rich and poor, a source of acute suffering, keeps the world in a state of instability, virtually on the brink of war. Few societies have dealt effectively with this situation. The solution calls for the combined application of spiritual, moral and practical approaches. A fresh look at the problem is required, entailing consultation with experts from a wide spectrum of disciplines, devoid of economic and ideological polemics and involving the people directly affected in the decisions that most urgently be made. It is an issue that is bound up not only with the necessity for eliminating extremes of wealth and poverty, but also with those spiritual verities, the understanding of which can produce a new universal attitude. Fostering such an attitude is itself a major part of the solution. EBBF echoes these principles and from the directives of the Universal House of Justice. It exists to provide a forum for experts in their field from a broad range of different backgrounds, lawyers, academics, educationists, business people, to come together to consider how to work towards a more equitable and just environment and to incorporate these principles into our workplaces. Furthermore, the goal is to change existing organizations and to create new organizations such as social enterprises where the sole purpose is to build a solution to these problems. So we have covered some of the background of why EBBF exists. Now let's go to the mission statement of EBBF. So EBBF is a Baha'i-inspired global learning community that accompanies mindful individuals and groups through daily work and discourse to transform business and the economy, thereby contributing to a prosperous just and sustainable civilization. These are all great words, but what do they mean in practice? There are seven guiding principles of EBBF. These are unity, justice, moderation, service, gender equality, sustainability and human nobility. As Baha'is, these principles sound very familiar to us. However, what is unique is that many of the members of EBBF are not Baha'is. EBBF draws professionals from all walks of life who are interested in using their talents in more meaningful ways. For me, it has been a powerful community in terms of being an intersection between my life and work as a social investor and social entrepreneur and my Baha'i life. Many of the members of EBBF are CEOs of major companies, directors, managers of businesses and employees that are looking for Baha'i teachings to improve their work environments and lives. This means that we as Baha'is don't need to do all the work ourselves but we can engage with others who are inspired by Baha'i teachings. Now that's a powerful role we can play. So we have a Baha'i-inspired global learning community. How does this global learning community operate? As was mentioned, EBBF started and it was an informal network in Paris in 1990, 25 years ago. Like many powerful movements, it started small, but EBBF is now active in over 50 countries with over 10,000 members and is expanding rapidly. The community is connected through a broad range of activities with over 250 global learning events, 40 online hangouts, e-learning courses, publications and active participation in other conferences such as ABS. Thanks to the marvels of technology, we're able to stay connected with each other continually. And the exciting thing as far as I am concerned is that people are taking the future into their own hands. We are a learning community trying to understand each other's challenges in a global forum and finding solutions for them. This is a true grassroots initiative. We know that the challenges vary from country to country, but it is up to us to expand our minds and to really understand from other people's perspectives like my friend did in going to Egypt. The key component of EBBF involves accompanying mindful individuals and groups through daily work. As I mentioned, the membership base of EBBF is highly diverse. It is a platform to accompany and connect members to each other, to new ideas and tools so that this knowledge can be used to change the face of business interactions and the workplace. We have considered what a mindful individual might mean. In the workplace, it can mean applying our values and ethics to improving the health and well-being of employees and stakeholders, standing up for fairness and justice and diversity in the hiring and recruiting process, consultation and further learning. For example, a number of the members of EBBF have been involved in founding co-working spaces for social entrepreneurs around the world called Impact Hubs. Another member of EBBF has been involved in working with a large aircraft company to help with ensuring safety of the employees. Another member has been working on sustainability issues with large corporations such as Nike and Intel. And this is just a few of many of the examples of some of the incredible things that EBBF members are doing around the world. There is much research to suggest that many people, especially millennials, are craving work environments that feel meaningful and impactful. I'm sure we can all think about how our own workplaces could be improved by advancing the values and ethics enshrined there. Another key component of the EBBF mission statement is using discourse to transform business and the economy. As Sharia Razavi talked about in an opening night, of course we are exhorted by the Universal House of Justice to raise the level of discourse in society. And this is one of the ways in which we can do it. So what do we mean when we're talking about transforming business and the economy? To transform business and the economy in today's world, we need the great minds of our day motivated by Baha'i principles on the macro and the micro level. I would like to throw out a challenge to all of you here today. We've had an inspiring few days and we have an opportunity as we return home to think about how we can apply these principles in our lives. As students we can get the best education we can to have the skill set to be able to influence the environments that we're in. To those who are business minded, if we're not already looking at ways in which we can influence the micro and macro level with new models of transformation of business, let's look at opportunity with discourse with those who are. You will be shocked and equally delighted at how many people and organizations are functioning with Baha'i principles without even realizing it. In my field of social entrepreneurship and social investing, I am meeting individuals and organizations who are working tirelessly for the well-being of mankind. These people are often grounded by spiritual principles and there is such receptivity to the Baha'i faith amongst these groups. Many people are guided to the work in the social impact sector and are craving a foundation and a community for this inspiration. We as Baha'is have an opportunity to think outside the box. We can learn and engage with such people. I will give one example now and share a little more later. There is a community of investors referred to as the 100% impact group. These are a group of investors of all different asset sizes who are looking at how they can create impact across their whole portfolio. Rather than just allocating a small percentage of their portfolio to giving grants to organizations, they are thinking about what type of socially responsible mutual funds can they be investing in, what types of companies can they be supporting, and it is incredible to see how this community is engaging. Okay, back to the EBBF mission statement. The last part of the mission statement is contributing to a prosperous, just and sustainable civilization. We shouldn't be scared about prosperity. Without prosperity, without capital, we are limited in our ability to create impact. When I worked in the charitable and nonprofit sector, I was surprised to see how often organizations were spending so much of their time and energy on raising funds that it often detracted from the work that they were doing. Since discovering the fields of social entrepreneurship and social investing, I've been amazed to see revenue-producing models that are creating an incredible impact on society. One example of a company we invested in is called LearnZillion, which is an education technology company. It has 800,000 teachers on its platform and fills the gap of inefficient and ineffective professional development in America. The key is to use prosperity to sustain society. In the hidden words it says, wealth is praiseworthy in the highest degree if it is acquired by an individual's own efforts and the grace of God in commerce, agriculture, art and industry and if it be expended for philanthropic purposes. When we talk about a just and sustainable civilization, we realize we have an enormous task ahead of us. Bahá'u'lláh tells us, all too many of these man-made ideologies callously abandon starving millions to the operations of a market system that all too clearly is aggravating the plight of the majority of mankind, while enabling small sections to live in a condition of affluence scarcely dreamed of by our forebears. What Bahá'u'lláh is speaking of is of course happening right now and we have a choice through how we allocate our time and our capital to truly build a new world order. Let me share with you some of a little bit of my own experience through my consulting firm Phoenix Global Impact where we try to put the principles of EBBF and the community and lessons into action. I was inspired to name my company Phoenix after the reference to Phoenix in the Hidden Words by Bahá'u'lláh, which goes as follows, O son of spirit, burst thy cage asunder and even as the Phoenix of love soar into the firmament of holiness. Renounce thyself and filled with the spirit of mercy abide in the realm of celestial sanctity. I think I'm far from the realm of celestial sanctity. This is quite a tall order and might take a little bit more time, maybe even eternity, but no harm in trying. I love that image of bursting thy cage asunder. For me, this means always trying to challenge the barriers that hinder us and not allowing that to get in the way of us achieving the goals that we set our minds to. It also means breaking the mold of what we think is possible. Social investing, for example, is doing this by questioning the standard models of finance. Try it. If you haven't already, God really does work in miraculous ways. Anyway, back to one of the projects that we've been working on at Phoenix. There's an initiative called Divest Invest Philanthropy, which is a coalition of over 100 foundations working with faith-based groups, universities, hospitals, and cities and individuals like you and I to divest from fossil fuels and invest in new energy solutions. This is one of a number of initiatives that, as I mentioned earlier, around this alignment between our values and our investments has arisen, and it's been powerful to see the role that these institutions and individuals are playing in really shaping the foundations of society. We have many institutions that have come on board, including the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, the World Council of Churches, Stanford University, and they're playing a pivotal role in really questioning some of the largest organizations in the world. What has been powerful is to see the role that faith-based groups are playing in this work. I know that a number of you were part of a climate march that took place in September of last year in New York City, where 400,000 people marched through the streets of New York City, demanding action to be taken on climate change. It was powerful to see people of all different backgrounds and faiths come together through this common goal of combating climate change. One of the key aspects of this work has been looking at the interconnectedness of the issues, climate justice, racial justice, and economic justice coming together. As we know, there's been a significant misalignment between our values and our investments, and we have a responsibility and an opportunity to realign these two. As Abdul Bahad says, the honor and distinction of the individual consists in this, that he, among all the world's multitudes, become a source of social good. So coming back to EBBF, looking forward over the next few years, EBBF has set some ambitious goals for its members. For the next three years, EBBF has focused on four areas. Identify, engage, influence, and empower. EBBF's goal is to reach 100,000 members by 2019 and a million people by 2024. The goal is exponential growth because this is what is truly required to transform different industries, businesses, and communities to ensure a prosperous, just, and sustainable world. So there are several ways in which you can get involved in the EBBF community, and we have broken these down into three categories. Meet, influence, and knowledge. Face-to-face meetings, such as the gathering that we're at right now, is a key opportunity to be able to do this. There are over 250 international learning events that take place each year. There's a conference coming up in October of this year in Barcelona that I would strongly encourage people attend. And the second category is influence, and this comes back to what we just talked about earlier in terms of influencing the discourses of society. We can do this, of course, by creating our own organizations influenced by these principles or by engaging as intrapreneurs within the organizations that we are already part of. And the final category is knowledge. And when you look at the EBBF website, which is ebbf.org, you'll see many publications that have been put together on many of these principles. And it's a great opportunity to be able to both contribute and read the great literature that's out there on these issues. So in conclusion, we know that it is such a gift to be behind us in this day. But with that gift comes a great responsibility through engaging in the discourses in society and actively looking at models of integrating our values into business. We can be at the forefront of building a civilization we can be proud of. For more information, please check out ebbf.org. We also have flyers and I'm open to any questions as well. So thank you so much.