Integrity Icon

Blair Glencorse is building a movement for accountability and anti-corruption around the world. After working for the World Bank and the current President of Afghanistan, he founded the Accountability Lab- an organization that makes governance work for people by supporting active citizens, responsible leaders and accountable institutions. Blair and his team have done everything from helping to found the first film school in Liberia; to monitoring and improving public services in Pakistan; to running a global TV show called Integrity Icon to “name and fame” honest government officials. The Accountability Lab recently won the UN’s International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award. Blair is an expert on anti-corruption with the World Economic Forum and a member of the World Bank’s Expert Advisory Council on Citizen Engagement. He is also leading the C20 Anti-Corruption Working Group, advising the G20 on issues of anti-corruption on behalf of global civil society. 

Corruption is a massive problem all over the world- and a challenge we have seen exacerbated during the COVID-19 crisis within healthcare systems that have been gutted by graft; and in the massive amounts of money that have gone missing in government spending in response to the pandemic. Traditional anti-corruption approaches are negative, problem focused and compliance oriented- and have not worked. This problem is getting worse, not better. We need to think differently. Integrity Icon is a new, positive way of approaching this problem through “naming and faming” honest government officials, rather than “naming and shaming” the wrong-doers. Integrity Icon elevates humanity by lifting up public sector heroes; highlighting them as role-models for others; building positive energy among communities; and finding new ways to support people with integrity to push for reforms within our societies. Ultimately, it shifts norms and can lead us to more fair and equal societies.

A lack of integrity around the world undermines inclusive, stable and prosperous societies and is a key cause of poverty, injustice and violence. This destroys trust in public institutions, prevents millions of people from realizing their basis rights, distorts markets and undermines critical, collective global goals including the SDGs. It is difficult to conceptualize how big a problem this is. Let’s take corruption as one key consequence of a lack of integrity for example- the UN estimates that each year $2.6 trillion is stolen through corruption and $1 trillion is paid in bribes around the world. That is more than 160 times the amount that donors spend on healthcare annually, and more than 75% of all public health spending globally, for example. This is money that could be used to fight #COVID19, save lives and improve living conditions for hundreds of millions of people.

The specific problem is that government officials with integrity and who try to fight this challenge are marginalized, denigrated and disincentivized. They are forced out of their positions, transferred or even killed for trying to change these dynamics. They do not have the public recognition or support they need to shift norms and change behaviors.

Integrity Icon is a campaign to find, celebrate and support honest government officials. It moves away from tired approaches to “name and shame” wrong-doers; and shifts norms through carefully crafted, collaborative national movements to “name and fame” honest public officials. Think American Icon but for governance and anti-corruption! Citizens nominate honest government officials; we select and film the top 5 and people vote in their millions for their favorites, who we celebrate at large national, red-carpet ceremonies in front of VIPs, the media and citizens. Then we work with the winners to help them get promoted, build coalitions for change, develop the skills they need to improve government and amplify their voices.

Integrity Icon has led to some impressive results- for example, the trust and credibility the campaign has given previous winners has seen them promoted to ministerial positions; and push through national reforms to fight corruption. Others have been asked to advise on national level policy changes; and been invited to brief Congress in the US on how to engage in governance issues. Equally as importantly, Integrity Icon shifts understandings of who role-models should be and holds up the kind of behaviors we should all aspire to.

Integrity Icon directly serves government officials who work hard for the public good everyday in some of the most corrupt systems in the world- to try and make those systems function better for citizens, and to improve lives. The work they do is not glamorous, nor are they paid well- they do it because it is the right thing to do. The campaign impacts the lives of these officials by encouraging them, lifting them up publicly and turning them into role-models for others to follow. Winners have included policemen, nurses, teachers and other public servants who are now respected and admired for their values, not for how much money they have or power they yield. This is fundamental to changing the way we operate as societies.

In a larger sense, Integrity Icon is serving citizens- who are the beneficiaries of better government, public service delivery and inclusive decision-making. We consult citizens every step of the way- they nominate and vote for the Icons; they join the campaign in person and online; and they are the ones that give the legitimacy to the process which has allowed it to grow dramatically over the past 8 years.   

Integrity Icon relates to at least two of the Elevate Prize dimensions. It is fundamentally about shifting attitudes, beliefs and behaviors, away from corruption and dishonesty and towards integrity and accountability. It does this through building awareness and driving action in positive ways, that can create hope in the future and model a different reality. More broadly Integrity Icon is about a very new, innovative and different approach to one of the oldest and most intractable problems of our societies- corruption; and reaching a tipping point in societies where suddenly this problem is no longer acceptable.  

In 2011, my team and I were watching Nepali Idol, the local version of American Idol in Nepal and were joking about what a popular, audience driven TV show would look like if it focused on the issues we cared about- integrity and accountability. Integrity Icon was born (then called Integrity Idol) and we sent out volunteers the very next day to collect nominations for honest government officials from citizens. We spent $5,000 on the campaign that 1st year. We collected over 300 nominations and incredibly, over 4 million Nepalis watched the show on TV- almost 10% of the population. When the winner returned to his town after the ceremony, he was surrounded by hundreds of citizens chanting his name. We knew we had found something that worked- an approach that could both generate difficult conversations and new behaviors, but also inspire all of us to be better. Since then the campaign has grown to 12 countries and has been seen by millions of people, from Nepal to South Africa to Ukraine to Mexico. You can watch my two TED talks on Integrity Icon here and here. 

I am passionate about Integrity Icon because I have seen the problem of a lack of integrity and corruption up-close in the countries we work- and seen 1st hand the devastation and injustice that occurs when people in power are not accountable to citizens. I have lived and worked in some of the most corrupt places in the world for almost 15 years- from Liberia and Nepal to my current home, Pakistan- and have seen the tired, old approaches to these issues that simply do not work. I am passionate about the campaign because I have also had the incredible fortune to spend time with some of the Icons- like Alphonso, a DEA agent in Liberia who arrested the President’s bodyguards for corruption right in front of her; Batool, the 1st minority woman in a very conservative part of Pakistan to be promoted (with our support) to District Assistant Commissioner and push for integrity and gender equity; and Nuzo in Nigeria who has pushed back against sex-for-grades within universities in Nigeria. These are the public sector heroes who inspire me every day and the kinds of people we are catching doing the RIGHT thing through Integrity Icon.  

I am well positioned to deliver this project for three key reasons. First, I’ve been living and working on these issues for 15 years and seen how a lack of integrity undermines equality and stability everywhere. I worked on these issues all the way through the Ebola crisis in Liberia; through the 2015 earthquakes in Nepal; through the ongoing insurgency in Mali and Niger; and now during COVID-19 in Pakistan, where corruption is currently devastating the response. I know first-hand how these dynamics work and why traditional approaches fail. Second, I have the skills and networks to ensure this project can grow and succeed. I am able to connect dots- from citizens in a small village in Pakistan where the corruption of local officials means there is no clean drinking water; to a Minister at an anti-corruption conference deciding on how global institutions can try and build integrity. Building bridges and making voices heard around these issues in this way is what it takes to shift systems. Third, because I bring an innovation and entrepreneurial mindset to this issue, which is very different to other organizations in this field, which are wedded to old, aid-driven governance approaches. Through Integrity Icon I am bringing together cutting edge thinkers, HCD experts, media-makers, creatives and storytellers to make anti-corruption sexy and appeal to citizens in ways they understand. That is very powerful. 

The current pandemic is a great place to begin. When COVID-19 hit we pivoted our work at the Accountability Lab to focus on countering misinformation and rumors in communities around the virus and government responses. We mobilized our Integrity Icon networks (winners, volunteers and voters) to help us gather rumors from the ground, and our teams matched these with validated information from authoritative sources, and then communicated this back to communities in bulletins in 10 local languages across 8 countries. The bulletins are being used as the basis for radio shows, Whatsapp discussions and online and offline meetings. We have now reached over 20 million people through this campaign, in some of the most hard-to-reach places in the world, including northwestern Nepal, Northeastern Nigeria, northern Mali and Balochistan in Pakistan. This work grew out of previous work we had done after the earthquakes in Nepal and during Ebola in Liberia to build trust and ensure understanding between citizens and those in power. In the end these are crises of trust, not of healthcare. Our Integrity Icon campaign provided us with the credibility, networks and reach to adapt and evolve in response to some of the most difficult challenges imaginable.

In 2019 ahead of the national elections in Nigeria it was clear that young people were in danger of voting not for the candidates that best represented them or their issues, but those that influencers and musicians told them to vote for. These influencers and musicians were often paid large amounts by corrupt candidates to do that. My team and I stepped in and started a national music competition in Nigeria along with the biggest record label in the country- it sourced new music from Nigerians about participation, democracy and elections and connected famous artists to these up-and-comers for mentorship and support. I designed and rolled out the program and we hosted concerts all over the country with the winning musicians- encouraging young people to register and vote for candidates that represented them for the right reasons. Some of the biggest stars in the country came out publicly and said they had come to the realization that being paid by politicians to influence young people was not the way forward- and that everyone should vote for candidates with integrity. It transformed the youth vote and has led to a new approach to music for social change in the country.

Integrity Icon is innovative in 3 key ways. First, it changes the narrative around corruption. This problem has always been about enforcement and compliance, which saps hope and undermines faith in change, which can actually contribute to the challenge. Integrity Icon flips this around by catching people doing the right thing, not the wrong thing; and shifting norms through lifting these heroes up for others to see.

Second, Integrity Icon is innovative in that it builds “unlikely networks” for change. Most approaches in this space are technical, dry and based on language that is largely inaccessible to ordinary people. We bring honest government officials together with film-makers who can tell their stories in new ways; media-makers who can explain why what they do is important; musicians who develop theme tunes and jingles; children and students who can amplify their voices through social media; and Heads of State who can help them push for reform. This makes Integrity Icon fresh, accessible and different for the target audiences- citizens everywhere who are fed up with corruption.

Third, Integrity Icon is innovative because- like the Elevate Prize- it understands the importance of building movements to shift behaviors. The change we need in the world cannot come about only through changing rules. It has to come about through changing values and the way we, collectively, think about ourselves. Elevating solutions is about finding popular ways to get everyone involved in the change we need.

Previously, we preferred to understand a Theory of Change (ToC) not just as a way to map inputs, outputs, and outcomes but as a way to understand in practical terms the causality between them; and to support double loop learning (learning that recognizes that the way a problem is defined and solved can be a source of the problem itself). As a result, our theory of change was not an agreed, defined diagram but a living document that we amended and refined over time as we learned on the ground (see our evolving ToCs here. 

 What we realized over time, however, was that in fact what we needed for Integrity Icon specifically was a Theory of Action (ToA). We began to understand that there can be Theories of Change for how to build accountability as a whole, but that Integrity Icon required a focus more specifically on our own understanding of the change we it creates- embodied in our ToA. The ToA can briefly be posited in the following “if” and “then” sentence:

 If we build national movements to find, celebrate and support honest government officials and focus on connecting these Icons to each other and the tools they need to build integrity, then we can shift norms within societies away from corruption and motivate citizens to change behaviors and support more inclusive, accountable societies.

 A summary of how a previous version of this kind of ToA comes together within a specific context can be found in our in-depth contribution tracing study on Integrity Icon in Liberia here. 

Our Integrity Icon videos are currently seen/heard by over 20 million people annually through TV and radio, social media and whatsapp; and we regularly have over 400,000 votes for the winners across these countries. In one year we expect these numbers to increase by 10% to 22 million/440,000 and in 5 years we expect these numbers to have doubled to 40 million and over 800,000 votes.

My goals with Integrity Icon within the next year are to: expand the campaign to 4 additional countries with partners (Zimbabwe, DRC, Uganda and Kenya) and 1 additional city in the US (Baltimore); deepen engagement in the countries in which we already work (numbers outlined above); adapt the campaign to focus specifically on healthcare and COVID-19 public sector heroes; consolidate the training and learning programs we have developed for the Icons; improve sharing of ideas/network building between Icons across contexts; and build new media partnerships with global media organizations that have shown interest (Al Jazeera, BBC).

My goals with Integrity Icon within the next 5 years are to: expand the campaign to an additional 20 countries/cities; deepen engagement in these countries to reach the numbers outlined above; roll-out associated programming to build integrity in government including Integrity Schools for Civil Servants and Integrity Film Fellowships in all of these contexts; develop a global Integrity Summit through which the Icons come together from across countries to share lessons and support each other; create a global Integrity Icon campaign through which we find the most honest government officials in the world, building on the national campaigns; and build large-scale new partnerships for the campaign with a variety of foundations, multilateral organizations and civil society organizations.

In the next year, the key barriers are: i) the COVID-19 crisis which is preventing in-person outreach, events, filming and network building; ii) financing- which is varied across contexts but is needed in some countries; iii) ability to generate interest- which is difficult with so many other critical challenges in the news cycle; iv) capacity- to consolidate our learning and develop Icon support materials; and v) logistics- in new countries where the campaign is just beginning.

In the next five years the key barriers are: i) partnerships- in new countries as we scale the campaign; ii) relationship-building- with governments to roll out ancillary programming; iii) financing- to support global growth and engagement; iv) skills-building- so we can carry out the campaign entirely in house where possible; and v) imitation- our campaign has forged a path others are beginning to follow.

In the next year, we will overcome the key barriers through: i) moving large portions of the campaign online to avoid physical contact during COVID-19 crisis and adapting other parts of the work to allow for social distancing; ii) broadening our business development efforts and more coherently connecting the campaign to COVID-19 to generate resources; iii) finding new ways to tell stories and reach people despite the news cycle (eg our new dedicated Whatsapp channels); iv) provide learning opportunities for staff members around the key capacity gaps, such as online community building and public sector reforms; and v) find trusted partners who can help us overcome logistical challenges where they exist and can help us leverage other relationships to succeed.

In the next five years we will overcome the key barriers through: i) careful stakeholder mapping to identify partnerships across the media, movement-building, youth leadership and community development domains; ii) work with our teams around the world to develop the relationships we need with governments, particularly civil service training schools, ministries of public administration and in relevant line ministries; iii) develop earned income streams for the campaign to build on existing revenue including advertising and paid trainings; iv) build out skills-building programs including around film-making, audio recording and social media; and v) partner with similar approaches to “name and fame” to see how we can find synergies and help each other succeed. 

We currently partner with 5 different kinds of organizations. First, local community and civil society organizations in all of the countries in which we run the campaign- they provide outreach support, engagement advice, feedback on the process and support for logistics and implementation. Second, we partner with over 20+ media organizations at the national and regional levels- these include national TV and radio stations, smaller local language community radio stations and larger international outlets. Third, we partner with governments- while the campaign is independent, we work with governments to source nominees for Integrity Icon, celebrate the winners, support their reforms and develop skills-building opportunities. Relevant ministries include health, education, police, district/local administration, public administration and justice. Fourth, we partner with film-makers and film schools to create the content for the movement, including small film-making organizations in each country and well known social change story-tellers such as Andrew Benson and Kathleen Flynn. Fifth, we partner with donors for the campaign, who fund the activities, which currently include: Government of the Netherlands, USAID, UK FCO, National Endowment for Democracy, Luminate, Government of Denmark and UNDP.

Currently, Integrity Icon is a philanthropic campaign run by Accountability Lab- an NGO- through a series of partnerships (often low or no-bono), grants and volunteerism. We keep costs extremely low through bootstrapping, leveraging relationships, saving costs and building on networks we build through other programming. We provide our beneficiaries with one of the leading campaigns to improve government and change development in their countries; which we provide online, through social media, through TV and radio and through large-scale Whatsapp outreach. Citizens want this campaign, as explained above because it provides a way for them to participate in a safe, positive process of change; it gives them hope that the future can be better; and it helps them to understand how support for people with integrity can change systems. In terms of revenue, we do generate some earned income to cover costs in the following ways: i) payment for SMS voting by citizens for their favorite Icons; ii) advertising on local media around the campaign episodes; and iii) paid training and engagement courses on issues of integrity related to the campaign.

The campaign has plans to grow quickly over the next 5 years as outlined above. We will sustain this financially in the following ways. First, grants. We have sustained the campaign already for more than 8 years on grant funding even as it has grown, including longer term grants such as a 2 year grant from Luminate for South Africa and Nigeria; a 3 year grant from the Dutch government in Mali; and a new 5 year grant from USAID to run this campaign in Zimbabwe from 2021-2025. We intend to continue to raise funds for the campaign in this way, which will ensure a basis of funding across countries over time. Second, through earned income using the channels outlined above, to cover some costs- small scale payment by voters, which will increase in number over time; advertising and training for government officials. Third, through partnerships with key media outlets and content providers who are already showing interest in paying for some of our content for their platforms. Fourth, in-kind relationships with service providers in these countries- for example, businesses with integrity regularly donate food or space for events because they believe in the cause. Finally, donations from individuals that believe in the cause- in Nepal for example, the team has created a list of 100 individual donors that support the campaign every year.

We have received the following grant funding for Integrity Icon over the past eight years:

• UK FCO ($60,000) for Nepal;

• Government of the Netherlands ($250,000) for Mali;

• Luminate ($150,000) for Nigeria and South Africa;

• Government of Denmark ($23,000) for South Africa;

• UNDP ($30,000) for Liberia and Pakistan;

• MacArthur Foundation ($80,000) for Nigeria;

• Government of Sweden ($25,000) for Liberia;

• Open Society Foundations ($150,000) for Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka

In terms of revenue, we have raised around $10,000 over the past 12 months from a combination of training delivery and user fees for voting systems.

Over the next year we are seeking to raise $380,000 to scale Integrity Icon to new contexts and deepen our work in the countries in which we already work, as outlined above. In particular, we have begun Integrity Icon at the city level in the US (Philadelphia) www.integrityicon.org/philadelphia We are hoping to raise this amount in grant funding by the end of 2020.

Our estimated expenses for Integrity Icon globally in 2020 are $750,000; of which we have raised $370,000. These costs cover: staff time, events, partnerships, filming, voting, communications, content development, training, a % of overhead costs and network building.

I am applying to the Elevate Prize for three key reasons. First, growth of the Integrity Icon campaign will take access to networks, partners and decision-makers who can help us understand how to overcome challenges, strategically position what we do and build relationships that will supercharge growth. MIT Solve and the Elevate Prize has the kind of community that can support us to do that. Second, Integrity Icon is a movement built on communications, and the Elevate Prize has the deep expertise, ideas and partnerships that can provide us with the support we need to refine our narratives, build our storytelling skills and creative large-scale media relationships for change. The Elevate Prize is explicitly about creating a base of support to inspire others for public good, which is exactly what Integrity Icon does. Finally, the Elevate Prize has an incredible community from which we can learn- the other winners, judges, supporters and participants have huge amounts of wisdom from which we can benefit- and I look forward to sharing ideas and finding new ways to collaborate with them.

Through the Prize we would like in particular to access mentorship and/or coaching around the following issues- future-proofing/strategic thinking around the future of the campaign within the new global context; consolidating and codifying processes and materials so that these can be replicated globally across other contexts; scaling and growth to new countries and contexts. In terms of marketing, media, and exposure we would like to form some large-scale media partnerships over the next several years with key (social) media outlets that understand the need for solutions journalism/good news storytelling. These might include organizations we have already begun conversations with (such as AJ+); but also organizations like YouTube and Instagram. We would also like to form partnerships with large national media organizations in some of the countries in which we work, such as Channels TV in Nigeria and Geo TV in Pakistan.

Beyond the specific media partners listed above, we are also looking for partnerships in the following areas with the following potential partners: i) multilateral agencies at the HQ level to leverage Integrity Icon/integrate it into larger efforts, particularly around COVID-19 (such as the UN Verified campaign); ii) funding- with foundations based in the US and Europe that support this kind of work such as the Mo Ibrahim Foundation and the Draper Kaplan Richards Foundation; iii) policymakers- who have demonstrated integrity in their work and can support training/skills-building for our Icons, such as former Mayors and Governors in the US and other countries around the world; iv) telecommunications companies- who can help us amplify the campaign/provide voting platforms and tools, such as Orange, MTN and T-Mobile; v) large global youth organizations/movements- that can amplify the campaign/integrate it into what they do, such as the Scouts and the World Youth Organization; and vi) Conferences- with which we can partner to provide exposure for the Icons and for the campaign- such as the Aspen Ideas Festival and Concordia Summit.