Olivia Wilde on Philanthropy cum Commerce

[Olivia Wilde's] new web site, Conscious Commerce, lets people give back by buying stuff they love.

Wilde doesn't quite do a good job of explaining her new take on philanthropy. "Almost tricking the consumer into doing a good thing" sounds rather manipulative, for example. But beyond such little stumbles, her philanthropic take actually resonates quite well with me, that is, à la The Core Algorithm.  So with doing good for others and persuading them to do good as the end in mind, the question is what are the best ways to make this happen. 

Here is what I think:

Sustainable philanthropic, humanitarian or charitable efforts must have a business model:  It must generate revenues, in exchange for goods, in part or as a whole.  This is what I believe Wilde is actually trying to articulate.  Moreover, it makes sense to draw on business, because people in general understand it and transact with it via numerous forms of commerce in their day to day lives.  In other words, business is a terrific channel or partner for reaching people, educating them, and persuading them to do good.