The concept of business serving as a force for halting poverty is still a relatively new one. NextBillion.net provides a platform for sharing developments in this emerging sector with the broader public. The site was launched in 2005 in response to early business efforts to engage those living at the base of the economic pyramid as both consumers and suppliers. Originally an initiative of the World Resources Institute, it provided a place where entrepreneurs, business and NGO leaders, policy makers, academics and others could explore the connection between development and private enterprise. Given WDI’s work with its Base of the Pyramid Initiative (now the Scaling Impact Initiative), the organization was a natural collaborator for NextBillion. WDI joined as a partner in 2010 and has been the exclusive parent organization of the site since 2012. What began as a message board-style forum for sharing news and research has grown into a polished, professional online publication. Today, NextBillion attracts guest-written articles from a wide variety of contributors — from early- stage entrepreneurs to the top names in business and academia — all of whom share a dedication to developing market solutions to alleviate poverty. NextBillion has grown exponentially since WDI took the helm, publishing more than 250 original articles annually and attracting hundreds of thousands of readers from around the world each year. As of late 2017, the site had a social media audience of over 115,000 followers. In the process, it advances WDI’s mission in two unique ways. As an open knowledge-sharing platform with a global audience, NextBillion provides an invaluable opportunity for businesses that serve low- and middle- income consumers, as well as for researchers who study the field, to share their insights. The site also gives WDI an unparalleled tool for familiarizing the broader public with its work and mission. NextBillion’s ongoing focus is facilitating a much broader discussion around the challenges and opportunities in development through enterprise. Its editors work intensively with practitioners to provide in- depth analysis of business models, investment strategies, real-world research and even frank discussions of failures. As it enters its second decade online, this focus, along with the diversity of its coverage, has made NextBillion a vital part of the global development media landscape — and one of its most respected voices. NextBillion.net In 2014, NextBillion interviewed Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Laureate who has helped create the microcredit sector. 25th Anniversary 73