Congressman John Delaney of Maryland gave a TED talk on TEDx Pennsylvania Avenue that shares his idea for a new approach to government, nonprofit and business sector collaboration. U.S. Representative Delaney was a business entrepreneur before entering Congress.

In his talk, he describes the need a new sense of collaboration between government, nonprofits, and the business sector to make a difference on issues and to help Americans who are struggling.

The Congressman describes three main challenges to government’s ability to address the problems of the day.  These include: funding; innovation; and transparency.

The Congressman suggestions collaboration through pay-for-success contracting as one approach to overcoming these challenges. The general process would be:

• The government contracts with a nonprofit to create a program that addresses a problem.
• The nonprofit issues social impact bonds to fund the program.
• The government pays for the program only when and if the program’s metrics show success.

For more information, watch Congressman Delaney’s TED talk.