Week 15 - PIRIKA!

Image from blogs.independent.co.uk

You know how obsessed we all are now with our camera/photo applications on our smartphones - especially the one application known as Instagram. Most iPhone users would have it installed, but now with the rise of Android, this application is practically used by billions worldwide! It is afterall free, and one of the most easy-to-use social media photo-sharing applications there are. We use it to snap photos of our #ootd or #wiwt ('outfit of the day' or 'what I wore today'), photos of our food before we dig in... Basically, photos of everything happening in our lives. Some examples of what one would post on instagram are:

Art...

Scenery...

#ootd & #wiwt ...

Own pictures (OPs)...

Outings with friends

And even, mismatched shoes...?

But what about photos of garbage? (Yep, you read that right - GARBAGE!)

While it may sound like a turn off at first, this is actually a really innovative solution that has helped to properly dispose of more than 95,000 pieces of garbage in over 60 countries. PIRIKA - which actually means 'clean and beautiful' in one of the native Japanese languages called Ainu – is a mobile application that hopes to kick off a movement for garbage-picking and reducing, reusing & recycling worldwide. Similar to the way in which Instagram works, PIRIKA allows users to snap a photo of the trash they find and share it on PIRIKA, Facebook, or Twitter before throwing it into the garbage bin.  It displays where garbage has been collected via some form of geotagging technology (which is able to determine location of one's whereabouts - just like Instagram!) and allows users to comment and give thanks to one another for making the world a cleaner and greener place. 

Let's take a look at how PIRIKA works:

PIRIKA is very easy to use!

 1. Find litter

2. Take a photo with PIRIKA

3. Throw it away

I think it's really amazing how the ever-so-innovative Japanese are coming up with inventions that surprise us. Now this is a true social innovation that combines a technology we all know and love (and it helps that we use it practically every single day too) with an underlying social motive in saving our environment. I think I'm gonna go download the PIRIKA app for myself too right now ☺☺

PIRIKA: 'clean and beautiful'

References

Ip, M. (2013, January 2). Japanese app "pirika" helps clean the world. Social enterprise buzz. Retrieved on 30 January 2013 from http://www.socialenterprisebuzz.com/2013/01/02/japanese-app-pirika-helps-clean-the-world/

Week 14 - SOCIAL INTRAPRENEUR

In my previous post, I mentioned that there needs to be more knowledge on social entrepreneurship. But then, I've come across this article on "social INTRApreneurship". What is that?!

Image from www.entrepreneurnews.com.au

What is a Social Intrapreneur?
Interesting as they are, the greatest agents of change are unlikely to be social entrepreneurs, but rather those working for large companies who have the ability to see avenues for new markets and to leverage resources to create better products, according to The Economist. Paul Polak, social entrepreneur and founder of International Development Enterprises, a company that produces low-cost solutions for small-time farmers, explained that big business is the key to scaling solutions to problems such as poverty. Those driving change within these corporations are the social intrapreneurs or in other words, “corporate social entrepreneurs”.

Image from www.behance.net

Social intrapreneurs are capable of making a positive impact to their business and for the world, and wish to align societal needs and business value.  They possess characteristics similar to social entrepreneurs, yet they are able to navigate massively complex systems to get things done with scale and impact because of the fact that they are HUGE people in the corporate industry.  And they are thus, surrounded by the resources to be able to create much more change for the better.  Together, these social intrapreneurs make for an army ready to attack – social and environmental problems that are being faced in this world.

While social entrepreneurship has deeper roots, having existed way back in the day and only being officially known in the 1970s, the first mention of social intrapreneurship or "corporate social entrepreneurship" came in place in the early 2000s and was more of an observation of the role an employee (intrinsically-driven by personal values). Today however, social intrapreneurship is the result of global market failures, increased expectations of businesses’ role in society, and a shift in personal values and motivation to build more sustainable business structures to help solve the many existing social issues.

I do wonder though... Will social intrapreneurship be here for the long-run?

Image from www.sustainablebrands.com

I would imagine that while these big corporate individuals have the drive to make great changes, their journey would be filled with many many challenges.  Social intrapreneurs would typically work all on their own and play the role of a social intrapreneur in addition to their normal day-to-day tasks.  Though the light has switched on for them and some of their colleagues, many describe their companies as slow-moving and simply aren’t able to adjust to the change in trying to be more social than profitable.

Challenges

Image from www.behance.net

As the article mentioned, the first reaction these social intrapreneurs would face to any new idea is a straight out “no”.  Their colleagues would counter their proposals by saying “This is a distraction”, “Poor people have no money”, or “We’re not in that business”. In turn, they face the risk of losing out on promotions and salary increases, and even losing their jobs. The numbers don’t lie - they show that social intrapreneurship can be short-lived and may not actually last for the long run.  It was reported that four years after SustainAbility’s report launched, just under half of social intrapreneurs interviewed remain at their companies.
Still, those who have gone through a light bulb moment tend to remain committed to the idea of aligning social and business values, and have moved on to other bigger (and better!) roles. 

There is hope that social intrapreneurs would stir much great change in the world, but if all else fails, we still have all our social entrepreneurs to come in and save us!

Image from www.karmakonsum.de

References

Ip, M. (2013, January 8). Social intrapreneurship - an idea whose time has come. In social enterprise buzz. Retrieved on 26th January 2013 from http://www.socialenterprisebuzz.com/2013/01/08/social-intrapreneurship-an-idea-whose-time-has-come/

Week 13 - SPREADING THE SOCIAL WORD

Image from www.channelnewsasia.com

Making the world a better place does not have to begin with a huge global transformation. While this is a dream that is wonderful to achieve, it is extremely ambitious and one would probably just be building sandcastles in the air for the rest of time. Having listened to various different people who are pioneers in what they do in the social sector, it has come to light that starting small and consistently while slowly growing is the way to go. We had a field trip earlier this week to a social enterprise hawker centre called Dignity Kitchen that provides many opportunities for people with disabilities as well as the elderly and we were fortunate enough to get an inside look into how it is like trying to create social change without much, or any support for that matter, from the government. The founder, Mr Koh put everything on the line to make Dignity Kitchen where it is today. From pure dedication and passion, to the amount of time and resources, to the large debt he still faces until today ... Mr Koh has been kind enough to tell us that it is not at all easy, but at the end of the day it is extremely fulfilling and heartening to see all that he put in result in better lives for the many people there. 

Image from www.channelnewsasia.com

For people with no experience like many my age, I am glad that Mr Koh mentioned this; "Volunteer somewhere just one day, once a month, every month." He then further elaborated that making this small step could result in so much more to come. We would be able to find where our passion truly lies. We would be able to gain expertise in an area that would come in useful to us for when we wish to kickstart our venture. We would be able to gather necessary contacts in the industry to help us in the future. We would be able to use the time planning and thinking things out very carefully before beginning anything. We would be ready for creating social change. We would succeed.  

Plus, I really think that we need to go out there into the industry and share with people the concept of social entrepreneurship rather than just trying to do things all on our own. Two heads are better than one, and the success rates of collaborations are much higher than sole startups. I was just previously writing on how the concept of social entrepreneurship is not very known in the Middle East. But I should not have even looked that far. Adults in our midst right here in Singapore are completely clueless as to what social entrepreneurship is. My mum had forced me to join her and her colleagues for dinner one night and I spent the entire time waiting for our meals to be served just talking about what social enterprise is and what possibly lay ahead for me in the future.

Image from realsolutions4life.com

Image from www.bouldercitysocial.com

There needs to be more knowledge on social entrepreneurship. I wish that when people heard that I am studying a course in social entrepreneurship, it would hit them instantly just like how one would react to hearing that someone is studying in the field of business, or engineering, or even dentistry. Social entrepreneurship needs to become a more common concept and it can be done by spreading the social word. To be honest, I hardly read the newspapers and watch the news but I do follow updates on Twitter with regards to current affairs and this might just be the way to go - spreading the social word through social media. I'm not very active on Facebook, and I have a couple of friends who are just as inactivate, some of them having even deleted their Facebook accounts. Facebook may not be the social media approach to take on here as it is somewhat becoming a fad. What could instead be done is promotion through Twitter, and those creative Youtube ads that we MUST sit through before our video plays.   

"Volunteer somewhere just one day, once a month, every month." - Mr Koh, founder of Dignity Kitchen

References

The Straits Times. (2012, November 23).What can you get for $600,000?. Retrieved on 29th January 2013 from http://ifonlysingaporeans.blogspot.sg/2012/11/dignity-kitchen-what-can-you-get-for.html

Week 12 - SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE MIDDLE EAST

We always hear so much about social enterprises and its development in Asia, the US, the UK, certain parts of Europe and even in Africa, but hardly is there any news on the social entrepreneurship sector in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). MENA is made up of the following countries:

Image from www.economist.com/

From before, majority of the MENA countries were seen to be performing well on various different developmental fronts, showing impressive growth rates and an improving business sector of its own. However, many of those who took to the streets and have been to MENA believed that this growth only benefited a privileged minority. This article aims at looking at how the MENA region can adopt a new development model of social entrepreneurship for competitive economies to create decent jobs while promoting sustainable development, social justice and equity.

Ashoka was the first organization since 2003 to introduce the concept to the MENA region and to support Arab social entrepreneurs financially and technically. The Arab Spring had brought about much tumult to the Middle East, but the demonstrations have also resulted in new aspects to civil life in the Arab society. Researchers at Stanford University say that the Arab Spring has also been a key factor to furthering the development of social entrepreneurship in the region. According to Social Entrepreneurship: Why It Is Important After the Arab Spring, it states that "unanimously across the region, young people are more interested in improving their communities and contributing to the long-term development of their societies after the revolution."

So why then is social entrepreneurship still hardly heard of in MENA? Here are several main reasons why:

1. Lack of public awareness: The lack of exposure and knowledge about social entrepreneurship and the benefits it brings to communities means that some very good social entrepreneurs might not be known to the public. Greater exposure needs to be given to the contributions made by social entrepreneurs. Such heightened awareness would lead to greater trust and an environment that is more conducive to social entrepreneurship. In the meantime, the public remains skeptical.
2. Lack of governmental support: Although the Egyptian government has invested in development initiatives in the past, it has never prioritized social entrepreneurs. The current political environment and concurrent social instability have further complicated the situation and negatively affected a lot of development projects and activities. Increased bureaucracy and a focus on politics led to longer delays by the government in approving licenses or issuing funding approvals for not-for-profit organizations and small businesses. The media has also been attacking NGOs, accusing those who receive foreign funding of promoting foreign agendas. In Egypt, people are shutting down their organizations, not because anyone forces them to, but because they are not receiving the help and support they need. Because of Ashoka’s independence and lack of affiliation with the government, it is able to fulfill a vital role.
3. Lack of capacity: The lack of know-how is another significant challenge. What NGOs need is the transfer of know-how in order to produce the start-up project activities and organizations that are needed. As an example, social entrepreneurs who only receive a local education in the region do not have the skills to write a good investable business plan. Unless training is offered to build the capacity of local NGOs, there will be no good start-ups in the region.

But there are many opportunities coming about for the rise of social entrepreneurship in MENA, as after the Arab Awakening, an increasing number of younger people in the Arab continent have been applying for fellowships. Most applicants used to be in their thirties, but it is noted that Ashoka has been receiving many applicants who are in their early twenties. Projects are now generally more sustainable, less elitist and more geared towards the needs of the poor. Many proposals are more conscious of the real needs and priorities of the people.

Image from cartoonstock.com

Such a change across the MENA region may just about remove the typical Arab stereotype about them being rich and selfishly spending all money they have for themselves on themselves. But this rich Arab community, geared with the right mindset, knowledge and tools of social entrepreneurship could indeed lift the entire continent out of its social unrest, and possibly even put an end to the political instability and economic discontent in time to come.   

Image from cartoonstock.com

"Social entrepreneurship can be a powerful solution for the region." - Suzi Sosa, founder and president of the MPOWER Foundation

References

Sosa, S. (2011, February 23). Why we need social entrepreneurship in the middle east. Inc: Small business resources for the entrepreneur. Retrieved on 7th January 2013 from http://www.inc.com/articles/201102/suzi-sosa-why-we-need-social-entrepreneurship-in-the-middle-east.html

Townsend, J.C. (2012, October 10). Can social enterprise contribute to inclusive growth in middle east and north africa? In Ashoka's Youth Venture. Retrieved on 7th January 2013 from http://www.youthventure.org/can-social-enterprise-contribute-inclusive-growth-middle-east-north-africa