Vicky's Green Innovation

Green Innovation

Even though the two social enterprises that Ventures in Development has incubated so far are yak-related and seem to solve the social problems in rural China only, ViD is interested in both rural and urban challenges, and is open-minded to conducting all types of program as long as it has the potential to grow into a sustainable social enterprise that can promote economic development. The monthly social innovation salon thus serves the purpose of collecting new, creative and feasible ideas for the incubation of future social enterprises.

On my last day interning with ViD, I helped organizing another social innovation salon in Hong Kong. This time, we discussed an urban challenge that is closely related to our daily lives and is common to most of the modernized cities—municipal waste recycling. In a world where consumerism takes the lead, tonnes of wastes are generated every day. Therefore, it is important to think of a sustainable way to treat the waste products instead of incinerating or dumping them into the limited landfills. While I was researching on this topic, I came across many creative and feasible solutions from abroad. However, to my surprise, only 1% of the recovered wastes in Hong Kong are recycled into something useful locally—the rest of them are exported to foreign companies as raw materials for making other goods. Another problem I noticed from my research is that the high value-added wastes such as paper, aluminum cans and plastics contributed to 93% of the recycled wastes. Due to a longer treatment process and a lower return rate, a limited scope of other wastes such as glass bottles and putrescibles (food wastes) are recycled. Obviously, we need a more long-term and innovative way to change the situation. In fact, this recycling business can be a good social enterprise idea too!

Pie chart showing the composition of recovered wastes in Hong Kong in 2008.

To stimulate our salon participants’ innovative mind, ViD contacted ECOLS, a stylish store selling creatively-recycled products from worldwide, and hosted our salon there. Sitting on an armchair made of egg cartons and looking at a handbag made with the pull-tabs from aluminum cans, our participants came up with ideas of how to create an SE that is based on recycling and re-creating products made of glass, wood, rattan, putrescibles and rubber tyres.

Phoebe Yuen, co-founder of ECOLS, explained the store’s concept and philosophy to the salon participants

Out of all solutions, my personal favorite is the “Wood Bank” idea. The group that was assigned to thinking about recycling wood and rattan came up with the idea of opening a Wood Bank, which is essentially a repository for scrap wood and leftover wood from construction sites etc. Individuals who need the wood for other purposes (such as making small furniture for their homes) can come and buy the wood at a cheap price. A workshop will be set up in the Wood Bank where craftsmen will design and teach children how to make recycled wooden products. The selling of the recycled products will provide a stable source of income for this Wood Bank to become a financially independent social enterprise.

Our salon participants brainstorming on the “Wood Bank” idea

Although the feasibility and effect of opening a Wood Bank or adopting the other solutions suggested at the salon is yet to be determined, ViD has at least brought up the waste recycling issue to a group of socially-minded young professionals. The salon has also served ViD’s mission of spreading the awareness of social enterprises, letting the participants know that there are alternative approaches to solving a social challenge. Hopefully with the help of the word of mouth, more people will be aware of these social issues, join in discussing them at the salon and eventually share ViD’s vision!

- Vicky

Goodbye to Jaipur

Corey:

My internship at Jaipur Rugs Foundation has come to an end. Despite a couple bouts of food poisoning and a malfunctioning computer, my time at JRF has been nothing short of incredible. I have worked alongside a highly dedicated group of individuals in JRF; their passion and work ethic are unparalleled. I have also had the opportunity to work under Mr. N.K. Chaudhary. Mr. N.K. Chaudhary is one of the most selfless and kind-hearted human beings I have ever encountered and the opportunity to work under him has been an incredible experience that I will never forget. He is a visionary pioneer who will undoubtedly transform the carpet industry. Not only did Mr. N.K. Chaudhary teach me about the history and mission of JRF and his vision for the company, but also he taught me that private enterprise can successfully facilitate economic and social development – often more effectively and sustainably than foreign aid can.

During my internship, I have conducted a copious amount of research on a variety of different topics, edited various reports, including JRF’s Annual Report and the Annual Progress Report on Thanagazi, researched and drafted letters to potential partners in Germany and the Netherlands, narrated both a long and short documentary film on JRF, and conducted an interview for a national news station. However, the main focus of my internship has been on the SHG initiative of JRF’s Carpet Cluster Development Project in Thanagazi. I have compiled my findings into a 24-page report that I will present to Mr. Chaudhary and the JRF staff on my last day. My presentation will cover a variety of different topics relating to the Carpet Cluster Development Project, including its history, mission, achievements, and areas for improvement. It is my hope that my report will help JRF to improve the effectiveness, facilitate the expansion, and ensure the sustainability of its Carpet Cluster Development Project as well as educate the Penn faculty and community about JRF.

Final Words from Sagar

Hi everyone, this is my last post, and I have tried to summarize my learning with respect to Social Enterprise.

Disclaimer: Please note that the thoughts below are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of the PW or its founder.

Definition of Social Enterprise

· Different people define Social Enterprise in different ways, my original one was that of “a for-profit business that serves a social need”.

· Prefer the definition exposed to this summer: There is a broad spectrum of organizations, ranging from zero self-income generating charities, to self-sustaining microfinance organizations. All of these can be called social enterprises in one sense of the word. If they pursue their ‘social missions’ while adopting the underlying tenets of business i.e. being results driven and accountable, focusing on governance, capacity building and expansion etc. they can certainly be called social enterprises.

Current Situation w.r.t the Social and Private Sector

At this stage, there is a very wide perceptional gap between the charitable and private sector. The latter being very results driven, is uncomfortable interacting with individuals and organizations from the former.

Most charities spend a lot of their time and quality people trying to raise funds. Each foundation/donor has its own requirements and there is a lack of standardization. Also, because of the private-social sector understanding gap (most philanthropists have made their money in the private sector), the majority of the money is sucked in by charities that have a strong brand name and visibility, not necessarily effectiveness. Thus the incentives for charities to focus on effectiveness, governance and accountability are few.

Moreover, because the social sector pays lower salaries in general, it is seen as sub-optimal and there is a lack of talented individuals, especially compared to the private sector.

My conclusion then is that the social sector has a lot of entrepreneurs, because you need to be one to get people motivated to start an organization, but is lacking people with managerial skillsets, who can really take the charities far along the road to effectiveness.

Thoughts and Philosophies

· Before diving in, it is useful to scope out the value-chain and examine those areas where there is too much attention, and those where there is too little.

• Chances are that the impact per dollar will be larger in areas where needs are not being met
• If you must get involved in the chain at a point where there are numerous organizations, it is better to become part of an existing one and help it improve its effectiveness than start a new one and miss out on the use of available infrastructure.

· Along the same networking point, it is arrogant and naive to think that one-person, or one-organization can make a significant impact. If one attempts to work without leveraging the support and information networks with other organizations, one is not performing at a 100% capability.

· Social Forums, Articles and Research Papers, Informal Discussions are vital for

• Developing these relationships
• Ensuring that organizations have a collective impetus in a general 'north' direction

To Summarize

· I came in thinking that for-profit social enterprise were the ideal, and would revolutionize the sector because they aren't dependent on donors. However,

• People are willing to give, and getting funding might not be that hard if you can show good impact and effective governance
• Adam Smith's specialization applies - the interests of the non-profit are best served if it does what it is best at: helping others. Any time spent trying to self-generate funds, especially if the staff don't have the expertise and it is beyond the mission scope, is inefficient
• Charities, Social enterprises cause only a ripple compared to the wave that large institutional organizations such as the UN, and Governments more so can create in terms of social impact.
• Having said that, at the end of the day, it one has to approach the basic needs to be solved from all angles, public, private and non-profit, i.e. society

Thank you for this opportunity PennSEM, PW and Penn!

Self Help Groups at Jaipur

Corey:

I have spent the past couple weeks analyzing the data I collected through the surveys I conducted. I interviewed 48 self-help group (SHG) members individually and 10 SHGs as a whole. Through my surveys, I wholeheartedly believe that Jaipur Rugs Foundation’s (JRF) SHG initiative is benefiting the lives of weavers. I believe that the SHG initiative has tackled three major social problems: the presence of exploitative middlemen, social discrimination, and rural-urban migration. First, middlemen, acting as liaisons between weavers and contractors, have traditionally employed exploitative practices that have left weavers trapped in an endless cycle of poverty and suffering. However, Jaipur Rugs Company (JRC) has cut out these middlemen by creating a business that oversees every process of carpet weaving – from production and manufacturing to exporting and wholesaling. Moreover, JRF conducts capacity-building trainings, facilitates market linkages with JRC, and plans to eventually organize the weavers into an independent federal body with ownership over the company; rather than confining weavers to a life of dependency, as middlemen have traditionally done, JRF encourages the weavers to become truly self-dependent entrepreneurs.

Second, the SHG initiative addresses the discrimination and inequality inherent in India’s social system. Although the Indian Constitution has outlawed the caste system, caste-based discrimination still persists in parts of India, specifically in the rural areas of the country. SC, ST, and OBC members have been subject to horrible discrimination and inequality. Although they make up the majority of the population of India, they have the lowest social status and have suffered from social segregation, social restrictions, and extreme poverty. Indian women have also faced similar treatment. Although the status of women in ancient India has been widely debated, women of the medieval period were subject to harsh discrimination when sati, jauhar, child marriages, the dowry system, and the practice of purdah spread. Since then, Indian women, particularly those in rural settings, have faced low social status, social segregation, and poverty. JRF seeks to mitigate such discrimination and inequality by employing women, SC, ST, and OBC. With 96% of its weavers SC, ST, or OBC and 70% of its weavers female, JRF uses carpet weaving as a tool to empower the most disadvantaged populations of India.

Third, the SHG initiative addresses the problem of rural-urban migration in India. With 70% of the rural population depending on agriculture for their livelihood, agriculture is the principal occupation of the rural population of India. However, the productivity of agriculture is low, there are great population pressures on agriculture land and unpredictable weather patterns. All of these factors have created serious problems of unemployment and underemployment in rural India. Thus, rural villagers have flocked to the metropolitan cities of India in search of better employment and livelihoods. The urban population of India grew by 70 million, or 31.2 %, from 1991 to 2001This migrant inflow has placed tremendous pressure on urban infrastructure, led to overcrowding, increased traffic and pollution, and created a sense of disorder. Moreover, most of the migrants have ended up living in slums where water shortages, lack of sanitation and the absence of basic amenities necessary to support a dignified life are common. Thus, JRF provides a check on migration by offering an alternative livelihood to agriculture. Not only can carpet weaving prevail in the face of drought and famine, but also JRF promises its weavers stable employment and relatively higher wages; JRF buys back every carpet produced and the weavers’ wages increase from approximately 50 rupees per day to approximately 110 rupees per day. By tackling these three social problems, I truly believe that JRF’s SHG initiative will improve the lives of weavers, enhance the socioeconomic status of rural communities, foster the development of Indian culture and society, and ultimately change the world.

-Corey

Taking the small steps forward...

From Danielle...

Most of my work in Shanghai focused on marketing initiatives for Shokay, while other interns were more directly involved in the work of Ventures in Development, the nonprofit that is the main shareholder of Shokay. However, I did attend two of Ventures in Development’s Social Innovation Salons, at which a mix of Shanghai professionals and students gathered to brainstorm solutions to current social problems in China. Many people looking to support social entrepreneurship in China ask Carol if she knows of any strong social ventures, but the fact is there are still very few people taking this approach to solving social problems in China. ViD’s Social Innovation Salons aim to fill this gap by sparking discussion and debate – the first step to creating thriving social enterprises in a country where very few currently exist.

ViD’s salons are held every month, and each month a new social issue is discussed. July’s topic was the problems facing the children of migrant workers. Having volunteered at a nonprofit that provides migrant children with after school arts and sports enrichment programs in Beijing, I am pretty familiar with this issue. Essentially, a major trend in China right now is rural-urban migration. When workers leave their home villages in search of employment, they have two choices: they can either leave their children at home with relatives, or they can bring their children with them. However, because of the limitations of the hukou (household registration) system in China, it is very difficult for migrant children to attend decent schools in the new cities where their parents settle. As a result, migrant kids constitute an at-risk group that has trouble assimilating into mainstream society. Many of them end up attending substandard private schools set up in migrant communities, but they still cannot register to take national high school and college entrance examinations outside of their native area. Moreover, migrant families are very mobile, meaning the children have very little continuity in their education.

The first salon ViD held on this topic was at Fudan University. Carol first gave a presentation to a group of American and Chinese students participating in a cultural exchange program. After the presentation, we hosted a salon discussion on the migrant children topic. This salon was kind of an experiment, as it was the first time ViD had hosted a salon with only students. We structured the discussion so that it had two parts – first, participants would determine what aspect of the problem (health, education, discrimination, etc.) they would like to focus on, and then each group would come up with a solution that addressed this issue. Once they had centered on an idea, they would role play different stakeholders challenging their proposal and determine what obstacles needed to be overcome in order to turn the idea into reality. By the end of the salon, we hoped some innovative approaches would have emerged, and even if those ideas never were acted upon, at least the salon would have inspired the participants to think about how they might solve these social problems.

We were somewhat disappointed with the level of discussion at the first salon. It seemed we were introducing too many new concepts – as we listened in on the various group discussions, we overheard some students asking each other, “What is an NGO? What is a nonprofit organization?” Some of the American students had never been to China before and the migrant children issue was a completely new concept to them. The language barrier also made it difficult for American and Chinese students to effectively communicate their ideas to each other. On top of all of this, we were also trying to introduce the idea of a social enterprise and challenge the participants to think outside of the traditional foundation philanthropy/community service framework.

While the level of discussion at the second salon was more informed, it still proved difficult to get people to think differently about the challenge of funding a social program. When asked about how they would find funding for their idea, most of our discussion groups responded that they would seek corporate sponsorship, since companies should be interested in demonstrating their good citizenship and enhancing their public image. The unanswered question: in world with a global recession, many worthy causes and scarce resources, is it really sustainable to rely on the generosity of large companies? In addition, many ideas centered around volunteer and mentorship programs similar to those already in existence that, while they do provide some social services, do not necessarily address a problem at its root cause.

One of the most interesting ideas that emerged from the salon was a martial arts (wushu) center that trains and employs at-risk youth including migrant children. The center would take children off the streets, school them in the disciplines of martial arts, and generate revenue through classes for well-to-do Chinese and expats taught by kids who had reached a certain high level. Several days later, ViD also held a focus group with the goal of further developing this martial arts center idea and brainstorming ways to resolve the challenges raised at the salon. As the focus group reconsidered problems of funding and recruitment, the idea evolved from a martial arts center to a martial arts museum.

It remains to be seen whether anyone will actually act on this idea and attempt to establish a martial arts center or museum that employs the children of migrant workers, but at least the discussion has been started. As the ViD salons show, despite all the buzz about funding models, measuring impact, the definition of “social entrepreneurship” and scaling social enterprises, most people – even those who are aware of and concerned about the social problems - are still very unfamiliar with this new approach. Since the social entrepreneurship field is still so undeveloped in China, ViD has found that it is necessary to start from square one, challenging people to rethink traditional approaches to nonprofit work and development. It is a small but absolutely necessary step towards catalyzing broader social change.

-Danielle

Adopt a Yak!

Back from Shanghai...!

Apologies for falling behind on my updates - my last few weeks in Shanghai were pretty busy and I recently arrived back at home in the United States. In the last few weeks, I learned a lot as I helped launch Shokay’s new Yak Around the World Campaign, as well as in various conversations with my mentor, Carol, about the challenges of founding and running a social enterprise - all of which I’d like to share with our PennSEM following!

In addition to working on Shokay’s online social media marketing strategy, my other main project was the Yak Around the World Campaign. The objectives of the campaign (which is still going on) are to highlight the work of individuals who are driving positive social change all over the world while also increasing awareness about Shokay. Shokay will be sending 24 of its adorable hand-knit baby yaks to visit changemakers and their organizations. When each person receives their yak, they will help kick off the campaign by answering the question, “What are you doing to change the world today?” They will then take a picture with their yak, write a description of their cause or organization, and submit it to Shokay via a simple online form. It is then their turn to send the yak to another changemaker they know, and that person will help continue to spread the campaign all over the globe. You can see the Yak Around the World website at http://yaks.typepad.com/dontjustyak, where yak followers can view each yak’s profile, pictures from the organizations the yaks have visited, and find out where else the yaks will be going.

To determine the yaks’ initial destinations, I drew upon both mine and Carol’s personal networks to find and contact changemakers who were willing to host a yak. We also reached out to several people via Twitter, including Adrienne Villani, a writer for the new social enterprise magazine Beyond Profit, who has repeatedly tweeted about how much she loves our baby yaks. The response was overwhelmingly positive! Some other individuals who will be receiving yaks include Joyce Meng and Jennifer Chen of Givology (I personally delivered this yak when I got back to New York last weekend), Sam Adelsberg of LendforPeace.org, Calvin Chin of Qifang, and Melissa Richer of the Ayllu Initiative.

On August 8 (a nice auspicious date), we hosted our campaign launch party at the Shokay Taikang Lu flagship store in Shanghai! All of our traveling yaks were on display, and those who had already been assigned an initial destination also had a card profiling the changemaker and the organization they would be visiting. People were invited to sample our yak cheese along with some crackers and wine, as well as tweet from our in-store Twitter station. Here are some pictures from the very successful event:

traveling yaks display

shokay twitter bird

individual yak

yak cheese

As the campaign continues to build a following, people who want to start a campaign within their own organization will be able to purchase an Adopt-a-Yak kit that they can circulate to encourage their team to do good. The idea is that when someone receives a yak, they are supposed to perform a Yak-sy Act of Kindness (YAK) – anything from making a microfinance loan online to volunteering at a soup kitchen – and then pass the yak to someone else in their organization. We were thinking this would be perfect for groups like Kiva Fellows, Peace Corps volunteers, or any company that would like to encourage its employees to perform community service. Proceeds from Adopt-a-Yak sales would go to Ventures in Development’s Social Innovation Fund to provide financial resources for budding social enterprise ideas that result from the organization’s Social Innovation Salons.

Much debate went into the conception of Yak Around the World. A huge issue was balancing Shokay’s marketing objectives with the more altruistic goals of helping other deserving social entrepreneurs build their following and support base. Some team members thought we should target celebrities, politicians, and other high-profile individuals who have a strong international fan base. However, in the end we decided that this would water down the meaning of our campaign, plus there was no guarantee these types of people would be interested in participating, since our campaign was an unproven concept. Moreover, we predicted that focusing on changemakers we admire would make the campaign more genuine and therefore more likely to attract a loyal following. If people saw the campaign as a shallow marketing effort, they would more likely to lose interest or even be turned off. As a growing social enterprise with limited resources, we needed to carefully consider how our campaign would shape our image and whether it made more sense to stress sales, branding, or goodwill. If our goal was to go viral, the key was to produce something that people would naturally want to pass on to their friends, even if they are aware one of our goals is also marketing.

It will be interesting to see how the campaign unfolds over the next few months! Sadly, we know it is very unlikely all of our yaks will make it back to Shanghai safely, given the uncertainties of the post system and the likelihood that some yaks will lose their way between destinations. Hopefully, though, the yaks that do make it back home will return with some fascinating stories, and they will have built up a strong following of people who support social changemakers!

-Danielle

Haywood's love for books and its powers...

Equity & Access

Please take a moment to ponder this question: what was the first book that you owned that triggered your interest in reading? Was it the magical intrigue inherent in the Harry Potter series, which you or a loved one stood in line to buy on its first day of release (or electronically bought online weeks in advance as I did)? Was it the epic mystery explored through the adventures of the Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe and the rest of the tales of Narnia? For me, after much contemplation, I can trace my avid love of reading to the pillow-ridden floor of my first grade classroom.

Each Friday, my class and I would gather around my teacher and sit entranced as our young minds ingested the words flowing forth from her rendition of Junie B. Jones. Following Junie’s first days in kindergarten and riding that “stupid smelly bus;” being proud of her for finally! making it into the first grade; being right there by her side when she contemplated the ethicalness of cheating on homework; learning how to be a good big brother from her example of taking care of her own recently-born sibling. I loved that series!

Can you imagine my surprise when I found out that there were actually over a dozen books in the series! I came home excited, pleading with my parents to let me buy the rest of the series so that I could find out who was the secret admirer that gave Junie that elaborate Valentine’s Day card, and whether she would successfully pull off acting in her first play on “Broadway,” and what she would possibly find hiding under her bed! Education has always been a pillar in my family, and fortunately I had parents, grandparents, and an entire network of supportive aunts, uncles, cousins, and neighbors who encouraged my growing affinity for literature, as juvenile as it may have been at that time. Thus, slowly but surely my collection of Junie B. Jones’ books grew. And when I outgrew those books, I simply began to apply my newfound love of reading to the ever-growing collection that surely came to replace them on my bookshelf.

However, when comparing my own childhood with that of so many others, I have come to realize just how privileged and blessed that I was to have the opportunity to even be able to hold and own and read an appropriate children’s book.

There’s a deep chasm prevalent in our society—a gaping disconnect in our nation’s low income communities’ access to critical educational resources. A recent study shows that while in middle income neighborhoods the ratio of books per child is 13 to one (1), in low-income neighborhoods, the ratio is one (1) age-appropriate book for every 300 children. 80% of preschool and after-school programs serving low-income populations have no age-appropriate books for their children.

Imagine not being able to open a single book and call it your own. How many worlds would remain unexplored, ideas untested, histories forgotten, and cultures hidden far away? This is a fundamental issue of equity and access.

Despite these astounding figures, however, I write this blog entry with a sense of pride and hope. Over these past few weeks I have been afforded the opportunity to work with and learn from First Book, a groundbreaking education nonprofit that provides new books to children in need, addressing one of the most important factors affecting literacy – access to books. Since 1992, First Book has distributed more than 65 million free and low cost books in thousands of communities.

In the upcoming weeks, I will be sharing more with you about how First Book’s business model is designed for maximum efficiency. Their non-programmatic costs total less than 3% of their revenue. As a result, every $1 donation to First Book results in $10 worth of new books directly into the hands of children in need. Every $2.50 donated provides a brand new book to a child in need. If an organization serves a population of which 50% are low-income, then they are granted access to the First Book Marketplace, where we provide over 1,200 book titles that generally cost between 50-90% off retail prices. Furthermore, if an organization qualifies for Title I status or serves a population of which 80% are low-income, we provide them access not only to our Marketplace, but also to our First Book National Book Bank, where the recipient group can receive up to three books, per child, free of charge.

In the past, I’ve enjoyed a variety of internships and work experiences in the public sector—none, however, quite match the deeply fulfilling nature inherent in working with this organization. And somehow, I feel that this experience is only the beginning. I look forward to taking you all along for the ride.

-Haywood