Ecosystem Development Reach for Change

Successfully growing or scaling a solution is almost impossible if you are working in a fragmented ecosystem. In order to scale, good solutions will need support from a variety of actors in the public, private and/or non-profit sectors. We work to establish supportive local ecosystems for social entrepreneurs to increase their chances of success.

Globally

Partnering for Change event series

Partnering for Change started as an initiative in 2018 in Stockholm, Sweden to gather doers and thinkers from different sectors to discuss and share insights and inspiration about how to work together to solve pressing social issues. Since then we have arranged Partnering for Change events in several of our markets and in different formats.

Ethiopia

Voice of change radio series

A collaborative project with one of the award-winning radio shows in Ethiopia. Within the project 5 interviews with notable women within the business/social sector in Ethiopia will be broadcasted, inspiring women and girls in urban and rural areas to pursue an entrepreneurial career.

Bulgaria

Valley of Growth

A cross-sectoral project which aims at boosting the development of the finance market for social enterprises in Bulgaria.

Why

In Bulgaria there is no specifically developed financial instrument for social entrepreneurs at any stage. At the same time, the interest of investors in social enterprises or the interest of social enterprises in available financial tools is relatively low. To boost the development of the social entrepreneurial market, help early-growth SEs overcome the “valley of death'' and ënahnce the ecosystem in the country, we need a financial instrument that matches the needs of the Bulgarian (early-growth) social entrepreneurs and is relevant for the potential investors.

How

We believe in collective impact. Through cross-sectoral partnership with various stakeholders engaged - business sector, financial experts, institutions and media, non-governmental sector - we aim at developing the most suitable financial instrument for early-growth social entrepreneurs in Bulgaria as well as enhancing the ecosystem in the country.

What

Together with UniCredit Bulbank, Forbes Bulgaria, The Business Institute, ING Bank and the Sofia Municipal Guarantee Fund for SMEs we conduct thorough research on the ecosystem, financial and non-financial needs of (early-growth) social entrepreneurs, the regulatory framework in the country, the key driving forces in the sector and the best practices from around both Europe and Bulgaria. The research enables us to proceed and form the most suitable investment strategy and framework for a new financial instrument for Bulgarian SEs. We are launching a pilot capacity building program preparing early-growth social entrepreneurs how to pitch their business and receive an investment. Furthermore, we are building an impact community to exchange experience and enable connections between social entrepreneurs, investors, public institutions and experts.

Sweden, Bulgaria

National competency center for social innovations

A European collaborative project aiming at promoting social innovation and cross-collaboration across Europe. The goal of the project is to establish a sustainable and responsive National Competence Centers for Social Innovation engaging knowledge transfer, networking and synergies in the ecosystem.

Baltic Sea Impact Network

Funded by the Swedish Institute, the Baltic Sea Impact Network is a pilot unique transnational network for peer learning between 30 social entrepreneurs from Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The aim is to help the network's members learn new skills, connect with like-minded peers from neighbouring countries and increase the access of social entrepreneurs to relevant stakeholders.

Edupreneur Talks

Edupreneur Talks is a podcast series turning up the volume on the EdTech innovators, solving some of the most pressing educational challenges in Ghana. Together with the Jacobs Foundation, we'll introduce you to 10 brave edupreneurs from Ghana, part of our joint Scaling Readiness Program. We’ll dive deeper into their entrepreneurial journeys and the insights they’ve gathered along the way.

Buy Social Europe B2B

Buy Social Europe B2B empowers social and mainstream enterprises to find each other and forge sustainable trade partnerships. Co-funded by the European Commission and SAP, the initiative gathers 23 leading experts and practitioners in the field of social procurement. Together we’re creating a network of trusted partners, building the capacity and trade readiness of both social and mainstream enterprises. We’re gathering data and best practices, and we’re raising the awareness about social procurement and social entrepreneurship across Europe and around the world.

Integrated Baltic Ecosystem for Social Innovation

Integrated Baltic Ecosystem for Social Innovation (IBESI) is a Horizon Europe project aimed at raising awareness and facilitating access of Baltic States’ social entrepreneurs to the resources of local and pan-European innovation ecosystems. In light of the lack of social enterprises with profit-generating business models and their poor integration within existing entrepreneurship ecosystems, the project targets three key outcomes: improving connectivity within innovation ecosystems, widening access to alternative financing, and piloting scaled and replicable innovation models.