BRINGING SOCIAL entrepreneurship practices from the United Kingdom to the Philippines and seeing these being carried out through a competition was what the British Council aimed for in this year’s social entrepreneurship competition titled, “I am a Changemaker.”
According to Program Coordinator Jennifer Domingo, social entrepreneurship in the UK has always been a mainstream agenda. She said, “there are already laws, different works, schools, and a [large] industry in place, catering to social entrepreneurship…[and] we hope to bring that here in the Philippines.”
The competition finals event was held on July 30 at the Leong Hall auditorium. Prior to the finals was a three-day workshop on July 26 to 29 and the semi-finals competition which was held on July 29.
Nationwide effort
Targeted towards budding entrepreneurs from all over the country, the competition included 16 to 28-year olds from Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, and the National Capital Region (NCR).
Three finalists from each of the four areas presented their social entrep videos and projects to a panel of judges composed of five representatives from the event’s sponsors and partners.
The Luzon division winner was Isla Culion Souvenirs, whose project focused on putting up a souvenir shop at Isla Culion in Palawan. This shop is aimed at showcasing the culture in the area, especially that of the Tagbanuas.
“I am very thankful that we were given a place to meet other social entrepreneurs; it was very fulfilling to have been part of this competition and then won. I hope this encourages other people to join as well in the future,” said Dhealyn Estolas.
Meanwhile, Team 3G (Go for Guso Group) won in the Visayas division with their project called Gasa sa Guso or gifts from seaweed. Their business is about an integrated education and entrepreneurship program for the Pangan-an Island youth, wherein they would establish a youth cooperative engaged in seaweed farming.
“We wanted to create a sustainable livelihood [for] the people in the Pangan-an Islands aside from fishing, which is seaweed farming,” said Miguel Antonio Garcia.
The group Entrepreneurs Responding through Social Service meanwhile won in the Mindanao division. The group wanted to address issues on pollution and poverty, which they resolved by helping unemployed women of Balulan, Cagayan de Oro create bags out of recycled tarpaulins.
In the NCR division, a project that reconnected people back to farmlands by making them stakeholders in the work of farmers in organic production won. This was done through the efforts of The Good Food Company.
Team 3G also won the Starbucks Shared Planet Awards, a special award given to the group who passed the Starbucks criteria on community service, environmental stewardship, ethical sources, wellness, and diversity.
The winning groups of each division received a P100,000 grant.
Atenean involvement
The event was a partnership between the British Council and the Developmental Studies (DS) Department. DS Chair Leland Dela Cruz said that the British Council approached Ateneo. “In the DS, one of the units we are active in is the social entrepreneurship program and that is the focus of this competition.”
The DS department provided the logistics, as well as the trainers and mentors, according to Dela Cruz.
Better participation
According to Domingo, the event was an avenue for diverse ideas and people. “It was also nice to see innovative ideas from different areas [that cater] to the needs of different people.”
She added that she wanted more people to participate in next year’s competition.
The Good Food Company member Charlene Tan meanwhile said that she was amazed by the number of youth who participated in the competition. “With young people like them interested in this, I think ideas can grow.”
The competition was also graced with the presence of UK Ambassador Stephen Lillie.
