Looking for the next Human Nature, Rags2Riches

Ateneo holds social entrepreneurship grant challenge

THE ATENEO Center for Social Entrepreneurship (ACSEnt), with the support of the Kwan Laurel Social Enterprise Fund (KLSEF) will hold a social entrepreneurship grant challenge. Open to senior and postgraduate Ateneo de Manila University students, the grant, once announced next April, will award up to P1 million each to three groups to start their own social enterprise.

The phrase has been bounced around recently to mean anything from actual businesses that help communities to corporate social responsibility projects. While Ana Marina Tan, director for ACSEnt said that there is no globally accepted definition of what a social enterprise is, at its core: “It’s social mission before profit. It’s a business that is created to address a specific social problem or issue,” she said in an interview with ����ý at the project’s launch at the John Gokongwei School of Management (JGSOM).

Arkel Suaco Mendoza, assistant director for ACSent said, “We really want to get the next Human Nature, or the next Rags2Riches.” Human Nature helps rural low-income communities and produces cosmetics; Rags2Riches helps women in urban communities and produces bags and accessories using fabric scraps.

“In our world, we really don’t want to be profit-driven, but we really want to have a triple bottom-line: people, profit, and place,” said Mr. Mendoza.

Entries are accepted through the ACSent Office until Nov. 5. Accepted entries (up to 10) with groups of two to four people will gain access to ACSent’s mentorship program, which includes financial planning, operations, business planning, permits; among other subjects.

“We really want people who have the heart to do social enterprise,” he said. In a mix of English and Filipino, he added, “We have a lack of businesses that would spark social change.”

Quoting Robby Galang, dean of the John Gokongwei School of Management, Mr. Mendoza said, “Imbis na nakawin ng gobyerno ang pera natin, magtulungtulongan na lang tayo (instead of having the government steal our money, let’s just help each other) to actually create change and create businesses that will be better for the future.”

Ms. Tan had an answer on why such a grant should come from the Ateneo: “You know how Ateneo teaches you to be ‘Men and Women for Others?’ A lot of that is tied with how social enterprises work. It’s a business that’s making a difference.”

While this initial grant will be awarded to Ateneo students first, Ms. Tan says, “Ideally, the big dream is to have more support so we can do it with other schools as well.

“That’s the ideal world that we want to live in: where people are governed not just by profit maximization, but the need to create businesses that earn money — it’s not bad to earn money — but whatever they do with that earned money is really towards helping more people and doing no harm to the planet.”

For inquiries, contact the ACSEnt at 8426-6001 ext 4851-52. — JL Garcia