Join the movement!
“’Don’t ask what the world needs, ask what makes you come alive. For what the world needs are more people who have come alive.’ And so, I think if you can just find the thing that makes you come alive in this day and age, no one is going to stop you. And don’t ask for permission from everybody. Just go do it and people will start coming and they’ll join you, and sooner or later you’ll look back and you’ll see you’ve strung together something that is really world changing.”
Social entrepreneurs are motivated by a strong passion to turn their ideas into actions that contribute to a better world. Today, more than ever, people of all ages and demographics, across all sectors, are looking for ways to bring value to their communities. In our interconnected world, communities may be a small group of neighbors, or a large group across continents with a common interest. Technology is making it easier to bring people together to share in the experience of making solutions for a better world.
The term “Social Entrepreneurship” is relatively new. Thirty or forty years ago we hardly heard about the “Social Sector,” “Sustainability,” or “NGOs” which are all commonly used terms nowadays. That’s because in the last three or four decades the social sector has grown enormously.
Historical reasons for the growth of the social sector:
- More than 90 countries came from absolutism, apartheid and dictatorships to become democracies. And the so-called ‘Citizen Sector’ can only flourish in a democratic society.
- Worldwide, there has been an increase of the middle class with more access to education and health.
- The emergence of the Internet has connected more than 2 billion people and now more individuals are better informed about the social problems around them.
- And finally, most of us have stopped believing that it is governments and authorities alone that are going to solve the biggest challenges facing humanity. Today we know that only the marriage of social, private and public sectors will be able to defy the world’s biggest problems
Amidst this growing sector, leaders have emerged. Activist, Social Leader, Social Entrepreneur, Changemaker, agent of change … These are just new names for the same spirit that defines a Changemaker: A person who has stopped complaining, decided to roll up their sleeves and make things happen!
WHO CARES? highlights the voices of 18 Changemakers across the globe working to transform social, environmental, economic and political aspects of their communities. These individuals are just a glimpse into the global community of social entrepreneurs.
A word from the film’s director – Mara Mourão
WHO CARES? is a feature film about social entrepreneurs around the world. Brilliant people with innovative ideas, who display new paths to follow, strong ethical fiber, and capacity to solve the social problems in their communities. My goal is to disseminate content on this new way of looking at life – what I’ve learned from people who see the world’s major problems as opportunities.
I believe that knowing the work of these innovative leaders can be very inspiring, especially for young people. In making this film, I met a Belgian Buddhist Monk who trains rats in Tanzania to detect landmines and tuberculosis; an educator who is ending bullying in schools in Canada, and teaching empathy to children; a Brazilian who was the first to speak about computers and their power to transform the lives of kids in the slums. Another who was a priest and became banker to the poor. I also had the honor to talk with Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, and Bill Drayton, founder of Ashoka, the first organization to support social entrepreneurs around the world.
And what did all these people from various backgrounds have in common? All of them managed to unite their work with their life mission. And there is nothing more rewarding than working on what we believe is good for the world.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP…
Visit these organization’s websites:
ASHOKA
Since 1981, Ashoka has been a pioneer in the creation and characterization of the concept of social entrepreneurship as a field of work in more than 80 countries.
AVINA
A AVINA é uma fundação latino-americana que busca contribuir para o desenvolvimento sustentável da América Latina, fomentando a construção de vínculos e parcerias entre líderes sociais e empresariais, e articulando agendas de ação compartilhadas.
ARTEMISIA
Founded in 2003, Artemisia is the pioneer organization in social business in Brazil. Artemisia empowers entrepreneurs and talents to build the best startups that serve low-income population.
Others…
Just Vision
Business Fights Poverty
Brave New Theaters
Dell Social Innovation Challenge
Living Proof Entrepreneurship
Social Venture Partners
Echoing Green
Unreasonable Institute
Omidyar Network
RISE – Research Initiative on Social Entrepreneurship
Rockefeller Foundation
World Business Council for Sustainable Development
Monitor Institute
Do Something
Endeavor Global
Think Impact
InVenture
Maximpact
Next Billion
Clearly So
Stuart Hart
Global Impact Investment Network
Check out these books:
Rippling: How Social Entrepreneurs Spread Innovation Throughout the World
Author: Beverly Schwartz
How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas
Author: David Bornstein.
Creating a world without poverty: Social business and the future of capitalism
Author: Muhammad Yunus
Banker to the Poor
Author: Muhammad Yunus
Capitalism at the Crossroads: The Unlimited Business Opportunities in Solving the World’s Most Difficult Problems
Author: Stuart Hart
Marketing 3.0: From Products to Customers to the Human Spirit
Author: Philip Kotler
The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid
Author: C. K. Prahalad