From telegraph to internet – How can entrepreneurship help bridge the digital divide?
Published: 17 May 2015 Jona Liebl
In the middle of the 19th century, the invention of the telegraph was transforming societies: instead of sending letters by horses or ships which could take weeks or even months, messages could now be delivered within minutes. Read more
SDGs:
Greening South Africa’s economy: improved business development support for social and environmental enterprises
Published: 06 May 2015 Julia Rohe-Frydrych, Rest Kanju
According to World Bank, South Africa ranks as an upper-middle income economy, representing the second-largest economy in Africa. While disposing of an abundant supply of natural resources and a modern infrastructure, unemployment, poverty, and inequality remain a challenge. Read more
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SEED Winners stand out in International Climate Initiative (IKI) photo contest
Published: 24 April 2015
The International Climate Initiative (IKI) invited all IKI projects and their partners to participate in a photo competition themed „IMPACTS“. Twelve winning photos were selected, among them the SEED Low Carbon Award Winners Un Litro de Luz (Colombia) and Nuru Energy (Uganda). Read more
SDGs:
Ten years of SEED Awards (2005-2015): A rich experience in promoting entrepreneurship for sustainable development
Published: 20 April 2015 Anais Mangin, Helen Marquard
SDGs:
How the business of bees contributes to sustainable development
Published: 10 April 2015 Amélie Heuër, Carolin Ehrensperger
Bees play a vital part in our natural ecosystems as they are responsible for the pollination of many fruit, nuts, vegetables and other species. Read more
SDGs:
Imagine an Earth Hour with Clean Energy for All
Published: 28 March 2015 Amélie Heuër, Carolin Ehrensperger
Today, on March 28th, thousands of cities around the world will turn off their lights during Earth Hour to draw attention to the urgent need to act on climate change. Even though the devastating impacts of climate change are becoming ever more visible, global carbon emissions – one of the main contributor to climate change – continue to rise at an alarming rate. Read more
SDGs:
Green and social entrepreneurship; a pathway to sustainable water management?
Published: 22 March 2015 Amélie Heuër, Carolin Ehrensperger
This year, World Water Day* emphasises the crucial relationship between water and sustainable development. Indeed we all know that water is fundamental to our well-being and when we think of water, the first thoughts that often spring to mind are access to drinking water or water for food production. Read more
SDGs:
Preparing women entrepreneurs for tomorrow’s reality
Published: 08 March 2015 Anna Fälth
In October 2014, UN Women Executive Director proposed 2030 to be the expiry date for gender inequality (UN Women). How can we make this bold goal a reality? Where do we start? Let’s start by envisioning the world in 2030. Read more
SDGs:
Protecting wildlife by turning elephant dung into paper: A business case?
Published: 03 March 2015 Carolin Ehrensperger, Jona Liebl
It has long been acknowledged that the equilibrium between humans and wildlife is one that can hang in the delicate balance at the best of times, a devastating one-sided scaling at worst. Read more
SDGs:
SEED participates in AMCEN pre-session event: “Inclusive Green Economies for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development in Africa: From Inspiration to Action”
Published: 12 February 2015
SEED will participate in a Regional Workshop "Inclusive Green Economies for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development in Africa: From Inspiration to Action" which will be help in Cairo on 28 February and 1 March. Read more
SDGs:
Creating inclusive value chains in plastic waste management is paramount for a green economy
Published: 11 February 2015 Amélie Heuër, Sophie van den Berg
For a long time, waste management and recycling were primarily discussed in the context of environmental preservation. However, with natural resources becoming scarcer and prices of raw materials increasing, it is no surprise that materials and energy recovered from recycling waste are gradually recognised as a valuable commodity, particularly by enterprises. Read more
SDGs:
SEED in collaboration with ANDE Network hosts a workshop on finance for social and green enterprises at Sankalp Africa Summit
Published: 10 February 2015
SEED in collaboration with ANDE network organised the “start-up hacks” as part of the Sankalp Africa Summit that took place on 5-6 February 2015 in Nairobi, Kenya. Innovative and inclusive financing was one of the key topics of this year’s forum. Read more
SDGs:
Why the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs supported SEED since its inception in 2002
Published: 29 January 2015 Amélie Heuër, Christopher Whaley
The UK has been a strong supporter of SEED since it was established in 2002. It has been a real pleasure to see SEED grow from a small biennial awards scheme, with a modest research programme, to a much broader global initiative promoting social and environmental entrepreneurship. Read more
SDGs:
How to improve support to social and environmental enterprises in Mozambique?
Published: 16 January 2015 Rainer Agster
Since the end of the civil war in 1992 Mozambique has experienced impressive growth rates of 6-8 per cent; embodying the new optimism regarding Africa’s economic outlook. Read more
SDGs:
Small meets big: How partnering with large corporations can scale impact of sustainable entrepreneurs
Published: 23 December 2014 Anais Mangin, Helen Marquard
Are locally-driven social and environmental enterprises too small to have an impact? We at SEED don’t think so, and Organic Africa demonstrates that. In 2007, when everyone was leaving Zimbabwe due to political and economic turmoil, Dominikus Collenberg started to train smallholders in the organic production of herbs, spices and oils. Read more
SDGs:
2014 - A truly exceptional year for SEED
Published: 18 December 2014
SEED’s achievements in 2014 are captured in the 2014 SEED Annual Report. Read more
SDGs:
Pathways to a greener economy: why mountain farming should not be overlooked
Published: 11 December 2014 Jona Liebl, Magdalena Kloibhofer
Today is International Mountain Day. Are you wondering what this is all about? We did too when we first heard of it. Read more
SDGs:
Launch of the Inclusive Business Action Network: SEED shares insights on green and inclusive business and successful partnerships
Published: 10 December 2014
SEED and its hosting partner Adelpi Research participated in the launch of the Inclusive Business Action Network (IB Action Network) that took place on 18-20 November 2014 in Berlin, Germany. Read more
SDGs:
Championing women’s online learning through storytelling - Join the UN Women iLearn Center
Published: 03 December 2014
UN Women has now launched iLearn, a global mobile-learning platform for and by women entrepreneurs. Read more
SDGs:
World AIDS Day 2014: SEED Winners provide opportunities for affected women
Published: 01 December 2014
SMMEs like the SEED Winner from Rwanda have and continue to make their own valuable contributions to Closing the Gap by creating economic opportunities for HIV-infected as well as affected women and their families. Read more
SDGs:
Global Social Business Summit 2014: SEED shares insights on impact measurement and moderates a focus group session on affordable housing
Published: 28 November 2014
SEED was invited to partake in the sixth Global Social Business Summit (GSBS 2014) that is taking place in Mexico City on 27-28 November 2014 under the theme: “Shaping Social Business to Shape the World of 2020”. Read more
SDGs:
GroFin’s investment for the future: Kenyan women entrepreneurs are good ‘jockeys’
Published: 08 November 2014 Rishi Khubchandani
SDGs:
Social and Green Enterprises – How to Create Enabling Frameworks to Increase their Contribution to Sustainable Development?
Published: 04 November 2014 Amélie Heuër
Over the last four years, SEED has hosted a series of unique multi-stakeholder for a focussed on the Green Economy and Africa - the SEED Symposia - where each year innovative and promising start-up enterprises, that won a SEED Award for their remarkable efforts to address social and environmental challenges at the grassroots, are presented. Read more
SDGs:
Promoting entrepreneurship for sustainable development: why, and how?
Published: 23 October 2014 Helen Marquard
When UNEP, UNDP and IUCN decided to register the SEED Initiative as a Type II partnership at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, they clearly thought they were on to something – but possibly not quite what SEED is now. Read more
SDGs:
Harnessing the potential of Baobab to provide Mozambican women with new income opportunities
Published: 22 October 2014 Jona Liebl, Mirko Zürker
They are one of the most visually-enthralling trees on the planet. The ancient Baobab – endemic mostly to semi-arid regions of tropical Africa including Mozambique – can live for over 1000 years. Read more
SDGs:
