Enterprise Brief: COMSOL Cooperative for Environmental Solutions
Published: 06 July 2015
“COMSOL Cooperative for Environmental Solutions” is a women-led initiative that collects, buys, separates, cleans and resells recyclable solid waste to companies in Maputo. The initiative benefits individuals in vulnerable conditions in neighbouring areas by involving them in the collection process. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Days for Girls Uganda
Published: 06 July 2015
Days for Girls Uganda empowers girls and women around menstrual hygiene. Partnering with local community groups, the enterprise provides training for women to produce and distribute washable menstrual hygiene kits and soaps, while supporting with business training, reproductive health education, and community awareness. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: East Africa Fruit Farm and Company
Published: 06 July 2015
East Africa Fruit Farm and Company trades and markets fresh fruit and vegetables, significantly reducing post-harvest losses by cold storage and powering all activities with renewable energy. Smallholder farmers in the supply chain are supported with fair prices and readily prepared land. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: EcoBrick Exchange
Published: 06 July 2015
By turning rubbish into building materials, the EcoBrick Exchange tackles plastic pollution on the streets, teaches environmental awareness, generates community participation, and assists in building education centres. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Hortinet
Published: 06 July 2015
Hortinet specializes in sourcing and supplying urban markets in Malawi with various organic horticultural produce grown in the enterprise’s land and in outsourced smallholder farms. The enterprise maintains production contracts with local farmers and provides them with training and extension services. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Kidogo Early Childhood Centres
Published: 06 July 2015
Kidogo Early Childhood Centres establish affordable and safe childcare options in East Africa’s informal settlements (slums), allowing mothers and caregivers to work and attend school. Kidogo uses a micro-franchising model supporting local women to start self-sustaining childcare centres. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Lighting Up Women's Lives
Published: 06 July 2015
Lighting Up Women’s Lives has developed a model to support women entrepreneurship and facilitate affordable access to solar lights and chargers to rural villages of the Kavango region by creating synergies with the existing network and supply chain of established handicrafts companies. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Loja de Energias
Published: 06 July 2015
Loja de Energias supplies households in rural Mozambique with clean and renewable energy sources. Its energy shops are managed by women who work with community leaders in order to stimulate the purchase of renewable energy systems. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: O Viveiro
Published: 06 July 2015
O Viveiro maintains a centre for underprivileged girls, who receive training on organic farming, food processing, management and sales. The produce from the enterprise’s and local farms is harvested, processed and sold at two shops and a restaurant managed by the girls. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Peacock Seeds
Published: 06 July 2015
Peacock Seeds supplies farmers across Malawi with certified maize and legume seeds that can adapt to climate change. The seeds support food security and empower smallholder farmers by increasing their income in the long run. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: People of the Sun
Published: 06 July 2015
People of the Sun offers unique handmade homeware products created from recycled and local, natural materials by marginalised artisans in Malawi. Artisans are organized in six enterprises, and profits from sales are reinvested in the organisation to ensure growth and support to artisans. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: RECAPO CBO
Published: 06 July 2015
RECAPO CBO offers clean, renewable and affordable energy to residents in rural Malawi, where over 90% of the population has no access to grid electricity. Its affordable Pay-As-You-Go model allows low-income households to exchange expensive and polluting lighting and electrical systems for solar solutions. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: RISE
Published: 06 July 2015
RISE sells solar products to smallholder farmers in rural Tanzania by leveraging innovative consumer financing and utilising existing distribution networks by its partners. RISE’s purpose is to make renewable energy services available and affordable to consumers in Tanzania’s most rural regions. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: RK Renew Energy PLC
Published: 06 July 2015
RK Renew Energy PLC uses local resources to produce improved ceramic cookstoves. Women from rural and semi-urban areas are trained to build the ceramic stoves and to distribute and sell them in Ethiopian refugee camps. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: SavvyLoo
Published: 06 July 2015
SavvyLoo combines a waterless toilet with a low-tech solution to generate energy from human waste. The system is designed to separate liquids from solids using solar heat and dehydration, thus reducing harmful pathogens. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: STM Solar Technologies Manufacturing
Published: 06 July 2015
STM Solar Technologies Manufacturing is the first company in Ethiopia to offer solar power solutions for electricity and lighting. The enterprise also provides families with micro-finance credit to acquire such systems, as well as training and repair services. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Terra Nova Waste to Farming
Published: 06 July 2015
Terra Nova Waste to Farming employs individuals in vulnerable conditions to produce natural fertiliser out of organic urban waste. The compost reduces the amount of urban solid waste at local dumps and improves soil fertility and crop yields in the region. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: The Moringa Cooperative
Published: 06 July 2015
The Moringa Cooperative is primarily focused on donating, planting, and cultivating Moringa oleifera (Moringa), and other beneficial plants, in cooperation with rural Eco-Schools in Limpopo Province. The enterprise promotes food security and improved nutrition, provides employment for disadvantaged women and youth, and contributes to local industry through enterprise development. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Village Energy
Published: 06 July 2015
Village Energy is building a rural renewable energy technician network to service and sell solar systems. It recruits and trains technicians as franchisee entrepreneurs directly at the village level, providing vocational training, business set-up support, branded marketing, and spare part and product inventory. Read more
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Enterprise Brief: Vula Mobile
Published: 06 July 2015
Vula Mobile has developed a mobile phone app that empowers rural health professionals to provide efficient and effective eye care by accessing accurate information and connecting to specialists. The higher quality of primary care to patients reduces the impact of treatable and reversible illnesses. Read more
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Increasing the impact of social enterprises in developing and emerging economies
Published: 25 June 2015 Aline Margaux Wachner, Lisa M. Hanley, Tim Weiss
A recent large-scale survey published by Zeppelin University and Siemens Stiftung generally support the idea that social enterprises can have a positive impact on poverty reduction. However, it also reveals some caveats, which have led us to derive concrete recommendations for action. Read more
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What role for eco-entrepreneurship in the Post-2015 agenda?
Published: 19 June 2015 Anais Mangin, Helen Marquard
The Millennium Development Goals have shaped development cooperation in the last 15 years, and there has been progress towards eliminating poverty worldwide. Nevertheless, much remains to be done. Read more
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What is your pledge for the World Environment Day?
Published: 05 June 2015
Today, Friday 5 June, is the World Environment Day (WED); the United Nations flagship day to encourage worldwide awareness and action for the environment. Read more
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Breaking the taboo: how managing menstruation in a hygienic and environment-friendly way can empower thousands of girls and women while reducing waste in developing countries
Published: 02 June 2015 Amélie Heuër, Anais Mangin
While it may have gone unnoticed to many, the 28th of May was the International Menstrual Hygiene Day; a day initiated by WASH United to create awareness around the right of women and girls to hygienically manage their menstruation – in privacy, safety and with dignity – where ever they are. Read more
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Explore SEED through the new Virtual Exhibition and learn about the SEED Winners’ impacts through the new SEED Case Studies
Published: 27 May 2015
SEED is launching a new interactive multimedia feature which will enable you to look into all aspects of SEED’s activities: the Virtual Exhibition, as well as new in-depth Case Studies that have emerged from the latest SEED research. Read more
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