In a world of social media\nstart-ups, knowing what it takes, either makes or breaks you<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dubai: If\nyou are above the age of 20, and a woman who wants to start her own business \u2013\nyou need to read this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 17 selected participants of the second edition of the Badiri\nSocial Entrepreneurship Programme (BSEP) recently visited London and Liverpool,\non a field trip in pursuit of learning socially impactful and innovative\nbusiness practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Launched in 2018, BSEP is the invention of both Sharjah-based\nNAMA Women Advancement Establishment\u2019s education and capacity building arm,\nBadiri Education and Development Academy, and UK-based School for Social\nEntrepreneurs (SSE). This collaboration in BSEP is SSE\u2019s first endeavour into\nthe Arab region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The programme aims to empower and equip Emirati and UAE-based\nfemale entrepreneurs and businesswomen, above the age of 20, with the skills\nand knowledge required to turn their business into profitable social\nenterprises, through field visits and expert sessions. The participants were\nchosen based on a series of interviews conducted prior to the programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With an emphasis on practical learning, the programme\u2019s\ncustomised curriculum had them meeting with owners of successful British social\nenterprises through SSE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The London leg of the educational trip to the UK, from July 15\nto 19, began with an expert session by Nicola Steuer, Managing Director, SSE,\nwhich gave the participants an overview of social entrepreneurship in UK. This\nwas followed by a session with multiple award-winning social entrepreneur Heidi\nFisher. Through her inspirational story, Fisher introduced the participants to\nimpact assessment and interactively engaged them in a series of exercises to\nhelp them better understand how to identify their own impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The participants also visited The Brigade, a highly successful\nsocial enterprise in Tooley Street, London, where they met their mentors and\nwere inspired by their interaction with the beneficiaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next on the participants\u2019 visit list was Peckham Levels where a\nseries of revamped parking levels have now been converted into a hub where\ncreative people, looking for an enabling work space, can come together. They\nwere introduced to a range of social entrepreneurs who address a variety of\nsocial and environmental issues. They also assessed the impact of the project,\ntools and metrics used to measure it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The highly acclaimed, award-winning social entrepreneur, Cemal\nEzal, took the participants to Borough Market to evaluate his social\nenterprise, Change Please, in action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After another site visit to Sunnyside Rural Trust, a charity and\nsocial enterprise offering training and work experience to vulnerable people,\nexpert Jen Mackay introduced the participants to the importance of clear\ncommunication and storytelling through a practical session involving a series\nof exercises that helped them develop compelling narratives for their own\norganisations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second part of the tour, which took place in Liverpool from\nJuly 22 to 26, included expert sessions on finance with: Liz Pepler of\nCommunity Counts; on marketing and social media for social enterprises with\nGrace Dyke of Yellow Jigsaw; Claire Dove OBE, Crown Representative for the\nVoluntary and Community Sector and the founder of the Blackburne House Group.\nSite visits to the social enterprises Baltic Creative CIC, Homebaked, education\nprovider Blackbourne House and artist Grace Harrison\u2019s non-profit Kitty\u2019s\nLaundrette were also part of the tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reem Bin Karam, Director of NAMA Women Advancement\nEstablishment, highlighted the importance of field visits for BSEP\nparticipants. She said: \u201cSocial enterprises thrive on the unique dynamic of\nbeing socially conscious. Project visits and field trips form the core of BSEP\nas learning from other people\u2019s experiences is the most successful way to\nabsorb the necessary learning outcomes. Such hands-on learning allows\nparticipants to explore the diverse world of social enterprise, evaluate their\nsocial enterprise idea, design their model, apply it in the market, assess\nsources of funding and investment and measure the social impact of their\nenterprise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She added: \u201cEntrepreneurs are likely to get highly caught up in\nmundane day-to-day activities while trying to enhance a social enterprise,\nwhich they sometimes cannot see the bigger picture for. Taking some time out to\npolish their social entrepreneurial skills through the BSEP will give them the\ntools and the opportunity to develop ways to improve their project by\nincorporating profitability in order to create a positive social impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latifa Al Mulla, who was a part of the BSEP team, said: \u201cThe\nvisit to London gave all of us a great chance to witness enterprises that have\nbeen driven by social causes and how they have changed people\u2019s lives by\ncontinuing to support their community. I was inspired by how they have changed\npeople\u2019s lives for the better. I also learned about the concept of investing\nmoney back into the community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another BSEP participant, Hind Alateeqi, said: \u201cThe best part of\nthis trip was visiting the various social enterprises. This trip has inspired\nme to work hard on my business in order to support my community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Badiri Education and Development aims to boost, reward and\nshowcase the spirit of female entrepreneurs and develop their skills enabling\nthem to successfully participate in the economy locally and globally. Badiri\nconducts a number of short and long-term training programmes and workshops\ndesigned for women, to equip them with the skills and knowledge to excel in the\nworkforce. It also focuses on building the capacity of women through its online\nplatform www.badiriacademy.ae, and its e-library, which provides information\nand resources on women in various economic and social sectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The School for Social Entrepreneurs equips people to transform\ncommunities and improve the lives of others. SSE supports social entrepreneurs,\ncharity leaders and intrapreneurs: people who tackle social problems by\nstarting, scaling and sustaining organisations. It helps more than 1,000 leaders\nof social change every year through courses, connections and support. Michael\nYoung founded the School for Social Entrepreneurs in 1997 in London. Today,\nSSE\u2019s network of schools impacts communities across the UK, Canada and India:\nwww.the-sse.org.<\/p>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In a world of social media start-ups, knowing what it takes, either makes or breaks you Dubai: If you are above the age of 20, and a woman who wants to start her own business \u2013 you need to read this. The 17 selected participants of the second edition of the Badiri Social Entrepreneurship Programme (BSEP) recently visited London and Liverpool, on a field trip in pursuit of learning socially impactful and innovative business practices. Launched in 2018, BSEP is the invention of both Sharjah-based NAMA Women Advancement Establishment\u2019s education and capacity building arm, Badiri Education and Development Academy, and […]<\/p>\n