The global unemployment crises immediately and urgently calls out for a powerful response. The consequences of up to a billion unemployed and disenchanted youth in the world is unimaginable, in the north as well as in the south. Moral imperatives mandate urgent action, as does the need for social stability
We are facing an immediate social crises. This unfolds against the backdrop of an equally urgent but more long-term imperative: the required structural shift of our global economy towards ecological sustainability. Furthermore, it does so at a time when the financial crisis has already streched national accounts to historic levels and where the level of risk in the global financial and monetary system is extreme.
This situation poses very serious challenges for policy makers. The prospects of handling these in a piecemeal way are not promising. Instead, we need policy instruments that allow us to get to the logic of the present system responsible for generating the various imbalances.
Therefore, just as the summit takes its starting points in tangible ventures which carry within them answers to multiple challenges, the task of the policy discussions is to look for the policy frameworks and governance models that can solve multiple challenges, and help the emerging models on display translate into systems impact.
In other words: given the financial environment, what actions available today could simultaneously address the employment crises and support the emergence of a new kind of value creation?
The discussions will proceed form documented cases of promising policies in this area, documented and discussed in a Tällberg policy paper to be presented in the spring of 2010.
The expected outcome of the policy discussion is the general principles for a holistic global jobs programme, designed to respond to the confluence of social, financial and ecological crises - in terms of governance structure, finanical mechanisms and implementational strategy.
December 22, 2009
The policy discussions at the summit
December 8, 2009
Changemakers in Moldova
Most of the world is now focusing on the COP15 developments. Meanwhile, in Moldova, a small country between Romania and Ukraine, where little attention is given to climate change or global negotiations, an important step on the road to sustainable solutions and environmental improvements was taken this Saturday.
In the capital Chisinau, 200 participants took part in the first nation-wide gathering of its kind, to strengthen entrepreneurship and development of small enterprises throughout the country. A much needed effort in a country that has long ranked as Europe’s poorest. Its agricultural industry – once its pride – is almost collapsed, and today a quarter of its population is working abroad (often illegally). Adding to that, the country is squeezed between the borders of EU and the almost-nextdoor neighbor Russia, with whom Moldova has frosty relations but is totally dependent on for its energy supply.
If change in a sustainable direction is to take place around the world, part of the solution lies in the entrepreneurial initiatives that are about creating brighter and more reliable futures in places such as the countryside of Moldova. If that is to happen, there need to be crowds of creative and confident entrepreneurs in the country. The need is evident, and the potential is great. These future entrepreneurs are the ones to start solar energy generation facilities to allow for secure, cheap and climate friendly energy; to start ecological farming of premium vegetables to be sold in Europe; and to open up the IT service centers of the future.
The meeting, that was held to launch the first Moldovan platform to support sustainable youth employment, provided a possibility for the 100+ participating entrepreneurs to learn about concrete possibilities for financing, incubator support and networking opportunities. Among the presenters were representatives from banks and financial institutions. They made it clear that lack of money is not Moldova's greatest problem. Funding programs in the ranges of EUR 100 million were presented. But the links between the funds and the entrepreneurs are not there, the models of the big institutions are not accessible for the small businesses. Maybe the presentations and discussions that day took a small step towards bridging that gap.
Maybe links between resources and entrepreneurs were also made by the fact that the Prime Minister, Vlad Filat, participated and explicitly offered support and asked for feedback to help make improvement in the legal frameworks –he participated together with ministers and vice ministers of finance and youth. The government is young. The Prime Minister has been in office only two months, and is eager to quickly achieve real change in a direction “towards Europe”. I hope they will.
This event was put together not by the government, not by an international organization. It was organized by a young serial entrepreneur and change-maker. Igor Casapu is in the restaurant business – and at the age of 27 he has already successfully bought, built and sold at least three cafés. He has also built an impressive network of 140 young entrepreneurs around the country, supporting them with necessary connections, advice and training. Revenues from his restaurants are making this work possible. When institutional funding is slow, his business income makes it possible to achieve change quickly. That is a social entrepreneurship model that is worth copying – for quick change in the right direction.
In the capital Chisinau, 200 participants took part in the first nation-wide gathering of its kind, to strengthen entrepreneurship and development of small enterprises throughout the country. A much needed effort in a country that has long ranked as Europe’s poorest. Its agricultural industry – once its pride – is almost collapsed, and today a quarter of its population is working abroad (often illegally). Adding to that, the country is squeezed between the borders of EU and the almost-nextdoor neighbor Russia, with whom Moldova has frosty relations but is totally dependent on for its energy supply.
If change in a sustainable direction is to take place around the world, part of the solution lies in the entrepreneurial initiatives that are about creating brighter and more reliable futures in places such as the countryside of Moldova. If that is to happen, there need to be crowds of creative and confident entrepreneurs in the country. The need is evident, and the potential is great. These future entrepreneurs are the ones to start solar energy generation facilities to allow for secure, cheap and climate friendly energy; to start ecological farming of premium vegetables to be sold in Europe; and to open up the IT service centers of the future.
The meeting, that was held to launch the first Moldovan platform to support sustainable youth employment, provided a possibility for the 100+ participating entrepreneurs to learn about concrete possibilities for financing, incubator support and networking opportunities. Among the presenters were representatives from banks and financial institutions. They made it clear that lack of money is not Moldova's greatest problem. Funding programs in the ranges of EUR 100 million were presented. But the links between the funds and the entrepreneurs are not there, the models of the big institutions are not accessible for the small businesses. Maybe the presentations and discussions that day took a small step towards bridging that gap.
Maybe links between resources and entrepreneurs were also made by the fact that the Prime Minister, Vlad Filat, participated and explicitly offered support and asked for feedback to help make improvement in the legal frameworks –he participated together with ministers and vice ministers of finance and youth. The government is young. The Prime Minister has been in office only two months, and is eager to quickly achieve real change in a direction “towards Europe”. I hope they will.
This event was put together not by the government, not by an international organization. It was organized by a young serial entrepreneur and change-maker. Igor Casapu is in the restaurant business – and at the age of 27 he has already successfully bought, built and sold at least three cafés. He has also built an impressive network of 140 young entrepreneurs around the country, supporting them with necessary connections, advice and training. Revenues from his restaurants are making this work possible. When institutional funding is slow, his business income makes it possible to achieve change quickly. That is a social entrepreneurship model that is worth copying – for quick change in the right direction.
November 26, 2009
Project 390: Young People the focus of IKEA and Young Foundation
'Damaged but recoverable' young people are helped into Ikea jobs by Project 390, reports Chrisanthi Giotis of Social Enterprise Live
As of last week the project also received the support of the Young Foundation. The plan is that the programme will break off from the youth charity and become its own self-sustaining social enterprise spin-off called Project 390. (The figures 390 make up the internal code used by Ikea to describe furniture that has been damaged but is recoverable.)
Project 390 will compete with commercial organisations that provide staff to the furniture company. It plans to expand to many more UK Ikea stores and eventually other large companies.
Young Foundation director Geoff Mulgan said: 'The answer to Britain's growing youth unemployment crisis lies with social enterprises like Project 390.
'We have invested in Project 390 because it shows that with some innovative thinking and corporate responsibility we can provide unemployed young people with their first rung on the jobs ladder.'
Project 390 has received £30,000 from the Young Foundation's Learning Launchpad programme: £5,000 as a grant and also £25,000 in quasi-equity - that money will be recovered by the Young Foundation through Project 390 revenue when it becomes self-sufficient. The social enterprise will predominantly work with ex-offenders, care leavers and teenagers with serious barriers to employment.
The Learning Launchpad announced another £80,000-worth of funding to three other social enterprises working with young people last week. These were Space Unlimited, a Scottish creative consultancy staffed by teenagers, women's leadership project Ignite, and Social Links, which helps young unemployed people with social networking skills get jobs in creative businesses in East London. The next round of applications closes on 8 January 2010.
A social enterprise born out of a corporate social responsibility programme in multinational furniture company Ikea has just received backing from the Young Foundation. Youth charity the Vine Trust has run a work experience scheme with Ikea in Wales since 2006. That scheme has expanded to other stores and has provided 300 young people from tough backgrounds with work experience while being supported by a team of youth workers.
30% of the young people have gone on to gain full-time work with Ikea thorough the scheme.
As of last week the project also received the support of the Young Foundation. The plan is that the programme will break off from the youth charity and become its own self-sustaining social enterprise spin-off called Project 390. (The figures 390 make up the internal code used by Ikea to describe furniture that has been damaged but is recoverable.)Project 390 will compete with commercial organisations that provide staff to the furniture company. It plans to expand to many more UK Ikea stores and eventually other large companies.
Young Foundation director Geoff Mulgan said: 'The answer to Britain's growing youth unemployment crisis lies with social enterprises like Project 390.
'We have invested in Project 390 because it shows that with some innovative thinking and corporate responsibility we can provide unemployed young people with their first rung on the jobs ladder.'
Project 390 has received £30,000 from the Young Foundation's Learning Launchpad programme: £5,000 as a grant and also £25,000 in quasi-equity - that money will be recovered by the Young Foundation through Project 390 revenue when it becomes self-sufficient. The social enterprise will predominantly work with ex-offenders, care leavers and teenagers with serious barriers to employment.
The Learning Launchpad announced another £80,000-worth of funding to three other social enterprises working with young people last week. These were Space Unlimited, a Scottish creative consultancy staffed by teenagers, women's leadership project Ignite, and Social Links, which helps young unemployed people with social networking skills get jobs in creative businesses in East London. The next round of applications closes on 8 January 2010.
The Young Foundation is a parter of the 5th Global YES Summit, Rework the World.
November 20, 2009
Rework India - exceeding expectations
I've just come back from Delhi, India, where 120 leaders came together for an exciting Rework India meeting at the India Habitat Center, a key milestone in the run up to the 5th Global YES Summit, Rework the World, in Sweden in 2010.A broad spectrum of partners have it a real flavour of cross-sector action: the Confederation of Indian Industries, the Ministry of Rural Development of India, YES Bank Ltd., New Ventures India, the Dishtree Foundation.
The highlights: 1. the diversity of participants, 2. the frank dialogue between real government decision-makers, social and environmental entrepreneurs, youth leaders and investors; and 3. the center-stage focus on creating an investment marketplace, from participating banks to venture capital funds, angel investor networks and foundations, all of which gave the meeting a real edge around planning the scaling up of some of India's most promising social innovations.
Among the participants:
- Arvind Mayaram, Secretary & Financial Advisor, Ministry of Rural Development of India
- Bunker Roy, Founder, founder of the Barefoot College
- Arun Kumar, President of Development Alternatives
- Caroline Howe, Board Member, Indian Youth Climate Change Network, and Director of Climate Solutions
- Uma Swaminathan, Director of the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA),
- Meera Shenoy, ED, Employment Generation Mission, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad
- Sanjoy Sanyal, Country Director of New Ventures India, a partner of Rework the World, who acted as convener of a broad investor network
- Paul Basil, Founder and CEO, Villgro
- Padmaja Ruparel, President, Indian Angel Network
- Karan Gupta, Promoter, Breathe Ventures
- Rita Soni, Country Head- Responsible Banking, YES Bank Ltd.
- Vinod Kala, Director, Emergent Ventures India
- Sohini Bhattacharya, Director, South Asia Partnerships, Ashoka
Many thanks to the YES team in India, PK Joseph and Shuchi Smita for their fantastic work in pulling the meeting together, and for their work going forward. Please contact the YES India team if you want to know more about this meeting and what ideas are being taken forward towards 2010.
October 30, 2009
YES Peru advocates for youth green jobs!
The RTW Peru team is working very hard to advance the green agenda for youth jobs. VIDA –the host agency for YES Peru- is coordinating a network to make this possible. The interest in the environment sector is getting to the employment agenda. Still, we find it is challenging to link “green jobs” with the workers rights and the decent work agenda.
We are using two radio programs to promote Rework The World, the 5th Global YES Summit in 2010. We are organizing planning meetings with the support of institutions and leaders like Congressman Falla Lamadrid, the GEA Group, JARC, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, CCSA, the Global Village Energy Partnership (GVEP International) and FREDEMAR. More than 100 people from diverse organizations have so far been involved in building towards Sweden 2010 and the Latin American regional meetings this and next year.
We have already identified some 40 green projects in 4 fields: renewable energy, forest, urban waste and Ecoturism. We see these are key areas where Peru can develop new opportunities for youth green jobs and we’ll seek to mobilize the government and investors to support these projects. Towards the end of November the top 5 initiatives in each area will be showcased in the Peruvian Parliament.
We will showcase these projects on this blog soon, but you can follow the Peruvian process at: http://greenjobsperu.wordpress.com/
October 29, 2009
Do you know?...
Some of the most critical Green Jobs are to be found in the energy, mining, agricultural, construction and transportation sectors. These sectors has made an important impact in helping to cut the consumption of energy, raw materials and water through high-efficiency strategies designed to ‘de-carbonize’ the economy, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to minimize waste, pollution, to protect and restore the ecosystems. The lessening of the impact of the human footprint on the environment arising out of Green Jobs which is generally thought to be gradual. Different jobs contribute to the process to different degrees.
Remember!
Green jobs are the forms of employment that are mindful of the importance of minimizing the impact of the particular activity on the environment... What Green Jobs seek to do, is to reduce environmental fallout to levels that are regarded as sustainable as far as possible, to repair environmental damage.
"Rework" The Practical Solution to Youth Unemployment and Poverty alleviation
The Rework Process is very critical in focusing the world to start tasking and stop talking. YES Kenya Africa . Created on the premise of extinguishing 1 million kerosene lamps in rural Africa, the project is ambitious and at the same time realistic to the challenges that Africa faces today.
The Rework process will be the benchmark to create the partnerships that will see different players to focus on how young people can engage constructively on creating opportunities at community level. We look forward to partnerships that will see and follow up to get involved in this project.
Renewable energy will be part of this process as well on how young people can create eco charcoal and save the nvironement.
Emmanuel Dennis
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