Our schedule in Delhi has been jam packed so I’m a bit behind but I have to share about our wonderful day on Monday with UnLtd India and Acumen Fund India. This was our first real view here in India into organizations that support social enterprises. I love UnLtd India’s incubator model for start-up social enterprises and NGOs and the stories they told about the unique and determined social entrepreneurs they have met and helped, and the women from Acumen Fund provided a very useful big-picture perspective about investing in social enterprises and the challenges in measuring results.
UnLtd supports non-profit, for-profit, and hybrid models in the 0-4 year phase during which these organizations prove their model and begin scale up. They also provide access to The Hub, a shared space for offices, events, and networking among social entrepreneurs. A quirky office space with little nooks for reading and chatting, The Hub reminded me so much of the Affinity Lab where my husband’s company got its start. The vibe of the office was inspiring, from the fact that you have to take your shoes off to come in to the open and airy loft and balcony where we met with UnLtd Director Pooja Warier (see pics below).
I was surprised but pleased with Pooja’s response to my question about how UnLtd defines social entrepreneurs. She said that terminology changes over the years and no matter what the development world calls them – activists, innovators, social entrepreneurs, or something else in 10 years – these people will be doing the same work. She also gave a great explanation of the difference between a social entrepreneur and a social worker. A social worker will say you are hungry, let me give you some food, but a social entrepreneur will say why are you hungry in the first place, and then look for a solution to the root problem.
I love the concept of Acumen Fund, which is an investment firm focused on social enterprises and willing to invest “patient capital,” in other words it does not expect the immediate and large returns that corporate investors do. What stood out the most for me during the conversation with Molly Alexander and her colleagues was how difficult it is to measure social impact, as well as attribute it to one specific organization or effort. This is certainly a challenge that has come up throughout my coursework and research at GW. We talked about how Acumen’s health portfolio evaluation is almost solely focused on outcomes like number of patients served, number of clean water jugs sold, etc., without getting at the long-term health impact. This discussion certainly revealed the need for more trained and talented researchers in the field – perhaps some from GW!
The measurement challenge flows naturally into contemplation of the potential impact of social entrepreneurship, which myself and others have struggled with throughout the last two weeks. For example, we have discussed that perhaps social entrepreneurship is not as sustainable as we initially thought. The meetings with UnLtd and Acumen made me think that while sustainability is important in the long-term, it is also important not to overlook the small-scale impact these types of organizations can and do have on individuals and communities. If support from UnLtd India can help a courier business get on its feet, hire 45 deaf workers, and change those 45 people’s lives in a profound way, while also raising awareness of this underserved population, I would call that a success. Or if Acumen invests in a company producing locally-filtered water that reaches 250,000 people and has catalyzed an industry that now reaches an additional 500,000, I would call that a success. And, many of the organizations UnLtd and Acumen support are on a path to sustainability. Like any enterprise, they may still need investor support, but they can start to move away from donor funds, which is key.
During our day at The Hub I had millions of thoughts racing through my head about what career path I should pursue after my MPH. While I’m still working through those, I was undoubtedly inspired by the ideas and energy coming from UnLtd India, The Hub, and Acumen Fund.
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