Ashoka France, Belgium, Switzerland - Activity Report 2006-2009

ASHOKA FRANCE / BELGIUM / SWITZERLAND

2006 2006 – 2009 Activity Report

Table of Contents Preamble................................ Preamble ................................................................ ................................................................................................ ......................................................................... ......................................... 3 Ashoka’s Activities Activities and Programs ................................................................ ..................................................................... ..................................... 4 Identifying and Supporting Innovative Social Entrepreneurs...................... 4 The Venture Program: Selection of 25 Social Entrepreneurs in 3 Years .................4 Fellowship: Support and Networking .............................................................9 IMPACT Competition: Training in Structuring a Development Plan ......................... 16 Objectives .............................................................................................. 16 Accomplishments .................................................................................... 16 JeunJeun-ES Program .......................................................................................... 17 Objectives .............................................................................................. 17 Accomplishments .................................................................................... 18 Promoting Social Entrepreneurship .................................................................. 19 Communication Campaigns ....................................................................... 19 Social Entrepreneurship Conferences........................................................... 19 “Changing the World through Social Entrepreneurs”, a nation-wide Conference .. 20 Conference Series “Now, Let’s Talk Solutions” ............................................... 21 Series of Presentations.............................................................................. 21 La Ruche ................................................................................................... 22 Ashoka, a Key Player in the Creation of La Ruche ........................................... 22 Introduction to La Ruche and Its Function .................................................... 22

The Future of Ashoka and Its Programs................................ Programs ............................................................ ............................................................23 ............................23 Our Objectives, by Program ...................................................................... 23 Venture Program ..................................................................................... 23 Fellowship Program.................................................................................. 23 IMPACT Competition ................................................................................ 24 Jeun-ES Program ..................................................................................... 24 Promoting Social Entrepreneurship ............................................................. 25 Major Projects........................................................................................... 25 The Legal Form of Social Entrepreneurs ..................................................... 25 Evaluating Social Impact............................................................................ 25 New Financing Tools for Social Entrepreneurs............................................. 26 Other Works in Progress .......................................................................... 26

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Preamble Over the past 3 years, the main mission of Ashoka France-Belgium-Switzerland has been to:

Identify and support innovative Social Entrepreneurs Participate in the development and

professionalization of the sector

Develop public awareness of Social Entrepreneurship

This mission is achieved through several programs: •

The Venture, Fellowship, and ASN programs

•

The IMPACT Competition: social Business Plans

•

The Jeun-ES program and the organization of various events for the general public, the social economy sector and the business world

Promote roles models, engines of social change Ashoka provides them a financial & professional support

Leverage each others’ ideas Ashoka encourages collaborations and group entrepreneurship

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Build infrastructure for the sector Ashoka spreads best practises and creates bridges to the business and academic sectors

ASHOKA’S ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMS Selecting and Supporting Innovative Social Entrepreneurs The Venture Program: Selection of 25 Social Entrepreneurs in 3 Years Over 3 years and in 3 countries, Ashoka has selected 25 Social Entrepreneurs working in different areas.

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Economic Development / Professional Integration Abdellah Aboulharjan La Nouvelle PME (marketplace for Entrepreneurs) France 2006 Through Young Entrepreneurs of France (JEF), Abdellah developed the desire and the capacity to work among the youth of low-income neighborhoods. He is now working to support the continuing development of enterprises that have already been established. Ashoka has decided to support him in this new project.

Saïd Hammouche Mozaik RH (Human Resources) France 2007 Saïd has established the first recruitment firm with a specialization in diversity whereby he is developing professional solutions for the youth of low-income neighborhoods and transforming the practices of the HR sector.

Allaoui Guenni Emergence France 2008 Bringing together sports, professional integration, and social mediation in a single place in the heart of low-income neighborhoods, Allaoui is reintegrating the residents of these neighborhoods and opening new horizons, especially for youth.

Christine ThéodolozThéodoloz-Walker IPT (Integration for All) Switzerland Senior 2008 Christine has developed a revolutionary model that enables thousands of people recovering from physical and/or mental health problems to find durable employment every year. Her model is based in large part on the public and private insurance systems in Switzerland.

JeanJean-Guy Henckel Réseau Cocagne France, Senior, 2008 By creating a network of more than 100 organic vedgetable gardens in France that reintegrate thousands of long-term unemployed people, Jean-Guy has transformed the notion of employability and created a national development model for the entire citizen sector.

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Gilles Reydellet Union Nationale des PIMMS France 2009 In order to ensure that public services are available to everybody – even the most isolated and marginalized citizens – Gilles developed the National Union of MultiService Mediation Points, which operates mostly in poor remote urban and rural areas and offers orientation and support to the inhabitants.

Danielle Desguées Les Boutiques de Gestion France 2009 To invigorate the entrepreneurial fiber in each of us, Danielle has created a network of 4,000 Management Shops that spans across all of France. It informs, supports, and orients potential creators, especially persons who are excluded from the workforce.

Fighting Social Exclusion Guillaume Bapst ANDES France 2006 By optimizing their supply, Guillaume is improving the sustainability of a network of “solidarity groceries” and working toward a return of their clients to economic citizenship. His newest venture allows to collect 5 tons of fresh fruits and vegetables daily and direct them to highly vulnerable populations.

François Marty Chênelet France 2008 A pioneer of eco-friendly public housing, François is reinventing dignified low-income housing in cooperation with professional integration firms in the eco-friendly construction sector.

JeanJean-Marc Borello SOS Group France, Senior, 2008 With an organization gathering more than 130 associations and businesses and 2500 workers, Jean-Marc is demonstrating both the usefulness and the necessity of consolidating the citizen sector, and is key in developing this sector’s effectiveness.

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Didier Ketels Droits Quotidiens Belgium 2008 Didier is enabling the most vulnerable and excluded persons to understand their rights and avoid legal problems by educating social workers and equipping them with prevention and counseling resources.

Ryadh Sallem Cap SAAA France 2006 “Do not ask yourself what you can do for the handicapped but rather what the handicapped can do for you!” Building on this idea, Ryadh has developed prevention and education programs in schools and businesses.

Marc Chebsun Respect Magazine France 2007 Marc promotes diversity as an enrichment of our society. He is also developing concrete tools and business partnerships to encourage diversity at all levels of management.

Health / Social Fabric JeanJean-Michel Ricard SIEL Bleu Bleu Group France 2006 Jean-Michel is helping seniors avoid dependence and exclusion through an adapted sports program. 50,000 people currently participate every week, and the project is developing new programs targeting other groups (e.g.: workers and persons with disabilities).

MarieMarie-Noëlle Besançon Les Invités au Festin (IAF) France 2006 Marie-Noëlle is helping to rehabilitate persons with mental illnesses by providing them access to alternatives to traditional medical facilities. In Besançon, her 1st project reduces the number of hospitalizations and helps save over $1.2 million annually.

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MarieMarie-Dominique GenoudGenoud-Champeaux As’trame Foundation Switzerland 2007 By bolstering family support networks, Marie-Dominique is helping children and their families to rebound from dramatic events such as a death, a divorce, or the illness of a loved one. Her project aims to reduce the medicalization of such life events.

Education / Training Olivier Gaillard TRANSTRANS-MISSION Belgium 2007 Employing a multitude of resources, Olivier is educating youths about active citizenship and is giving them the tools to become active citizens and build the society of tomorrow.

Simon Houriez Signes de Sens France 2008 Simon is helping the deaf to experience culture and knowledge, and is creating opportunities for them and the hearing to share common experiences, thus breaking down prejudices and barriers between the two worlds.

JeanJean-Claude Decalonne Les Orchestres à l’école France 2009 Exposing students in underserved schools to music, Jean-Claude is achieving a radical transformation: children are developing discipline, self-esteem, and the motivation to succeed.

Reza Deghati Aina Afghanistan Senior 2008 Reza is helping to reconstruct civil societies in countries emerging from conflicts by developing

independent

and

educational

media

outlets

and

populations, especially women and children, gain access to them.

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helping

local

Environnement Roberto Epple ERNERN-AQUANET France/Europe Senior 2007 By coordinating and encouraging cooperation among the Europe’s major River Watch Organizations, Roberto is protecting Europe’s rivers and helping to assure the durability of a rare resource: water.

Jérôme Deconinck Terre de liens France 2008 Mobilizing collective investment, Jérôme is enabling small farmers to purchase their farms and to create organic projects with the objective of protecting responsible agriculture with a human dimension and revitalizing rural economies.

Ignace Schops Regionaal Landschap Kempen en Maasland (RLKM) Belgium 2008 Ignace is channeling public and private investment into the protection of natural spaces according to a coordinated development model and is helping make environmental protection a major engine of economic and social development.

Pierre Rabhi Mouvement pour la Terre et l’Humanisme l’Humanisme France 2009 In order to repair social and environmental equilibria while at the same time helping feed our planet sustainably, Pierre is educating farmers in France and Africa about eco-friendly practices. He encourages all of us to adopt lifestyles that are in harmony with nature.

Tristan Lecomte Pur Projet Projet France/International 2009 A pioneer of fair trade with Alter Eco, Tristan is opening the carbon-neural products market. His key ideas are: support businesses/local communities in reducing their carbon footprints and capturing carbon through fair-trade agroforestry operations.

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Fellowship: Support and Networking In 3 years, Ashoka has: Developed a network of 25 Fellows (innovative Social Entrepreneurs) in France, Belgium, and Switzerland, including 8 seniors.

Invested €1.6 million in stipends for these Fellows. Invested nearly €500,000 in support programs for these Fellows. Negotiated the equivalent of €2 million in services offered by our partners: McKinsey (long-term strategic partner) Latham & Watkins (long-term strategic partner) Hill & Knowlton (long-term strategic partner) Egon Zehnder (new partner) Krauthammer (new partner) Crossknowledge (new partner)

Attracted 50 business leaders through the Ashoka Support Network (ASN), which provides financing, services, and networking opportunities to the Fellows.

Benefited from the time, work and competences of over 50 volunteers.

Objectives and Accomplishments Proposing a specially designed and highhigh-quality support program for each Fellow We adapt ourselves to the specific needs of each Fellow. According to their needs, we provide the following services: •

a three-year stipend to ensure his/her financial stability at the head of his/her organization

•

professional services with the assistance of our network of professional partners

•

Individual Support Committee (CODAC), in which members of the Ashoka Support Network (ASN) participate as volunteers

•

assistance in structuring a business plan (with the Ashoka Team and external professional volunteers)

•

…

Cf. Page 12: table summarizing the services provided to each Fellow so far.

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Developing Developing an Active and Dynamic Network of Fellows Furthermore, we organize meetings among both our Fellows and other networks. •

Meetings between Fellows (France/Belgium/Switzerland) have been organized in Besançon, by Marie-Noëlle Besançon Strasbourg, by Jean-Michel Ricard Lausanne, by Marie-Dominique Genoud Paris, by Jean-Marc Borello Calais, by François Marty On each occasion, the objective was to give Fellows the opportunity to discuss their problems and to share best practices.

•

New European Fellows two-day meeting in Kietzbühel, Austria, Each year in October, Ashoka convenes all the new European Fellows at the McKinsey University in Austria. The objective is to encourage international collaborations among our Fellows.

•

ASN/Fellows weekends are regularly organized to strengthen our group and encourage collaboration among our Social Entrepreneurs and with the ASN members. Anticipating and handling our Fellows’ Fellows’ problems, problems, especially in evaluating evaluating their social impact

Social impact evaluation is a recurring topic in the citizen sector. Until now, no clear, precise, and widely useful methodology has been developed. This carries numerous implications, however. The decisions of donors/financers focus mainly on a project’s structure, financial transparency, and, to a lesser extent, its management. Though in complete agreement with this approach, we also think it is essential to append to this list criteria of effectiveness and efficiency. efficiency We have therefore implemented an SROI pilot project (Social Return On Investment) with the Dutch company Social E-valuator (cf. www.socialevaluator.eu). After 3 training sessions, we have a clearer vision of the potential and the limitations of this tool.

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ASHOKA

Stipend

Networking

PARTENAIRES

Social business plan

SROI

Latham & Watkins

2006 Ryadh Sallem Marie-Noëlle Besançon Abdellah Aboulharjan Guillaume Bapst Jean-Michel Ricard 2007 Roberto Epple Marie-Dominique Genoud Champeaux Marc Chebsun Saïd Hammouche Olivier Gaillard 2008 Jean-Marc Borello Jérôme Deconinck Reza Deghati Allaoui Guenni Jean-Guy Henckel Simon Houriez Didier Ketels François Marty Ignace Schops Christine Theodoloz-Walker

Support for each Fellow

McKinsey

Hill & Knowlton

Krauthammer

ASN Cross Knowledge

CODAC

Evaluating Ashoka’s Impact on its Fellows Purpose of the Study Ashoka has been selecting and supporting Social Entrepreneurs around the world for 28 years, in France since 2006 and in Belgium and Switzerland since 2007. In order to optimize our support and to show utmost transparency towards our stakeholders, we wished to: •

Assess ssess the effectiveness of our activities as regards our Fellows’ development, along predefined indicators: - Identifying what was Ashoka’s actual contribution in terms of the development of the Social Enterprises. - Understanding which aspects of Ashoka’s relationship with its Fellows and support for their projects have been satisfactory / unsatisfactory. - Determining what the Fellows are expecting in order to maximize the impact of their relationship with Ashoka.

•

On this basis, refine, adjust, and enrich our grid/model for evaluating Ashoka’s impact on its Fellows.

•

Ensure that the the new grid/model can be used used in a systematic way in the future, maybe in other countries. In pursuit of this goal, Ashoka regularly conducts an international study, “Measuring Effectiveness”.

To implement this methodology, we asked Kevin Singer and Guillaume Cadet, co-founders of MFR Consulting (a firm specializing in qualitative studies, recently acquired by Millward Brown) to conduct a study on Ashoka France’s impact on its Fellows in France, Belgium, and Switzerland. Study Results Below are some of the results of this study, which we will use to improve our support in the future. From Fellows’ remarks about Ashoka and their experience with this organization, the study observed that the Fellows perceive it: •

above all, as a ‘concept’ to which they all adhere, however some of them say it took time for them to do so.

•

as a collection of benefits for them, which can be organized into 3 major areas.

Ashoka’s assistance according to our Fellows:

Booster Maximizes the potential of the project and its leader/manager

A principle

Community

Support

Builds confidence and provides expertise and experience

Provides assistance most notably in areas in which the Fellow lacks expertise

Focus on “The Booster Effect”:




Psychological booster: Ashoka builds confidence

•

•




For less experienced and younger Fellows, the selection process helps to confirm the value, quality, and potential of their work. “They push you to be very ambitious, to transform your dreams into realities " “It gave me a coat of armor.” “I had the impression that they believed in the project even more than I did… it makes a difference and builds confidence.” For all, simply being ‘elected’ a Fellow marks a change in status and bolsters both conviction and ambition. “In fact, they gave me a taste for challenge that I didn’t really have.” “Before Ashoka I was a leader and I have become a manager.”

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Competence booster : Ashoka provides expertise to its Fellows in two ways :

•

The Ashoka team is equipped to help its Fellows step back, evaluate the big picture, and understand their limits. “The team widened my perspective.” “They keenly saw both my strengths and my weeknesses and their feedback on them was quite helpful.”

•

The relationships between Fellows and ASN / partners, particularly the Codacs, are often viewed as the most important benefit offered by Ashoka. “The quality of their assistance was very impressive. " "They are very involved and very good. " "I feel better equipped knowing that I am being supported by such top-notch professionals. "

Some Comments : On belonging to the Ashoka network:

“I have always considered myself a fighter but it often seemed that I was facing uphill battles. Since Ashoka, I feel that I am fighting more effectively.” On the support of other Fellows:

“Initially, I was a bit skeptical about the meetings and the Fellows weekends. But I quickly realized that others were having very similar problems and that a lot of progress could be made by discussing them.” “You know, all of us are unusual people and it really is a good thing to spend time with people who understand you. That’s psychology for you!” On the support of international Fellows:

“For example, thanks to Ashoka I learned that in India a surgeon charges different fees according to the resources of his patients. That gave me some ideas for my fee strategy.” On the support of a partner:

“The people at Latham are great. They really got involved and we built a true partnership.”

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The IMPACT Competition: Training for Structuring one’s Business Plan Objectives In Europe, the citizen sector is particularly dynamic and is undergoing important transformations. The IMPACT Competition aimed to make social organizations more professional and structured impact, with three key objectives: and to encourage greater consideration of their social impact, -

Stimulating creativity with regard to mobilizing resources and forming development strategies

-

Helping organizations address strategy issues by developing a social Business Plan

-

Collecting information on best practices and making it available to the entire sector

Accomplishments The IMPACT Competition was first held in 2007-2008, and the 2d time

in

2008-2009.

It

was

opened

to

all

nonnon-profit social

organizations who, after operating for at least one year, wished to evaluate their development.

The IMPACT Competition offered organizations selected to participate training and support in drafting their Business plan. This included seminars led by senior Social Entrepreneurs, McKinsey consultants, and ESSEC business school professors on a wide range of topics (strategy, pace of development, HR, business models, etc.) After the training sessions, each organization was guided by a McKinsey consultant throughout the five months of the competition. Ceremony at the Salon des Entrepreneurs

The competition culminated in the Salon des Entrepreneurs, in Paris, where the winning organization was awarded €15,000, a whole year of professional support, and a working seminar where they would meet another organization working in the same area.

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The IMPACT Competition highlighted the major questions an organization should answer in order to successfully implement a Business plan. In order to help organizations think differently about their projects, maximize their impact and convince new partners more easily, Ashoka has published a handbook addressing the “7 key questions”. questions” (“what is your business model?”, “how do you measure your impact?”) To support the sector’s structuration, this guide is available for download on the web site www.concours-impact.fr.

The JeunJeun-ES Program Ten years ago, Ashoka World launched Youth Venture, a program that targets youth entrepreneurship, a major vehicle for change and combating apathy among future generations. Ashoka France launched Youth Venture three years ago under the name “Jeun-ES” (Young Social Entrepreneurs).

Objectives The Jeun-ES Program builds on the fact that adolescence is a decisive time in the formation of social consciousness and the acquisition of the skills necessary to become an enterprising and responsible citizen willing to actively participate in the resolution of major social and environmental problems. It encourages and assists all young persons between the ages of 12 and 24 to launch their own community projects in order to make important and multidimensional social impacts.

Impact on the young person

Direct impact on a social or environmental issues

Discovering the joy of entrepreneurship and teamwork; building responsibility, selfesteem, and empathy

The results of the project organized by the young person

A young person launches a social project Impact on friends and family

Impact on society A more engaged and integrated society whose members are better prepared to take initiatives to solve social problems

Serving as an example, developing awareness of the potential of young people

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Accomplishments Partnerships First and foremost, The Jeun-ES Program is has formed a number of regional and national partnerships with youth sector organizations in order to exchange effective practices, facilitate the selection of youth projects, and co-organize events promoting Social Entrepreneurship by young persons.

Awareness Campaigns on Social Entrepreneurship Ashoka has run awareness campaigns at schools, universities, and youth events in order to invite young people to launch their projects through universities and business schools (Ligue de l’Enseignement, RNJA, European Forum for Youth in Action, etc.) Supporting and Organizing Teams of Young Project Leaders More than 20 youth projects have been supported since the launch of the program in 2007. Supported by Ashoka and its partner organizations, some 100 young people from all regions have developed projects addressing environmental protection, combating social exclusion and discrimination, citizen journalism, access to culture, and international solidarity. They have received funds to start their projects. International Competitions To strengthen the international dimension of the Jeun-ES Program and take advantage of the work of its partners, Ashoka decided to further develop the Jeun-ES Program in 2008. It began to utilize the internet tools and platforms www.changemakers.net and www.genv.net to encourage young people to do things differently through collaborative competitions and calls for projects. projects Through the program, two French youth teams were named finalists in an international competition and visited the United States to meet young project organizers from the United States and Latin America. In spring 2009, a youth team that had developed a technological innovation for integrating persons with disabilities won a trip to MIT, where they had the opportunity to discuss the development of their project with leading international researchers.

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Promoting Social Entrepreneurship Communication Campaigns Ashoka launched 2 poster campaigns in the Paris metro to raise awareness among the general public. The first campaign lasted three weeks and highlighted Ashoka’s Social Entrepreneurs. The second raised awareness of the IMPACT Competition and Social Entrepreneurship.

Conventions on Social Entrepreneurship Ashoka has organized two Conferences on Social Entrepreneurship. The first one, one held January 31st 2006 and entitled “Social Entrepreneurs and Business Entrepreneurs: Entrepreneurs: How to Innovate for Society”, Society”, coincided with the launch of Ashoka France and sought to raise awareness of this new sector, its key players, and the mission of the association. Held at l’ Usine, the convention brought together nearly 400 people for a day of conferences on Social Entrepreneurship, the importance of the sector, and its connections with the business world.

On April 8th 2008, Ashoka hosted a second conference, conference this time with professional meetings aimed at social entrepreneurs and social sector organizations. Entitled “Being an Entrepreneur and Growing without Losing Your Soul”, these meetings offered a day to brainstorm and share tools for development strategy and resource mobilization. They proposed roundtables, workshops and an expert panel to help the 200 participating entrepreneurs to have a better grasp of theories and practices with which they could further develop their projects.

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“Changing “Changing the World through Social Entrepreneurs” Entrepreneurs”

On October 9th 2008, Ashoka organized a big event to promote Social Entrepreneurship that targeted the general public. Presenting the results of the first study on the impact of Social Entrepreneurship in France, the event aimed to expose the general public to the work of Social Entrepreneurs and the solutions they have developed to solve social issues (unemployment, social exclusions, health issues, citizenship, environmental problems, etc.).

This event included several presentations and activities: conferences, minipresentations by Social Entrepreneurs, a forum with key players in the sector, interactive activities with the public (wheelchair basketball, for example), a runway show by persons with disabilities, a Film Festival focusing on the men and women who are changing the world, etc. Closing with a ceremony presenting the ten Fellows Ashoka had selected in 2008, this event attracted over 900 participants to the magical Cirque

d’Hiver-Bouglione.

2008 Induction Ceremony

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Conference Series, “And Now, Let’s Talk Solutions” In October 2009, Ashoka has launched “And Now, Let’s Talk Solutions”, Solutions” a series of monthly conferences focusing on Social Entrepreneurship. These conferences are promoting the innovative solutions of Social Entrepreneurs that undertake to resolve major social or environmental problems (education, unemployment, human rights, environment, health, etc.) They emphasize discussions of solutions rather than of problems, and are building on the professional, structured, and promising work of Ashoka’s Fellows. Ashoka is partnering with the Reporters of Hopes agency objective

to

organize of

these

highlighting

conferences

with

the

of

work

the both

organizations in the development and propagation of solutions. We also aim to strengthen a network of key players in social innovation (Social Entrepreneurs, businesses, academic organizations, financers, etc.). The first of these conferences took place on October 5th at the Comptoir Général, a place with strong ties to sustainable development efforts. Focusing on access to information/education for the deaf, the conference attracted nearly 100 participants, and staged two key players: Simon Houriez, founder of Signes de Sens and Ashoka Fellow, and Jérémie Boroy, an expert on the subject and president of UNISDA (National Union for the Professional Integration of the Deaf).

Presentation Series Each year, Ashoka organizes presentations in France, Belgium, and Switzerland to introduce its partners/financers. work to potential corporate partners/financers /financers With two or three of its best ambassadors – its Social Entrepreneurs – on stage, Ashoka is thus aiming to expand the Ashoka Support Network. The presentations are organized with the assistance of ASN members and Ashoka partners, such as UBS, in Paris, Lille, Lyon, Strasbourg, Brussels, and Geneva. In September 2009, Ashoka also began to organize monthly breakfasts, hosted by Deloitte. Some ten business people are invited and exposed to Ashoka’s activities.

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La Ruche (the beehive) Ashoka, a Key Player in the Creation of La Ruche

In response to the difficulties encountered by a number of Fellows in finding workspaces in Paris, we began in 2007 to conceive a solution allowing to create mutual workspaces. workspaces Hochman,

As who

we

crossed

wanted

to

paths duplicate

with in

Charlotte Paris

an

experience, named the Hub, she had had in London, this encounter became the starting point for La Ruche (“The Beehive”)…

Introduction Introduction to La Ruche and its Function La Ruche is a collective work and creation space for innovative social entrepreneurship in Paris. Open to any person who proposes an innovative response to a social or environmental challenge, its vision is to reconcile economics and human development. Its “bees” work side by side and even together. In fact, many professionals involved with social innovation need a place where they can not only work but also meet other similarly minded people, collaborate, receive support, and make progress as a team. Furthermore, access to resources (technology, meeting rooms, and legal, fiscal, and financial support) is sometimes a problem. This is why La Ruche seeks to bring together strategic players in Social Entrepreneurship so that they can share their networks, resources and best practices.

Social Entrepreneurs based outside of Paris (in France or abroad) who need a welcoming and effective pied-à-terre in the French capital are also welcome to rent a place in la Ruche on a daily basis. In July 2009, after more than a year since opening, La Ruche was hosting 53 full-time people and 9 part-timers within 22 different organizations.

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THE FUTURE OF ASHOKA AND ITS PROGRAMS Our Objectives, by Program Venture Program Ashoka will continue to select and support innovative Social Entrepreneurs capable of bringing about social change. In Europe, we believe that we will have reached the critical number of Fellows necessary to have a meaningful impact in all areas in which we operate. In France, Belgium, and Switzerland, our objective is to elect ten new Fellows each year of the highest potential, including “Senior Fellows” – Social Entrepreneurs who have already made a significant social impact and whose projects are already at high stages of development. We will also continue to identify and develop a group of key persons who will nominate Social Entrepreneurs and offer us their expertise in specific areas.

Fellowship Program “Let’s begin by reiterating an important piece of information: as a whole, the Fellows are very satisfied with Ashoka, its services, and its benefits: - Ashoka has given an entirely new dimension to their projects (and even their lives) - The Fellowship Program’s advantages exceeded all initial expectations.” MarieExcerpt from the Evaluation Report conducted by Guillaume Cadet, Kevin Singer, and Marie Françoise Roy. In light of the growing number of Fellows in the network, we will need to consider new strategies that will enable us to continue to offer each Fellow a specially designed and highhigh-quality support while at the same time empowering and fostering the independence of the network of Fellows. • We will capitalize upon what our Fellows believe are our unique characteristics: -

The ASN Network and the Codacs Codacs are the keystones of our work. work We will do everything possible to ensure that each Fellow has an effective Codac. Each new Fellow who does not have a business plan will be required to work with his or her Codac for six months while drafting a business plan.

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• We will target certain areas: -

Improve our methods of invigorating the network of Fellows in order to capitalize upon and better share effective strategies for handling recurrent problems. Furthermore, we wish to develop national and international collaborations to facilitate the duplication of projects and to create new innovative projects. We envision an idea exchange Unit for the Ashoka Fellows’ social innovations.

-

We must, in the future, expand our support of Senior Fellows: Fellows -

At the international level, by taking advantage of our connections and helping our Fellows develop high-level contacts (other Senior Fellows, public officials, etc.)

-

At the local level, by helping them expand their influence within the world of social enterpreneurship.

-

We will open Ashoka’s doors more widely to our Fellows’ team members. members. We have already begun by making the services of Krauthammer and Crossknowledge available to our Fellows as well as to their teams.

-

We wish to expand the possibilities of personalized coaching coaching, hing which we began to do in 2009 with Krauthammer.

-

We will expand our services in two areas: locating financing and press relations expertise. expertise

IMPACT Competition We are considering redesigning the IMPACT Competition in order to give priority to supporting supporting our network’s Social Entrepreneurs, Entrepreneurs particularly in francophone Africa. We will thus be able to continue helping French-speaking Fellows in three areas: 1. Strategy and development 2. Business model 3. Evaluating social impact (with Social E-valuator) We will keep the program’s double objective: -

Support Social Entrepreneurs (Fellows)

-

Produce and diffuse tools for sharing effective practices throughout the French-speaking countries around the world.

The JeunJeun-ES Competition Beginning in 2009, the Jeun-ES program will concentrate on education efforts and promoting youth initiatives through an interactive and participative competition with the aim of increasing both the interest in undertaking social and environmental initiatives and the ability of young people to do so with the help of a network of involved youth and voluntary partners specializing in supporting youths. If we can support 20 to 30 teams throughout France, we hope to be able to reach out to 10,000 young people through this platform.

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Promoting Social Social Entrepreneurship The evaluation of Social Entrepreneurship conducted in 2008 with AVISE and Opinion Way demonstrated that the general public is largely unfamiliar with the sector. Ashoka’s objective is to promote the sector in the media and through events. We are currently working on organizing an international event that will take place in fall 2010. Until then, the series of monthly conferences “And Now, Let’s Talk Solutions” will allow for regular meetings between the members of our network and the general public. It is also an important vehicle for media exposure and we hope to solidify relationships with several media partners.

Major current projects… rojects… The knowledge that we have developed over the course of these three years in the sector leads us to believe that we must promote certain major structural adjustments.

The Legal Form of Social Entrepreneurs/Businesses Entrepreneurs/Businesses In France today a majority of Social Entrepreneurs choose to create an association under the Law of 1901 because this is the simplest legal form available for social businesses (the other options are cooperatives, mutual corporations, or foundations). However, this legal form presents numerous limitations, limitations particularly in terms of governance (a Social Entrepreneur who receives a salary from the organization he or she has founded will always be under the supervision of an administrative board who can remove him/her at any time), access to development capital (it is impossible for an investor to hold a share, even though an increasing number of investors are interested in investing in Social Entrepreneurship organizations). On the other hand, if the Social Entrepreneur incorporates his/her project, in many cases he/she will not have access to public financing. This difficulty can be avoided, as in the case of the SIEL Bleu Group, by creating an affiliate business that is operated by the association, but even this does not simplify the problems of governance. We are currently considering the idea of a hybrid status that would solve these issues at least partly. This project has only just begun.

Evaluating Social Impact We will continue to study this issue in cooperation with ESSEC. Our aim is to measure in an objective manner the social impact of the work done by our Social Entrepreneurs and to be able to “monetize” this impact. We realize that quantification and monetization are essential intermediate steps in building the credibility of our Social Entrepreneurs’ models. However, assessing the value and impact of this type of work means we must reconsider reconsider the way one normally normally evaluates wealth creation. creation. We wish to move beyond the concept of SROI and contribute to the development of new approaches for evaluating social impact.

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It is our ambition to ensure that the evaluation tools will enable Social Entrepreneurs to better monitor their social impact and that they will enable financers (public and private) to make better investment decisions.

New Financing Tools for Social Entrepreneurs New financing instruments are appearing in a number of countries, a direct consequence of new legal forms and methods of evaluating social impact that highlight the creation of wealth and thus demonstrate that investing in this area can can be financially and socially valuable. valuable. In different countries, Ashoka has been able to put such tools in place in cooperation with the banking industry (specialized investment funds, notably) and it is therefore only natural that we envision these types of tools being available in France. Thus in the next few months we plan to launch a first Investment Fund targeting our Fellows.

Other Works in Progress Developing Social Entrepreneurship on a large scale also means, in our opinion, developing the capacity to expand our Fellows’ projects in response to the key issues of our society, present and future. This is why we are working to propose concrete, efficient, cost-effective, and replicable solutions to all stakeholders (the government, municipalities, businesses, etc.), building on a precise analysis of society’s major problems and the innovations and ideas of our Fellows. The proposals will, of course, answer specific problems in different fields (health, education, environment, etc.), some of them will also seek to be as transversal as possible to overcome the obstacles to the development of Social Entrepreneurship.

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La Ruche – 84 Quai de Jemmapes 75010 PARIS Tel : 33 (0)1 48 03 92 30 Fax : 33 (0)1 48 03 92 47 [email protected]