Untapped Opportunities: Unlocking & Unleashing the Social Economy

I was first introduced to the work with charities and social enterprises through Moonlake Lee , the founder of Unlocking ADHD in Singapore. It was Moonlake who finally convinced me to get a diagnosis for Adult ADHD. The fact that I have been medically diagnosed with this condition is a game changer for me and the people around. I delved on the various aspects of the condition, not only about learning how to recognize and overcome moments of impulsivity. I am also blessed with the unique ability to think out-of-the-box and finding hidden an untapped opportunities that can be game-changing to say the least. It is for this reason that I am sharing my thoughts with you.

The Social Economy in its Present State

You see, we often seen the social economy as money-sapping and something we can contribute towards if we have spare cash. It is an after-thought for most. Most corporate organizations would view this as a means of corporate social responsibility. This is typically a annual HR-lead initiative that guilt trips the employees to visit the less fortunate, pick-up trash or plant trees to reduce the carbon footprint of our environment (you get the idea). You see, many see the social economy as one that have minimal or sometimes even negative ROI. Why am I contributing funds to organizations who may not make the best use of the funds and continue asking for handouts? This is where my neurodivergent brain sees otherwise having been exposed to various types of social causes.

Understanding the Plight of the Poor Communities

For those who have been following my posts, I was introduced to the wide-reaching concept of philanthropy when I partnered Spring Rain Global (SRG) in June last year. SRG works with over 200 poor communities around the world (primarily in the Philippines) by forming Philanthropic Development Offices (PDOs) within each communities. Think of PDOs as the finance department of your village community. The PDOs consists of individuals that are trained on various aspects of being a financially responsible beneficiaries of funds.

You see many poor communities do not know how to make good use of the money they get. It is more often the case that the beneficiaries did not learn Financial 101 or Business 101 in their respective seminaries and convents and will give to their villages more than what they receive thinking that God will continue to bless them with generous benefactors. 95% of SRG's clients are Catholic Missions; this is simply because the Philippines is a predominantly Catholic country and the Catholic Church is the world's biggest charity (you can fact-check this on Google if you are not convinced). There are cases where clergy misuse these funds but in most cases, these are largely due to ignorance. Regardless, the poor need the funds to survive. Imagine what happens if they can go beyond survival and start generating funds from themselves. Herein lies the opportunity for businesses to tap on unique strengths of these poor communities and their very acute survival instincts. Before I delve a little deeper into the how organizations can collaborate with social enterprises, I would again like to cite the example of how a parish priest is bringing hope to his community by just being practical and making good use of what he has.

The Miracle of Tondo

Fr Reynaldo Daguiterra is SRG's Rey of Hope. Situated in one of the most challenging communities in, I dare say, the world, Fr Rey was a man in despair when he was appointed the Parish Priest of St Paolo de Apostol (St Paul the Apostle) Tondo six-years ago. His one square kilometre boundary is hope to middle-class Filipinos and 90,000 slum dwellers! He was recounting to us that the slum dwellers live in "Happyland" and work in the "Aroma" (free smells) the dump site next door. He jokes that he could even celebrate mass in the nearby penitentiary. He asked the inmates which parish they belong to and the inmates answered that they belong to his parish. You see, when you have slums, you have everything that comes with it; theft, prostitution, drugs, murder, etc. He gets street children coming to church asking for food. Every now and then, the huge church hall doubles-up as a shelter for victims of fires. Most of these fires were started because of the lethal combination of methane from biological wastes among mountains of plastic thrash bags and loosely hung live-wires that the villages gleefully tap on to get energy for their homes.

With the help of the good folks from SRG, Fr Rey learned that he could make good with the little he has. From starting a rabbitry (he is looking at scaling this up to 700 rabbits) to help with his feeding programme, growing tilapia, vegetables and organic remedies like moringa, he is able to do a lot with what he has in hand. Generous donors has provided him with the solar panels to tap clean energy that is sold back to the grid to fund scholarship for the poor children in his community. He is already thinking of making good of the waste in the dump site converting them in to fuel or even compost for his vegetable farm. This does not only bring hope for his community, it also encourages benefactors and attracts investors who are beginning to see the possibilities and opportunities they can tap on for revenue generation.

Our team has also been working with Fr David in Carmen, Cebu to his goat farm. His farm is already functioning well and his nanny goats have started producing kids. Fr David's mantra is one goat can send one child to school. His parish sits on beautiful mountainous land that has the potential for planting cash crops like coffee and breeding rabbits!

Unlocking Opportunities Through Social Enterprises

Carmen, like many of the poor villages has hectares of fertile farmless richly blessed by nutrient rich volcanic soil. Apart from farmed animals, they can produce coffee. They also have thriving fishing villages. Tondo is blessed with a multitude of streetwise people. With proper education and vocational training, they can provide valuable (and affordable) human resource that the world. The Philippines are also net exporters of healthcare workers, F&B staff, individuals working on cruise ships, resorts, etc. Collectively, these 200+ villages could easily supply over a million migrant workers. English is widely-spoken in the country and hence they are very much in demand. This is an untapped opportunity for corporations to partner with the PDOs to develop these communities to grow your respective supply chains.

Back in Singapore, Unlocking ADHD is trying to build superheroes out of individuals who are often misunderstood and are sometimes placed under Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) because ADHDers struggle to fit in with the workforce. If we could somehow get the ADHDers to work with their team mates and harness the collective brain-power of the team in the workplace, this could potentially unearth game-changing ideas and value propositions. This is where we can unlock ADHD for the good of the organization.

Working with the social economy also channels our energies towards achieving the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Imagine the impact your organization can doto the environment by reducing the carbon emission through waste management or reforesting farmlands, helping the poor and the marginalized in society.

Begin with an Open Mind

So how does an organization get started with all this? Start with an open mind and find opportunities in adversity. Yes, it is hard to imagine that the most disengaged worker in your team could come up with the next big thing to propel your organization forward. It is even harder to imagine a child with no formal identification to be the future Front Office Manager of your resort in Seychelles. What every individual deserves is dignity, a listening ear and a fresh start.

How can I get Involved?

If you feel the urge to help the social economy, either as an individual or on behalf of your organization, do reach out to me via LinkedIn Messenger to explore the possibilities of what you can do. We at 1852, are running boot-camps to help villages build social enterprises in their respective communities and they would appreciate business people like yourselves to journey with them. You may also explore areas where you could partner with these social enterprises or charities for the greater good of society.

1852 a social initiative of ET Potential was started in early 2024 to engage the Social Economy and bring a fresh start for The Last, The Least and The Lost. Our founding team are all alumni of St Joseph's Institution (SJI) and we strive to continue mission of the school to Learn to Learn and to Live to Become Men and Women of Integrity and for Others.