Social Enterprise (SE) may be an unfamiliar concept to most Thais but over the past 2-3 years, much progress has been made in generating understanding on the concept especially among Thai youths and those in the field of social development.
Therefore ChangeFusion Institute is proud to be the host of SE Showcase Series #2 inorder to promote greater understanding and awareness on social enterprises among Thai youths so that they may eventually become social enterpreneurs of their own. Hosted on June 24 2010 at the Bhuddakaya Conference Room on the 22nd floor at the Amarin Tower, the event was jam-packed with well-respected social entrepreneurs in the field, interested university students and the media.
Half of the event was to showcase established and successful social enterprises in Thailand, with speeches given by the founders of OpenDream and Thoth Media while the latter half was to give the floor to winners and runner-up teams of SEBP (Social Enterprise Business Plan) and GSVC (Global Social Venture Competion) to give a showcase presentation under 10 minutes in front of a panel of commentator who will give their opinions and advice to develop the business plans further. Teams include Freehap, a social network which aims to raise andspread happiness among peers; Aquareal, a indoor shrimp farming system; Southern Salam, an enterprise which makes Muslim headscarf made using nano-technology that aimed at alleviating the economic problems and violence in the three Southern province; Youth Book & Education Center, a second hand book distribution company aiming to reduce paper consumption by recycling while helping kids save on new books and Avolution, a integrated hub facility and toy company for Austic kids. All teams received invaluable advice and critiques from our panel of distinguished commentators which include Mr. Alan Archapiraj, BE Magazine, Mrs. Sarunee Achwanantakul, from Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Thammasat University, Mrs. Sinee Jakratharanon, Director of Ashoka Foundation, Mr. Chaopas Ongmahatmongkol, from Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Chulalongkorn University and Mr. Ranapong Khamnuanthip, General Manager Universal Music Thailand and writer on ‘Wassup’ column BangkokBizNews newspaper.
Moreover the event served as the official launch of the book "ทำเพื่อสังคม ไม่เห็นต้องกินแกลบ" (Doing good for Society without being broke), a inspirational comic book by Mr. Sunit Shrestha for individuals interested in social enterprise to discover and enter the world of SE.
Mr, Pawin Suthipong, our moderator for the night, best summed up the SE Showcase Event on that day: that there are many great social enterprises that exists in Thailand and there are many great examples of great social enterprise business plans in Thailand. Therefore, Thailand is not short on inspiration, but on action; we need more people in society to be interested and get involved with social enterprise, especially starting new ones. We happy that the event has met all of our objectives, which is to generate understanding and interest among SE, create awareness and inspiration for buddig social enterpreneurs, educate and provide advice in which everyone can take back and improve in their social enterprise. We are also very happy that the SE Showcase Event ended as a lively networking event where social enterpreneurs connect and discussed the topic with one another. We hope that one day this networking floor will come together to form the Social Enterprise Association of Thailand.
Lastly, ChangeFusion Institute would like to thank the following partners for making the event possible:
1. Friedrich Naumann Foundation
2. Thai Health Promotion Fund
3. Bangkok BizNews
4. British Council
5. TYPN
And the following supporters:
6. SEBP: Social Enterprise Business Plan Competition
7. GSVC: Global Social Venture Competition
