Youth Empowerment

Leveraging experiential learning to nurture today’s youth to become the social impact leaders of tomorrow

Since 2012, we have developed and delivered a one-of-a-kind impact-based experiential learning curriculum that teaches Hong Kong youth how to put the shared impact philosophy into practice. 

This revolutionary education model not only helps ease school-to-work transition for youth by equipping them with human and transferable skills, but it also gives them the opportunity to become responsible global citizens by doing socially impactful work for the community and beyond. Under the guidance of experienced educators, successful entrepreneurs, professional mentors, and the FSI team, these youth are given the opportunity to creatively problem-solve and learn from their failures in a safe environment.

Youth Empowerment Description

Our Initiatives​

Impact Lab Course

Easing the school-to-work transition for students across disciplines by placing them in meaningful internships at social impact organizations

Youth Empowerment Impact Lab Course

An award-winning, credit-bearing experiential learning course co-organized by FSI and The University of Hong Kong, where student interns can gain essential skills and be exposed to social impact through their placement at our partners of social impact businesses. Through building capacity for social businesses or running social impact projects that are advancing various UN Sustainable Development Goals, more than 97% of students report to be “more employable”, having learned future-proofing human skills such as complex problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, coordinating with and managing people, emotional intelligence, negotiation, and cognitive flexibility.

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Community Business Internship

Enabling ethnically diverse youths to gain real work experiences and transferable skills through supporting under-resourced entrepreneurs

Youth Empowerment Community Business Internship

As an extension of our support services to under-resourced ethnically diverse individuals in Hong Kong, this internship nurtures ethnically diverse youth to become community leaders and business consultants to provide bespoke business consultation and solutions to grassroots businesses in Hong Kong. 96% of interns reported significant enhancement in their awareness and knowledge about the challenges and opportunities faced by ethnically diverse-owned businesses in Hong Kong, while 88% felt that the internship experience was highly relevant to their career development.

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Youth Empowerment Academy: Starting an Impactful Business through Social Innovation

In collaboration with Suen Chi Sun Hall and Summer Institute, The University of Hong Kong

A week-long transformative summer program giving secondary school students who are passionate about leadership and building a better world. This immersive program offers participants the opportunity to nurture their leadership potential and entrepreneurial spirit by meeting and working with award-winning social entrepreneurs and educators, as well as developing and implementing ideas for potential future social innovation projects.

Week 1 (19-26 Jul)
Week 2 (2-9 Aug)

GuideFong: Stories of Resilience (Cohort 1)

Empowering Youth. Preserving Heritage. Building Resilience.

FSI’s new initiative, GuideFong(街坊): Stories of Resilience, is looking for highly-motivated youth storytellers (aged 18-24) to venture into the vibrant streets of neighborhoods around Hong Kong to uncover tales of traditional craftsmanship, family histories, and community evolution.

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Interested in supporting our Youth Empowerment programs?
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“What I really like about the Impact Lab Course is that it puts a lot of trust and responsibility on the shoulders of the students, but it also makes sure that help and assistance is available. My Impact Lab experience instilled the idea in me that what you do for a living should be purposeful. It encouraged me to accept my role as Operations Director for the Special Olympics World Games, a publicly-funded NGO that recently organized the Special Olympics World Games in June 2023, which is the world’s largest multi-sport event for people with intellectual disabilities.”
Antje Schwarz
2013 Impact Lab Course intern with Soap Cycling
“Youth empowerment is important, and I personally experienced it through Impact Lab. The life lessons and exposures you gain through your Impact Lab experience are what should mean more to you in your university life, other than just doing it for the grades.”
Audrey Neoh
2023 Impact Lab Course intern with FSI
“Impact Lab is one of the best things that a university can offer its students. The course offers hands-on, sometimes challenging, work experiences that can help students grow and learn the skills and knowledge that they can transfer to the workplace. In fact, that’s what Impact Lab did for me.”
Jeff Lam
2015 Impact Lab Course intern
“I didn’t have much work experience before I took the Impact Lab Course, and the course helped me to build the foundations for the professional I am today, like organization, problem-solving, taking leadership of the process, sharing responsibilities, how to communicate with mentors and supervisors, how to ask the right questions etc. All these skills are super important in day-to-day work.”
Tony Gaitanos Hollingworth
2018 Impact Lab Course intern with Soap Cycling
“Impact Lab is very beneficial to young people as it promotes the culture of trying and experimentation without fearing failure, and it gives young people a glimpse of what it’s like to work at a startup. It takes time, courage, and luck for someone to understand who they are and what they want to do in their life. You’ve got to keep trying and experimenting to find and understand yourself, but you also need to be given the opportunities to do so.”
Harris Cheng
2016 Impact Lab Course intern with SIPO, later renamed FSI
“100% I would recommend the Impact Lab Course to others because I think Impact Lab is something very special that you don’t always get to come by in your university studies. Out of the courses I take, Impact Lab is the one I love the most, because I’m actually learning something practical, and I know that what I learn right now is going to pay off in the future, when I step into the professional field.”
Zi-yee Teoh
2023 Impact Lab Course intern with FSI
“It has been a transformative experience working with FSI. Not only has it enriched my experience, but it also allowed me to develop a diverse set of skills and knowledge that will be instrumental in my future career. Most importantly, this internship has shaped my professional aspirations and ignited a deep passion within me to continue supporting small business owners, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds, to foster a more inclusive and supportive entrepreneurial ecosystem in Hong Kong.”
Suhani Gurung
2024 Community Business Internship intern
“My journey of assisting Senchu in her business venture in Hong Kong has been a tremendous learning experience. I’ve gained valuable insights into the intricacies and excitement involved in starting up a business, which has inspired me to create a startup myself, too. This experience has also exposed me to the challenges that arise for the ethnically diverse communities to set up a new business in Hong Kong. The satisfaction I gained from knowing that my contributions have made a positive impact on someone’s business and life surpasses any satisfaction I’ve previously experienced solely through academic pursuits in school.”
Emily Tze Shen Lee
2024 Community Business Internship intern
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Our Partners

See our Impact

Read the stories of others who’ve created impact in this program!

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education@shared-impact.com
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