Hello readers! We hope you have been well since the last time you heard from us when we published the three-part Brace for Impact newsletter series, in which we explored the human-centred future of work through helping employees find purpose at work, improving employee wellbeing, and creating an equitable and sustainable future of work. These issues are pertinent to all organizations, regardless of legal structures entities and sectors, because we believe every organization can and should create positive social impact.
That is why we at FSI take a structure-agnostic approach when deciding who to work with, supporting organizations looking to drive systems change through scalable operational models. We offer in-depth assistance to help the people who help people, and through our shared impact model, we hope to change the way we do business, for good.
As we enter into the final quarter of 2021, we are excited about the new initiatives we have rolled out and those in the pipeline. Here is an update on the latest happenings at FSI and our partner companies. Find out how you can support us in our shared impact journey.
FSI Happenings
ReThink – FSI’s Change Makers Stage
We had a fantastic time hosting the Change Makers Stage on Day 1 of the ReThink event this year!
For those who were able to join us, we hope you enjoyed the four panel discussions around the theme of Redefining Impact. In addition to exploring how our Community Connections Program helps our corporate partners redefine CSR and employee engagement initiatives, we also delved into the power of data and technology in driving social impact and systems change, as well as the importance of helping stakeholders make sense of data, and gathering sufficient political will and financial resources to drive meaningful actions.
Having witnessed the swift responses of philanthropists and funders during the COVID-19 pandemic, our panelists engaged in a dialogue on the different forms of philanthropy needed to bolster the social impact space in Hong Kong. And, if we are serious about building a sustainable and equitable future, just as important is cultivating impact-driven cross-sector partnerships, as our partner company GREEN Hospitality demonstrated in its panel discussion.
Big thanks once again to the organizer, our moderators and panelists, the FSI team, and those who attended the Change Makers Stage! We hope the opening remarks helped you better understand our shared impact philosophy, and our panel discussions offered some valuable takeaways. Get in touch with us if you are interested in adopting the shared impact model to maximize social impact.
In case you were not able to join us at our Change Makers Stage at ReThink this year, here is a quick highlight of the four panel discussions.
Community Connections
One of the highlights for us at the ReThink event is to hear that Community Connections is a life-changing experience for some of our corporate participants. At FSI, we believe skills-based volunteering can be an opportunity for corporate employees to become the leader they want to be, while helping society at the same time.
While many may be considering board membership as a part of their “strategic side gig”, few are aware what board governance really constitutes. And so, in September, FSI launched our first Board Director Training Program for employees of the corporate partners of our Community Connections Program and other organizations. Accredited by The Law Society of Hong Kong, the program is designed for those who would like to learn more about board governance, legal and compliance, and risk management so that they can be effective board members in the modern business climate.
If your company is looking for this kind of leadership training, get in touch with us! In the meantime, visit the rich library of resources we have curated for corporate employees on matters related to starting your own social impact journey, board membership at a social impact organization, and skills-based volunteering.
Fundraising Directory
As a social impact incubator, one of the questions we are asked most often is: “Where are the funding opportunities?” Funding opportunities exist, but they can be hard to find. We believe in using data and technology to enact change, and our Community Business Support team went on to build a shared database to support the community in finding relevant financial support. Check it out on our website here!
Non-profit Software Database
Demonstrated by our fundraising directory, one of the core pillars of our shared impact philosophy is about freely sharing resources, information, and knowledge. As part of our Shared Data endeavors, we are gradually building out a database of non-profit and charity software discounts and offers, to make it easier for social impact organizations to learn about relevant affordable software that can help streamline processes and scale their impact. Visit the database on our website here!
Impact Lab Seminar Series and Certification Program
It is almost half-way through the semester for our Impact Lab students, and this semester, we launched the Impact Lab Seminar Series and Certification Program: a certificate-bearing course with a focus on entrepreneurship and social impact. Although the program is currently open only to students at The University of Hong Kong, we are looking to expand its reach to include people who would like to solve social issues with scalable business models.
Since 2014, our impact-based learning curriculum has benefited over 1,000 students, who have contributed over 120,000 hours of work in Hong Kong social businesses and NGOs. These students have taken the shared impact philosophy and applied it to their careers and community service, with former students starting their own social impact organizations, joining NGO boards, and leading fundraising and COVID-related initiatives. In fact, one of our Impact Lab alumni has recently joined the FSI team as project manager. Read about Vivian Seo’s experience of Impact Lab and her impact journey here!
Your support for our impact-based learning program can enable us to continue nurturing the next generation of social impact leaders while bolstering the social impact space. Find out how you can support us here.
From Our Partner Companies
Soap Cycling celebrated its ninth anniversary last month! Initially started as a youth empowerment initiative by David Bishop, a professor at The University of Hong Kong and co-founder of FSI, Soap Cycling continues to empower disadvantaged populations such as the elderly, refugees, and ethnic minorities through its MEY Program.
The COVID-19 pandemic saw Soap Cycling stepping up its community outreach efforts through its “Soap to Cope” campaign, where it distributed hygiene kits to over 3,000 street cleaners in Hong Kong. Earlier this year, with the funding from The Swire Group Charitable Trust, Soap Cycling piloted its “Soap Walk for Good” program to offer meaningful work to ethnic minorities individuals while promoting social inclusion.
Consider donating to or volunteering for Soap Cycling to support its work in hygiene enhancement, waste reduction and resource circulation, and education and empowerment.
Weava has reached over 700,000 users on Chrome! If you haven’t yet, join the Weava users around the world to stay productive and organized online, simply by installing the Weava Highlighter Chrome extension. But Weava is more than just a free productivity tool, it is also an EdTech startup that enhances teaching and learning, reading and researching online, as well as digital literacy. Visit Weava’s website to explore its extensive resources on using Weava and those specifically curated for teachers and students!
GREEN Hospitality’s new website is live! The new interface is designed to be more user-friendly, with updates on its events calendar to allow for easier navigation of upcoming GREEN Talks, workshops, events and more. Be sure to check out the research reports, including the latest Waste Deep research, and the various services such as advisory and research, education and training, employee engagement programs, and sustainable events production.
If you are interested in expanding your network locally and internationally for collaboration on sustainability initiatives, consider joining GREEN Hospitality’s membership program to stay abreast of the development and solutions in sustainability in the hospitality industry.
Box of Hope is starting this year’s gift box donation soon! If you would like to donate a gift box to children living in poverty, stay tuned to Box of Hope’s social media channels for updates on box drop-off locations during 1-5 November. This year, Box of Hope is extending its beneficiaries to babies and is looking to crowdfund 1,000 baby gift boxes. You can either create a gift box or donate HK$250 to help Box of Hope deliver soap bars and other gifts to a baby in need.
In addition to its annual donation drive, Box of Hope also hopes to become a platform that teaches children about giving and philanthropy. Read about the challenges it faced during the COVID-19 pandemic here, how it benefited from our Community Connections Program here, and the scalable database and automated solutions that our Community Business Support team helped it build here.
EmpowerU’s inaugural PowerThru Summer Course has concluded with great success! Check out some of the highlights on the PowerThru Instagram page, and while you are at it, the impact entrepreneur interview series too. We really like this one featuring Gus Grifter Geopano, a social service program worker, and Earl Ng, co-founder of The Glowing Fool, on using a fantasy tabletop role-playing game to help players build social and emotional skills!
Consider supporting EmpowerU’s work in providing high-quality education to marginalized individuals here.
Migrasia has recently published three business case studies with a focus on human trafficking and modern slavery issues in the global supply chain, to help fill the gap of teaching and learning tools for MBA and other university programs. As you are reading this, the Migrasia team is working on several externally funded research projects, including one that looks into the factors affecting migrant workers’ decision-making process during the pre-departure stages of migration. The goal of this research project is to engage the government and civil society of the Philippines to disseminate the research findings and recommendations to steer migration policy and guide future interventions. A number of other programs are in the pipeline, aiming to increase the evidence base for digital anti-trafficking interventions and expand online support services for victims of trafficking and modern slavery.
If you are passionate about eradicating modern slavery and educating future business leaders on the risks of human rights abuse in business operations, get in touch with Migrasia or make a donation to support their work here.
