Shwab Social Entrepreneurs of the Year

About the award

Our co-founders, Sue Riddlestone and Pooran Desai, were awarded the title of Social Entrepreneurs of the Year by the Schwab Foundation. 

Sue and Pooran were awarded the accolade during the 2011 World Economic Forum on Europe and Central Asia in Vienna, Austria. They are now part of the Schwab Social Entrepreneurs network providing them the opportunity to give their on-the-ground perspective of sustainability and social innovation at various World Forums attended by business and government leaders.

“Social entrepreneurs are the driving force behind the innovations that improve the quality of life of individuals around the world,” explained Mirjam Schoening, Head of the Schwab Foundation.

Sue and Pooran commented: “We are really honoured and delighted to join the World Economic Forum as Social Entrepreneurs. The reason we wanted to become a part of this network is to share what we have learnt in building and creating truly sustainable communities and businesses. We also want to learn ourselves by talking with and listening to world leaders about how best we can help in the global mission to transition to a sustainable future. This is a particular focus of our work right now in the run up to the June 2012 UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro”.

Since 2000 The Schwab Foundation has been identifying the world’s leading social entrepreneurs in over 50 countries around the globe. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders.

The following five winners were selected as 2011 Social Entrepreneurs in Europe:

Sue Riddlestone and Pooran Desai – BioRegional – United Kingdom
BioRegional invents and delivers real-life sustainable communities and businesses.

Juergen Griesbeck – Streetfootballworld – Germany
Millions of young people around the world are born into a cycle of social injustice with little opportunity to break out. Through the love of football, streetfootballworld brings individuals and organizations together behind a common goal: empowering young people to rise above their circumstances.

Norbert Kunz – iq consult – Germany
Iq consult seeks to lower unemployment, especially in the eastern parts of Germany, by training, mentoring and funding unemployed and disadvantaged people who are looking to become self-employed.

Laurent Laïk – Groupe La Varappe – France
Groupe La Varappe creates jobs in the south of France for people who have been excluded from society.