China’s Top Social Innovators to Watch in 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
By Calvin Chin
I firmly believe that China will be a leader in social innovation. But while there is a tremendous amount of dynamism and energy in this newly emerging sector, we don’t have world famous organizations like Kiva, Pro Mujer Microloans or Aravind Eye Hospitals in China … yet.
Ventures such as Shokay, Xuping Rabbit, Bambu Home, GIGA or others may eventually become the success stories that are immediately associated with Chinese social innovation, much the way that Grameen Bank is a shorthand for development success and innovation in Bangladesh.
In the meantime, some of the most interesting work in this space is being done by the organizations that are themselves supporting other social ventures.
Just as heavy investment in transportation and utilities infrastructure has enabled industry to build on top of a reliable platform, there are also capacity-building organizations laying the foundations for the robustness of the social sector here in China.
