NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Journeys for Change / Sankalp Journey is a unique 3-day immersive journey, from 8-11 April 2012, to visit some of Mumbai’s most exciting social enterprises, designed to help participants create greater profit and impact in their work.

The journey will incorporate site visits to meet a variety of Mumbai-based social enterprises – businesses whose purpose is to create both profit and impact. Participants will meet the founders of the enterprises, their staff and beneficiaries; will debate and reflect with their fellow participants; and will get unique access to some of the key figures in the social enterprise world in Mumbai.

The journey will also include a private dinner with Vineet Rai, founder of Aavishkaar and Intellecap and entrance into the Sankalp Summit, which starts directly after the experience.

The journey will aim to provide participants with:

· Inspiration from some of Mumbai’s most exciting social entrepreneurs

· Practical insights on innovation, leadership and new business models to accelerate their career and their organization’s growth

· Valuable new connections and membership of an alumni network of 200+ international socially-conscious leaders

· New perspectives on how to create greater profit and impact in the world

The leaders will get a unique opportunity to meet some of the following social enterprises:

· MediAngels (www.mediangels.com) whose vision is to become the world’s pre-eminent eHospital.

· Priyadarshini, a unique cab service run by women in Mumbai.

· Barrier Break Technologies (www.barrierbreak.com), whose mission is to bring accessibility to India.

· Under The Mango Tree (www.utmt.in), a hybrid social enterprise that markets a variety of gourmet honey and related products to support rural livelihoods.

What previous participants have said:

· “Great value for money. The journey delivered more than promised and more than anticipated. As a result of coming on the journey, I am discussing a new collaborative effort in the financial access arena with a potential partner in India.” – Biplab Das, Director, Credit Suisse

· “Anyone who is serious about making a difference in the world should experience a Journey for Change at least once.” – Akhil Shahani, Director, Shahani Group

About Journeys for Change

Journeys for Change takes international leaders on transformational journeys to help them create greater profit and impact in the world. Since 2005, it has run journeys visiting and learning from some of India’s most inspiring social entrepreneurs. Participants have come from organisations as diverse as Nike, JPMorgan, Credit Suisse, The Bertelsmann Foundation, Swedbank, Novo Nordisk and INSEAD. Its alumni network consists of more than 200 socially-conscious leaders spanning four continents.

About Sankalp Forum

The Sankalp Forum is holistic ecosystem designed to catalyze impact investments into sustainable and scalable social enterprises globally. Our mission is to create an enabling platform that supports socially relevant small and medium enterprises. We provide year-round access to investment opportunities, capacity building, knowledge and crucial networks.

For more information:

· Please visit: http://www.journeysforchange.org/journeys/mumbai-social-enterprise-journey-sankalp-summit-april-2012

· Please contact: Naomi Sailekar at Journeys for Change, tel. 07738144447