Funding Sources for Social Innovation Projects

As a social innovator/entrepreneur, one of the main obstacles in managing your company is the funding. That is because instead of being pure profit, you are sustaining a social impact of some kind, which means your profits go towards the social cause that you’re working for.

Now, having a financially sustainable and scalable business model is important, but getting that starting capital won’t be as easy as something like a tech start-up. However, luckily enough, many organisations around the world are dedicated to help social innovators to make their social ideas and products come true. Below are various ways for people around the world to acquire funding outside local help.

Global Innovation Fund

This is a funding opportunity for social innovators who aim to tackle social issues in the world and potentially improve the lives of millions. The fund’s ideology made simple is that. “ideas that can solve some of the world’s largest issues, can come from anyone, anywhere’. Thus, social innovators working on projects that could bring a huge social impact can request for funding from them, the Global Innovation Fund will willingly back your project through loans, grants and equity investments from a range of $50,000 to $15,000,000.

Nesta

Nesta is an innovation foundation that is based in UK, but operates globally. Nesta constantly seeks out others to form partnerships in the hopes of seeking out, sparking and shaping powerful ideas that could change how the world works for everyone. They bring together the big guys like governments and international tech firms with the grassroots, such as community groups, local activists or social entrepreneurs. Being an expert at social innovation, Nesta will greatly benefit any social innovator applying for grants or seeking for a partnership with them.

Crowdfunding

The idea of crowdfunding is made for social ideas and innovation. Crowdfunding at its core, is when an idea or product in production is presented to an online audience in a way that it’ll capture their attention and eventually their hearts, which allows that audience to contribute any amount of funds for a corresponding reward and also to help support the idea or product that they believe it. If the campaign is done right, it is quite possible to reach tens of thousands of people around the world, if not hundreds of thousands.

Identify some other funding opportunities for social innovation projects and share with your fellow learners.