Engineers for Social Impact, a program started by NITK alumni and present students, has launched it’s 2nd Fellowship program. The aim of the organization in it’s own words “is to connect the best engineering talent to the most credible for-profit social enterprises that drive market-based solutions to development in India”.
The fellowship will be given to 10 undergraduate students selected from the top 15 engineering schools across India (IITs, NITs, BITS etc). The selected fellows will then be able to work with for-profit social enterprises in areas as diverse as microfinance, low cost power solutions, rural healthcare etc. The network of partner organizations is diverse with some very innovative and impressive companies like SELCO, Ujjivan, DhanaX and Vaatsalya.
Social Entrepreneurship is a very misunderstood area. A lot of people have a strong urge to work for the socially backward but very few consider the path of for-profit enterprises to work towards this aim. Many narrow their view of organizations working in this domain to NGOs or philanthropic efforts. One of the first to actually prove the model of for-profit Social Entrepreneurship was Muhammad Yunus, who built the first profitable microfinance institution, won a Nobel Prize and whose model has been recreated the world over in domains very diverse from banking. As an aside, I would strongly recommend his autobiography to people who what to learn more about for-profit social enterprise. It is a bit drawn out with a lot of Bangladeshi history and context thrown in, but is enlightening.
This would be an excellent opportunity for undergrads to connect with some of the huge challenges and opportunities in India and work with people passionate about social enterprise. Though I am not sure that selecting only engineers, and that too from only 15 colleges is the right strategy. Some colleges, like DA-ICT have a compulsory rural “intern” program and could have had strong potential aspirants.
Bhavish
Posts
2 comments:
FYI, I think DA-IICT has discontinued the 'compulsory' rural-internship, rather making it voluntary and giving the students an opportunity to pursue industrial internships.
I think this was a good move. Earlier, students would be 'forced' to live in a village and few would appreciate the potential of the program.
By making it voluntary, it would ensure that the participants truly want to live the life of a villager and experience the rural hardships, in order to make a difference.
Let's hope there are many volunteers this year.
I agree.. making it voluntary would get in more dedicated people. But they must also add some incentives to it.. otherwise no one might end up opting for it!
Post a Comment