XLRI-Xavier School of Management hosted 7th National Conference on Social Entrepreneurship. The 3-day conference was held at XLRI campus, Jamshedpur. Conducted under the aegis of Fr. Arrupe Center for Ecology and Sustainability and SIGMA (Social Initiative Group for Managerial Assistance), the 7th National Conference on Social entrepreneurship was based on the theme- The Young Changemakers: Youth as Social Entrepreneurs.
The young professionals, social entrepreneurs, and change makers share their stories, challenges and innovations and discuss and deliberate on new solutions and partnerships. Fr. E. Abraham, S.J. Director, XLRI said, “We all know that throughout the history, social transformations have come through the initiatives and entrepreneurship of youth – be it the social movements, creation of disruptive technologies to change the society, and even winning freedom for nations. This is also a very relevant theme in contemporary India, which needs the energy and passion of the young generation to address some of the most critical issues which the country is facing. India is a country of young, with 430 million people in the age range of 15-34. In fact, estimates show that by 2020 youth will comprise of 64% of India’s working population. This certainly holds the promise of our “demographic dividends”. However, if this youth power does not move into more productive spaces of nation building, these dividends can also become our ‘demographic liabilities’.”
Ashraf Patel, Co-Founder and Director of Pravah advocated for 5th Space, a platform where youngsters come together & perform grass root activities. Rahul Nainwal, Co-Founder, iVolunteer & India Fellowship, talked about a unique initiative in which 14 India Fellows are selected for one and a half year leadership program, while Anshu Gupta, Founder Director of Goonj, put forth a strong case for the need of ground level implementation of youth driven projects.
Day 1 witnessed young professionals sharing their experiences on solving the problems of the society. The second day was followed with the theme on ‘The power of Volunteerism’ which emphasized on the intrinsic motivation to bring change in society we live. The focus of the third session was ‘the challenge of Sustainability’. Anirban Gupta of Dhriti promotes sustainable livelihood through development of micro enterprise value chain.
The third day started with the theme ‘Innovators of Livelihood and Entrepreneurship’ in which three eminent speakers addressed the issue of sustainable livelihood to the marginalized section of our society.
