Socioeconomic Centre

There is an emerging political recognition of social entrepreneurship and "social enterprise". As a result, the Danish foundation Fonden Socialøkonomi.dk has recently received a state grant of 10,7 mio. Kroner to establish a socioeconomic centre: Socialøkonomisk Formidlingscenter.

The centre will, among other things:

• Disseminate knowledge on social enterprise to councils, voluntary organisations and others
• Offer consulting services for social enterprises
• Provide a mentor programme that enables knowledge exchange between established businesses and social entrepreneurs
• Compile a national overview of activities and resources with relevance to social enterprise.

You can read more about social enterprise and the activities of the centre at www.socialokonomi.dk (Danish only)

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Tak for Maden - partners and sponsors wanted!

TAK FOR MADEN (thank you for the food) is a good example of social enterprise. The project has been initiated by the Danish social entrepreneur, Thomas Fremming.

The central part of this project is to collect and redistribute quality surplus foods that would otherwise end as waste.
The food is collected and then delivered to local organisations that are in contact with people with low or no income.
(In Denmark an estimated 85,000 people are classified as social outcasts).

The project already has international support and guidance from, among others, the English organisation FareShare. With a network of 250 charity organisations and 15 warehouses FareShare secured that 12.000 people nationwide had access to a healthy meal every day in 2006.

In Denmark organisations like Projekt Udenfor, Bureau Veritas Certificering and HKI Catering are providing professional support to the project. Voluntary organisations like Frelsens Hær, Morgencafeen, Projekt Udenfor and Den Mobile Café have also shown interest in cooperation. There is also a current dialogue with businesses like Kraft Foods, Unilever, Danish Crown, Arla Foods, Sodexo and Inco.

At present the project team consists of more than 15 volunteers, who contribute in different ways to the project. But there is also a need for more sponsors and partners, who wish to contribute financially or with knowhow within transport, logistics, food production, catering etc. There is, in other words, a great opportunity here for businesses to optimize their social profile (CSR).

You can read more about TAK FOR MADEN (in English) here >>

If you/your company want to know more about how you could possibly contribute to the project, please contact Thomas Fremming at thomas@fremming.com, tel no. +45 3121 0029 or Jacob Hansen at tel. no. +45 4167 8538.

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FairTrade Designers - projects, blog, network

FairTrade Designers is a design movement initiated by the three Danish furniture and product designers, Pil Bredahl, Henriette Melchiorsen og Liselotte Risell.

FairTrade Designers combines innovation and Danish design with art, craft and traditions from all over the world. The aim is to develop fair trade projects that will educate the participants and secure decent income and working conditions. Their first project is currently running in the Chinese province of Yunnan, where many different minorities live side by side in the mountains.

FairTrade Designers has a blog, which they in time hope will grow into a network of designers, manufacturers, and others who wish to cooperate on fairtrade productions of design and handicraft.

You can read more about the FairTrade Designers initiative at www.fairtradedesigners.com

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