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Episode 6: Three winning projects sharing their story
143 Plays3 months ago
Welcome to Why Why Why? Episode 6
In this episode, I focus on learning from three of the winners of the SozialMarie Award 2024:
I'd like to share something that I talked with them about before pressing the record button. You will notice that we will interchangeably use the concepts of Social Entrepreneurship, Social Impact, and Social Innovation. Although technically different, we discussed all those concepts as a "drive that inspires and empowers individuals to face change and growth to achieve social value." This conversation is relevant because many of us confuse the idea of entrepreneurship and startups, making it hard for people working for organizations to identify as entrepreneurial or socially innovative.
I believe anyone who works hard to solve social issues, whether as an individual or part of a collective, is entrepreneurial, innovative, and impactful. Do you agree?
Enjoy the episode, and feel free to reach out!
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Transcript
Sochilmarie Award 2024: Winners' Motivations and Impacts
00:00:02
Speaker
Welcome to YYY. In this episode, I focus on learning from some of the winners of the Sochilmarie Award 2024. I'm very curious about their motivations and what winning the award means to them. But before beginning, I'd like to share something that I talked with them about before pressing the record button. You will notice that we will interchangeably use the concepts of social entrepreneur entrepreneurship, social impact, and social innovation. Although technically different, we discussed all those concepts as a drive that inspires and empowers individuals to face change and growth to achieve social value.
00:00:48
Speaker
This conversation is relevant because many of us confuse the idea of entrepreneur entrepreneurship and startups, making it hard for people working for organizations to identify as entrepreneurial or socially innovative.
Redefining Social Entrepreneurship: Broader Impacts
00:01:03
Speaker
I believe anyone who works hard to solve social issues, whether as an individual or part of a collective, is entrepreneurial, innovative, and impactful. Do you agree?
Housing First Austria: Emine and Gerhard's Mission
00:01:28
Speaker
Let me introduce you to Emine and Gerhard. They work for Bavo, the organization that operates the winning initiative Housing First Austria. They're up to eradicating homelessness in Austria. Isn't that amazing? I focus my questions on them as individuals. Exploring their motivations might reveal clues to anyone asking themselves what it takes to make this world a bit better step by step. My name is Amina Eskan. I am working to end homelessness in Austria. I'm working with BAAL, which is an umbrella organization of the Homelessness um Services in Austria, and our project is called Housing First Austria. Hello, I'm Gerhard Schitzinger. I am a Communication Officer at BAAL for the project Housing First Austria.
00:02:24
Speaker
What if both of you tell me a bit more about your personal, personal and professional path? I am an educated social worker and um living in Vienna for um more than two decades now and working in, um I've been working in different areas of social work, a lot
Gerhard's Career Shift: Journalism to Social Innovation
00:02:45
Speaker
in the area of um prevention of violence against women, but also children and also young ah young people. And for the past few years, I've been working in the homelessness sector
00:03:00
Speaker
especially with the home housing first um approach. So I've been working with teams and but also at the University of Applied Sciences where I i used to um give lectures on housing first. What about you Gerhard? I studied media studies. um as well as languages. I studied German and English and um initially I did so with the idea of um wanting to kind become a journalist but throughout my studies I um kind of realized I'm not a confrontative enough person to be a journalist maybe.
00:03:40
Speaker
So I ended up on the other side basically and um doing communication work and always been focusing on doing comms for good causes because I believe gives me the chance to transport um positive messages of change and of progress and Yeah, just for projects such as this to a wider audience ah to perpetuate their existence. Could you tell me why did you start in the world of social innovation?
00:04:17
Speaker
So there are two um there were actually two paths in what ah that I could take, studying media studies and communications, either it's journalism or doing advertising. Journalism, I thought, could be interesting because I can make social change and I can make people aware of problems that exist. um advertising mostly not so much. um So I found a middle way that is um in which I can use my voice through my profession that I've learned to um support
00:04:57
Speaker
social projects, social innovations in that way and to to communicate it to a wider audience and um that has, yeah, that's a lot of fun for me. I feel um I feel it's working. It gives me a lot of satisfaction when people tell me, oh, I i didn't know about about this issue and about the solutions to this issue, such as homelessness, where you have um um such a wide spectrum of of people who are affected by it, but you have clear solutions and sometimes, I think,
00:05:34
Speaker
Before I ended up in this sector, I um i didn't have the awareness for that. And it's very it gives me a lot of inspiration to gather this awareness from my colleagues who are the experts and to pass it on. um So that's my motivation. Was there any specific reason why did you decide to start? It was basically because I found my first job while I was already studying, which um was kind of simply good luck. I ended up in an um in an NGO in the field of asylum um and refugees.
00:06:16
Speaker
and I realized that this is what makes sense to me, what I can do with my life, basically. um And I didn't stray from that path ever since. um
00:06:32
Speaker
Yeah. in And in the case of of um Housing First Austria and and of the homeless sector, I have to say I've I pretty much ended up in a team that has already been hugely innovative. So I picked up from them and felt like this is where I'm going to stay and follow those people.
Emine's Drive: Human Rights and Social Change
00:06:54
Speaker
We continue with you, Emine. So social work is a profession of human rights. This is ah what we believe and this is what I believe. um And as a social worker, I always worked in areas um that are very dedicated to human rights, for example, in a women's shelter, um ah in the prevention of violence, um in um
00:07:20
Speaker
projects for young people for their education. So I think that being protected from violence is a human right and having education is a human right and ah having a home is a human right. So this is what motivates me to work ah in the social sector in the social area. This is my my impetus, my yeah motivation. And also um I choose to be in that area because I think we can make a difference and we can make um a change. We can we do have an impact that is also motivating. So um ah we have or I have the strong belief that it is right what we do and it is um effectful and we are
00:08:08
Speaker
changing the, in our case, we're changing Austria a little bit, so it's getting better. And um also it motivates me at the same time to see that it works and it's getting better. If I summarize um from what I heard from both of you,
00:08:30
Speaker
you care about the effect and the impact of your work because you find on the results that you are capable of producing satisfaction. So it's the validation of ah we together are doing something ah great and we are making steps into ah making a positive change in Austria and it feels great like letting your mark right and ah and and making something happen. And I also feel, ah from both of you, this um focus on what we are doing together, right? So is you both of you kind of congratulated each other ah ah on on the work that you are realizing. So that's very beautiful.
From Advocacy to Collaboration: Project Evolution
00:09:20
Speaker
So as the Umbrella Organization, BABO,
00:09:24
Speaker
ah We've been working um for a housing market, which is more inclusive, affordable, and provides some permanent security housing in Austria for quite some years now. um And in Austria, we have around 20,000 people who are registered as homeless. So, of course, ah people who are experiencing hidden homelessness, they are not counted in that number. so ah it might be twice as high. This is what we think about. So um we knew for a while that we need strategic and also political solutions to end homelessness in this country. So this project we are having or this initiative was and still is um the practice of what we've been
00:10:14
Speaker
ah so to say, preaching for a while now. And it started this journey started, I'd say, um four or five years ago, um when we, as Barvo, presented a policy paper ah entitled, Ending Homelessness, a Nationwide Strategy. This was funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs in Austria. In this paper, we had um the idea, or um It was more an ambitious plan to end homelessness in Austria within five years by providing 25,000 affordable apartments out of the limited profit housing associations segment of the Austrian housing sector. So with this idea and plan, we presented it.
00:11:07
Speaker
in 2000 the pandemic hit, so after that, and um because of the pandemic there was um there was an emergency fund to um counteract poverty due to the pandemic. So it was a window of opportunity because um in Austria the homelessness services It is the responsibility of the federal states, not the nation. So um with this window of opportunity, there was there was the idea to collaborate with the limited profit housing associations with the sector. And we applied and our application was accepted and we launched a project, Arriving Home, which we um
00:11:57
Speaker
ah which we did um until 2023 and after that very successful successful project we had a follow-up project which is called Housing First Austria. So um it is the second iteration of this initiative and um by now we have the collaboration with more than 25 social organizations in in Austria and more than 70 limited profit housing associations, and um seven federal states in Austria. So we are a huge network by now working all with the same aim and goal to end homelessness ah with the housing first approach. And to sum up, we had our long-term advocacy work as the ground base, and we had the window of opportunity
00:12:56
Speaker
And of course, we had the support and also the yeah the support of the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs in Austria. I think this was also very important for our project. So now we know what the organization is doing and part of the path of of of ah how you arrived, where you are today. You talked about the importance of networks. like Actually, you created a network in order to achieve your um your aims and your goals. You also talked about the importance of um purpose, because it looks like the whole network is aligned with what you want to achieve. And that's already a humongous achievement, in my opinion.
00:13:44
Speaker
ah So that the third question is somehow
Award Recognition: Morale and Networking Boost
00:13:48
Speaker
related, right? Because it's what do you treasure from this experience of participating with Social Marie? And ah what did you see in the award ceremony that that captured your attention? Maybe you can say something about the award ceremony since start up I mean, because since I wasn't there. Yeah, but I think I work quite a bit on the together with Amina on the application for it and I think you know sometimes in the in our daily work and especially in the social sector, we are um
00:14:26
Speaker
trying to get things going um takes a whole lot of work, a whole lot of blood sweat and hopefully not too many tears, um but it does. And um I think receiving the recognition for your work in the form of a, you know, by a jury of experts experts in the in ah a world ceremony like this is ah is such a huge sign of approval and sign of, um we also believe in what you believe in, um keep doing what you're doing. um So it's it's a huge booster for morale and also for, since you mentioned partners and networks, it counts a whole lot to be able to
00:15:11
Speaker
to showcase that um we've proven with the data that it works, we've proven with collaboration that it works, but we also have the outside perspective of of an independent jury giving us a seal of quality for this. And um it's something that not only does it boost morale, but it also helps in in the network and in the collaboration to be able to, you know, we are we are bringing the booklets that you made um to people in the housing sector. We are showcasing it online for decision makers to see. And I think this does
00:15:52
Speaker
Make an impact that actually I can see it. It's been very widely received also that way Yeah, thanks a lot so for that So the Sociale Marie is a very renovated award um in Europe and it is an honor to be, um it it is an honor that we were nominated and a bigger honor even um that we won the first prize. I want to thank Sociale Marie for bringing us in and accept accepting us as also part of the Sociale Marie family, so to say.
00:16:29
Speaker
And um what I um value a lot is that we are now part of a network that works for impact and for a better situation in Europe. So mostly Central and Eastern Europe. In Europe, we are facing so many challenges. And it is so good to know that there are so many initiatives and innovative people working on solutions and um for a better situation for so many people living in Europe. So um so at the ceremony on May 1st this year, I was flattered to see so many really nice people. And it was great to chat with
00:17:15
Speaker
these colleagues of ours and I'm glad that we're going to stay in touch and I'm curious about learning more about um their ideas of the other nominees for example and also the other award winners. I'm looking forward to reading more about what progress they made in their innovations and initiatives So networking is a key um to social innovation. And I think with that award ceremony, we made contact with so many interesting peoples in people in different countries and I'm looking forward to staying in touch with them.
00:17:58
Speaker
um me at least quite a big motivator is that those ceremonies like this or any kind of um meetups with social innovators, um they are physical. um So you see each other and you um you have the chance to be taken out of your daily grind and say, okay, let's engage, even though I don't know anything probably about your um yeah specific sector. i um I can relate to the purpose, like you said, and that's ah that's a big driver, so um I don't know how realistic that is, but
00:18:38
Speaker
some chances for alumni meetups in different regions or something, I think could also be something um um to so think about.
Aspiring Innovators: Encouragement and Advice
00:18:48
Speaker
What would you recommend to any person that is ah willing and thinking to begin as a social innovator? ah So um what would I recommend to a person who wants to become a social entrepreneur? I would congratulate the person very first. um um I think it is ah um an interesting journey to become a social entrepreneur and it depends on the history of that person and also to the um sector or area that he or she comes from. For example, let's say the person has a history of the education sector, then it might be
00:19:37
Speaker
easier for example to fit into the social entrepreneur world than for example if you have been a banker before. So um I think it takes courage to to go that path and sometimes it's also very useful to have more like the um economy point of view when you're starting a new idea. Sometimes it Sometimes it can be a disadvantage as well. I think it's going to be an interesting and maybe long path. And you need people who support you, innovative people and ideas. You need critical friends sometimes. um So you should always invite critical friends um to help you think outside the box. I think you can do it.
00:20:31
Speaker
I want to double down on something we said before the um that I learned in in Babu um being mainly an advocacy group is that social innovation is super, super important to get things going, um to make people look at social issues from a new perspective and to find solutions, but but also to make decision-makers aware of that, look, I gave you the solution. Up to a certain point, it's up to you to scale that solution up and institutionalize it because it's it's the responsibility of a society as a whole to solve inequality and um social um situations such as homelessness.
00:21:23
Speaker
collectively and it shouldn't be up to social innovators alone. um So, ah yes, I would say um have your eye on opportunities to scale up your ideas and to bring them into um into the institutions. After finishing the recording, I had a small exchange with Gerhard who explained to me with precision what scaling and institutionalizing meant to house in first Austria. They built a concept that was tried and tested internationally and in Austria for many years. As a consequence, they built a network and got funding from the Austrian Federal Ministry of Social Affairs. That's a continued support for which they are very, very grateful.
Luca Petrovic: Open Data and Healthcare in Slovenia
00:22:31
Speaker
how to use public data for the benefit of the people. In the following section, Luca will share details about his winning project and personal path. I'm sure he will inspire you to think about many creative ideas for solving social issues using available and valuable data. Hi, my name is Luca Petrovic. I'm a Slovenian. I was born in Novomesto, but right now I live in Maribor. I'm a junior doctor just off my medical school, trying to reach a conclusion on which residency to take.
00:23:09
Speaker
So I'm trying a lot of new things. And during my studies of medicine, I was already um drawn to open data initiatives and volunteering. So that's how I found Sledilyk. This is the the tracker of scientific society. Of course, there then it was only ah tracker or Sledilyk in Slovenian. ah We first tried, the the team was first working on ah collecting the data on COVID, um how the vaccinations are going, what's the status of the infections. ah Once everything there was done and automated and the project
00:23:53
Speaker
reached the the the plateau it was aiming for. We started thinking about new projects to partake, and that's where I found my calling, as well as the other ah team members um with whom we started building the platform for the Zdroniki Picasso d'Inic Picahorica. So now we have to go to the first question. That is, why did you start a social innovator and or entrepreneurs? So personally, I was really drawn into the project work that we were doing at the Tracker Scientific Society. And at that time, ah we just saw a lot of media traction going to the people not being able to find a personal doctor. So a GP they could go to for their non-acute problems.
00:24:43
Speaker
um At that time I was also without my own GP in Maribor where I was studying and this was um an area close to me as I was studying medicine. um So that's how we I joined the project and soon enough a lot of people joined. There were more than 40 project members whom all had someone ah who maybe wasn't able to go to the the to the primary care physician or wasn't or just wanted to help the general public.
00:25:19
Speaker
as we saw that there was no good source for an average Joe ah to find a doctor on primary care. So that's a dentist OBGYN or GP or pediatrician. So we started aggregating this data that was already open source. We then ah noticed quite soon into the project that the data was not very accurate. So using um whereas using our visitors, crowdsourcing the data, we started to improve the accuracy. that that That was the main thing and people really started using it. So there's a lot of monthly visitors, even now, after a few years of the project going.
00:26:02
Speaker
ah And we were very proud of that. There's a lot of people that were able to find ah primary care ah in Slovenia because of our platform. So what what can you tell me about your personal motivation? Of course. and well I always liked to do research and I always liked playing around with the data. So for me personally, this was just another another problem that needed solving. I think that was the case for many of our team members. So personally, I really liked the challenge. There was a lot of going ah back and forward with the authorities within our team with different stakeholders.
00:26:45
Speaker
For me personally, I really like the challenge of going back and forward with the different stakeholders and seeing over time that with hard work we can create good results. So that brought me a lot of happiness and content with the volunteer work I'm doing. um So personally, that was my main motivation. I really liked the challenge and I really liked the results that we were getting over time. So switching to the second question then, ah what are you learning from running this ah initiative?
00:27:22
Speaker
Well, so ah leading a project like that, working with so many different persons, working with so many different personalities, that's one of the main aspects that's really different that's really interesting to me. I really like getting to know a lot of different people and learning how to work with that. I'm still on the beginning of my career, so I'm just feeling around what might be a good career choice for me. I really like working with people. So that was one of the main things I really liked. I enjoyed on this project. So ah working with people and learning new things. um So when I started with this project, I was really and not doing any coding, but over time, over years, I so started picking up ah some some of the code, not on the production, but just learning and improving every day.
00:28:21
Speaker
um But I think the main thing for me was a large ah large group of of people that I managed managed to meet, a lot of doors opening for me and for the other team members that maybe before that would be closed. So that was a really interesting journey for us to take. We really met a lot of people and learned a lot of new things about each other, about ourselves and about the system, which is really complex. And only if you start working on it, you get to learn ah how it works. Did you get feedback from the users of the platform?
Feedback on Luca's Project: Impact and Challenges
00:29:00
Speaker
Yeah, we got a lot of emails. A lot of people thanked us. A lot of people ah were also angry at us because the data was not correct. So it took a lot of explaining to different to different persons how the data accuracy is actually not on our side, it's on the governmental side. So there was a lot of feedback going in. ah We also, I think, got some donation. donations from from the people that found the doctors. ah So all in all, it was a very positive experience. ah I still think there's a lot of people that could benefit from knowing our website and still don't know about it. But I think just through the word of mouth ah and showing that we have quality data and good user experience,
00:29:48
Speaker
we are getting new users or new person searching for primary care every day. That's fantastic and that's a great way of getting into the third question. That is what did you treasure from the social memory community and award ceremony? Yes. So if you asked me a year ago, I've never heard about social Marie. It was only later on when my my friend from Maribor, Markov Bruman, ah told me about this. And he suggested that we should apply it that maybe
00:30:25
Speaker
there's a chance for us to get into the final selection. So we did. And I really enjoyed going to Vienna, meeting a lot of new people, doing the workshops, and just seeing how ah colorful the community of all the social innovators is. I really think there's ah there' is an up opportunity for ah people like us and project projects like ours to be connecting to each other. ah ah In the end, we all have similar problems, and we are all ah trying different paths to ah resolve them. So just sharing our experiences, exchanging our contacts, I think that was the main and the most important thing of Social Marie.
00:31:18
Speaker
ah after ah After educating myself about Social Marie and how of an important organization it is, I really appreciated the award even more because we finally got some international recognition that we can show and build our work on ah in the future trying new things and trying to socially innovate new products.
00:31:55
Speaker
Pause for a second and tell me what comes to mind when you hear the name of this winning initiative.
Jana Ersnojnik: Journalism and Mentorship
00:32:03
Speaker
The Incubator for Future Investigative Reporters. I don't know about you, but I see flashes of Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Who, and young defendants of democracy bashing what doesn't work anymore. Meet Jana, as she tells us more about what they really do, why they do it, and how it feels to rock. I am Jana Ersnojnik. Currently I'm working as editor of Raskinkavanya.si. This is a fact-checking project of non-profit organization Ostro from Slovenia.
00:32:44
Speaker
ah We are basically doing fact checking and at the same time mentoring young journalists in fact checking, critical thinking, like basic skills of journalism um and also like ethical part of journalism. Jana, can you tell us more about your beginnings? How did you start? ah When I was deciding what to study there was just too much different stuff that were was interesting to me. um I knew I wanted to do something that could make a difference and I knew that like
00:33:30
Speaker
I liked and I was good at telling different stories or just like presenting something, um even though it might not show by me saying like, like, like and talking in English right now, but okay. um So I just knew that I wanted to make a difference and that I'm interested in a lot of different things. So I didn't want to study something really specific. And I thought that journalism would be like perfect because I can write, I can talk, I can ah present on TV if I want to. um And at the same time, I can focus on different topics um like politics,
00:34:15
Speaker
culture, democracy, everything I would i would want to. um But to be honest, ah through studying, I became worried that this is not what I want to do.
Ostro's Mission: Combating Misinformation
00:34:31
Speaker
I was also working in some other Slovenian media, and I realized that journalism is not what I thought it would be, so like honest. fight for democracy, truth and things like that. ah But a lot of the times it's fighting for clicks, fighting for money, fighting to survive.
00:35:02
Speaker
writing in a way that some each interest or political groups would like, even though you don't want to do that. Or no nobody tells you you should write it in a way, but because you have to work in so quickly, you don't have time, they're they're asking you to write five articles or 10 articles per day. It just becomes like bad journalism. um And this is where Ostrom comes in. Austra is, as I said, a non-profit center for for investigative journalism in the Andriatic region. um And it was basically formed out of realization that there is that the space for quality journalism in the whole region, and especially Slovenia is shrinking.
00:35:54
Speaker
that traditional media is basically trapped in their own business models where they're asking for clicks, producing relentless stream of like shocking stories, sometimes even disinformation. And because of that, the audience has lost all trust in journalism and see journalism as part of the problem, which it is. So Ostro, wants to be at least part of a solution to to the this problem. um So we're doing nurturing investigative and data journalism, but one of our main missions is also mentoring and nurturing future generations of journalists. ah This is where Oroskrin Kavanee, so our fact-checking project comes in.
00:36:50
Speaker
um It has now been running for five years and since the beginning we fact-checked more than 600 statements made by Slovenian politicians, influencers, sadly also a lot of the times mainstream media. ah So we are fighting this information with fact-checked information um and also by informing public um about the media and politicians that are sharing this information all the time.
00:37:24
Speaker
um since like I have to go back when I was working in other Slovenian media. um there I basically didn't have a mentor. There was no one to take time to talk through talked through my articles, talk through my mistakes, to tell me why something has to be corrected, why something Could be changed to be better. It was just changed and then published um and There were even cases where like the messages that I got from the editors were wrong ones um to explain myself
00:38:07
Speaker
My titles were changed to be less informative and more clickbaity. I was praised for my articles when I got clicks and not when I took time, called a lot of experts, explained something really well and really like in a truthful and or holistic way. um So if I weren't thinking critically, I think I might become like a bad journalist because of lack of mentorship.
Jana's Journey: From Student to Editor
00:38:41
Speaker
So this is why we believe that mentorship in journalism is really important. And this is what we are trying to do with Raskin Khabania project, which is andco in incubator for future investigative reporters.
00:38:55
Speaker
we invite young journalists or students of journalism or even students of some other stuff to work in our projects, ah where they are basically learning by doing fact checks. um And when they are doing that, we give them mentorship. So we really take time to explain why they have to change something, to explain why, for example, someone is not the best source or something is not the best source for their story and so on. And through time they learn about basic journalism, which I believe fact-checking is basic skill in journalism. um And they also internalize Ostro's
00:39:43
Speaker
ethical code of principles are high professional standards and when they show that they did that, that they are skillful enough, we also include them in our investigative stories, investigative projects. um So they get a chance to learn, they get a chance to have a mentor, um to up their skills, also in data journalism, in more technical parts of journalism, ah and this is basically our goal.
00:40:19
Speaker
I can say that I am a product of this incubator because I started working with Raskin Kavanee as a student of journalism. um And after a year and a half, I also started doing some research for like bigger investigations. Then I also did my own investigative stories. um After some time I became deputy editor of Rescringkavenie, so I also started learning about editing and leading people and mentoring people. And now I've become editor of Rescringkavenie.
00:41:02
Speaker
um And there's a plan that in, I don't know, a year, ah the generation generations will swap and our younger colleague will become editor. um And I'll only be focusing on investigative journalism. Would you call yourself a social innovator or a social entrepreneur? ah how would I would not call myself social innovator. just because I'm not the one who thought about this amazing project. It was it was so our founder, Anushka, so I'm currently employee, which is of course helping make this thing come true. um but But yeah, I'm happy to to be doing um something I believe in. um I think if
00:41:58
Speaker
I am making change through mentoring young generations who will also be making change. um I mean, maybe I'm too humble, I don't know, um because I've had some investigative stories that had some impact. For example, there was a um story about illegal car dumps um in in a town in Slovenia. There was an illegal car dump ah just a few meters away from the environment inspector office um and local people were
00:42:40
Speaker
talking about that to the inspectors, but they just didn't do anything. um And then I started to investigate it and I found a lot of things that went wrong. And after they got my questions, they finally started. So the inspector started the investigation and they found that it was in fact illegal and really dangerous to to um water supplies. And so on. um So, yeah, I guess I guess you could say that my work has had some some positive impact. In my native tongue, we talk about the spirit of entrepreneurship as a drive that makes people face challenges and embark on adventures. It feels like curiosity. The result of following the spirit of entrepreneurship is personal and professional growth. I think that's what you do, Jean.
00:43:40
Speaker
In that process, you also achieve such social change and positive impact. Yeah, thanks. Maybe I was just thinking about this word in a more capitalistic way that it's usually used for. So I was like, I'm not that kind of person, and but yeah. That's a common misunderstanding. Most publicity tends to focus on entrepreneurs as startup founders. And I believe that's just part of the whole concept. Let's continue with the following question. What are you learning from participating in this initiative?
00:44:16
Speaker
One thing I'm um learning is that making good journalism in a non-profit sector and independent organization and at the same time in a sustainable way so you don't get burnt out is really hard. um for almost since the beginning to a few months before now, we were doing everything ourselves. um And what I mean is we were doing journalism, we were doing marketing PR, we were writing tenders to get funding, ah we were managing our social media, we were
00:44:58
Speaker
We were doing ah even like so when there there was something wrong in the office and you have to like make calls. And you know what I mean? We were doing everything ourselves while trying to make hardcore investigations. And that is really hard because you have to be focused when you're doing such things. um And also I believe that people who are um motivated um and have experience in marketing or writing tenders are going to be better at it than someone who is motivated to do journalism.
00:45:34
Speaker
So um this is why it is hard, but we're really lucky it because um we finally got some administrative employees who are now helping with but such things. But I believe that in the future, we would need even more so we can really focus just on journalism and mentorship. um And also regarding that sustainability part, I believe there is a problem of funding, where most of the funding is focused just on projects. So we can we can get money to make a great project.
00:46:15
Speaker
But they're usually like big things that we work on for more months. But what drives us or drives me is little stories. Like there's your friend or just a random person that has a problem with the system and calls you and tells you what is wrong. And then you go to investigate their stories, to investigate what bothers them and make a story out of it. um And I think this is what matters the most and like what what fills my cup basically, but there's not funding for such stories because they happen. You you can tell that some you you will have a story in half a year or you will have 10 of such stories in half a year and also like
00:47:07
Speaker
founders don't like such projects. So this this is this is a problem which two with we we with which we are dealing with. um But yeah, I'm also learning that there is hope for journalism.
Future of Journalism: Youthful Enthusiasm and Dedication
00:47:28
Speaker
um And I believe it is in young, inspiring and dedicated people that I'm working with. um It's really nice to see students come without any previous experience or previous idea of journalism in practice.
00:47:46
Speaker
ah and they are like, this is this is just the way I imagined it, or this is how I thought it it it was going to be, or if they have previous experience, they usually share my thoughts, so in a way that they couldn't do the journalism that they wanted to do in other media and they can do it now here. um So I think this is like a more optimistic ah thing that I'm learning by running Raskin Kavanagh project. What do you think about awards like social Marie? Getting awarded by social Marie was really, really nice experience. um And I believe that such things are really important firstly, because I think that in non-profit sector,
00:48:40
Speaker
there's usually not enough time and money to celebrate and to award people who are working hard. So getting an award is like a chance to celebrate, to think about what what we've done, um to like to celebrate ourselves and our work. um And it is also, of course, good for publicity. um Because in our example, sometimes we publish really big and great investigations and other media media, mainstream media don't republish us. I don't know why, maybe there are some interest groups or maybe they are just
00:49:26
Speaker
PT because we fact-checked them in the in the past, so they don't republish us. But when we got the award, everyone was publishing about us. So it was really great so that also the people who are not don't know us yet can get to know us and see what we do and see our work, which is what we want to do.
00:50:03
Speaker
After listening to these fantastic social innovators, what did you get for you? What change can you introduce in your path? Which new questions do you need answers for?
00:50:17
Speaker
After interviewing disempowered and inspiring inspiring individuals, I learned that social innovation can happen as part of an existing organization, a new one, or an individual initiative. I learned that scaling up doesn't necessarily mean expanding all around, that means creating a network of partners that can help our ventures be more sustainable and impactful for longer periods of time. It is wonderful to see so many people invested in the vision of making our civilization more effective as a platform for thriving individuals and communities. It is also encouraging to see that any aspiring social innovator can find a place in the public or private sectors, and even as a small, fresh new organization. There is something for every kind of personality and risk tolerance. Salute for all of them.