Social Entrepreneurs & Climate Solutions in Afghanistan

Written by Caroline / 29 June 2009 / Read Caroline's latest blog entries.

The world of climate solutions, it seems, gets smaller every day. This past week, Deepa Gupta met one of the creators of the remarkable Afghan Reality TV show called "Fikr wa Talash," or “Dream and Achieve," a show on which Afghan social entrepreneurs compete before a team of local business owners for a prize of $ 20,000. The winners -- all innovative climate solutions entrepreneurs.

Faizul Haq Moshkani, a father of nine from Kandahar, won the grand prize (left) with his plastic-recycling business plan and many of the other ideas involved similarly profitting from waste or adding value to environmental services.

More than a million people watched the show each week, making it one of the most popular shows in the nation, challenging social norms and business convention. A government official was sixth to be voted off, well before the far less privileged runner-up, a female entrepreneur who was exiled from her village for having been seen on television. Two of the top five finalists were women, shocking and exciting in a country where women were allowed to work only seven years ago.

Reality television and soap operas are now being recognized as a vialbe and effective way to reach people, converting genres that sap energy and intellect to media that can actually convey climate solutions much more effectively! This project, like ours, was supported by public and private organizations: USAID Afghanistan, ToloTV, the American University in Afghanistan, and the Export Promotion Agency of Afghanistan (EPAA). The show centered on the six finalists, who worked with the USAID Afghanistan Small and Medium Enterprise Development (ASMED) program to build and improve their buiness plans for small and medium enterprises. Everyone left with a better plan and access to new funders.

I found every bit of this last quote inspiring, from the Tolo TV Site:

"Social entrepreneurs start businesses that are practical, innovative and sustainable. They look to benefit society, especially the marginalized and poor. Rather than sit back and wait, leaving the problems to the government or foreign donors, social entrepreneurs take matters into their own hands because they are determined to change the status-quo and implement their business--despite the risks involved. Social entrepreneurs are leaders and role models. They prove that citizens who channel their passion into action can do almost anything. There is nothing as powerful as a new idea in the hands of someone who can make a good business and improve the lives of others..."