For businesses, transparency means the full, accurate, and timely disclosure of information. Being transparent—about progress and shortcomings—makes it more likely that assets will be accurately valued and allows prospective clients to see what they will get, before they actually do. Gray Matters Capital (GMC) in its 3rd Leadership Conference, made an attempt to reinstate this very fact among the Affordable Private Schools (APS) sector in Hyderabad last week.

However, spreading this message in schools that are working with low income communities and helping them understand the meaning and importance of transparency is a great challenge. There is a need to help school entrepreneurs improve their environments. But in the absence of any industry standards and with a current lack of information about the APS sector, comparison becomes difficult and so does the identification of changes required.

The three pillars of transparency are open communication, accountability, and measurability.  With transparency comes honesty, leading to value. GMC’s rating tool, developed in partnership with M-CRIL (Microfinance Rating International Limited) for rating Affordable Private Schools, encompasses the third pillar of transparency – measurability – and in turn triggers the need for the other two. The tool not only covers the academic achievements and infrastructure of the schools, but also looks at the learning environment and governance aspects.

The ratings tool can be used by any of the key players in the Affordable Private Schools ecosystem – schools, banks, educational investors, donors, parents, and educational service providers.  But, in reality, the rating tool will largely be used by the schools, in order to get themselves benchmarked against others. Hence, it is most likely that schools will have to get themselves rated, and they will bear the cost of the tool.

Though the appetite of such schools for this tool still needs to be tested, it is a step in the right direction. The tool can not only help the schools raise finance but also provides a competitive platform and hence motivation to perform better.

India has a population of 1.2 billion, with 30% of people below the age of 15. What does it mean for the world? It means that whatever we do has a large scale impact on everything, and the majority of future leaders of this world will be from India. So, ensuring that we create a lively and competitive environment for our future leaders through education becomes part of our responsibility.

We are happy to be teaming up as a media partner with Villgro for their UNCONVENTION this week in Chennai. As part of the Villgro Awards, Beyond Profit is in the running in the Media Category. We’re up against DARE and India Today for the media house that covers social entrepreneurship the best. Wish us luck!

Meera Seshadri from Villgro shares her views on the importance of building the rural development ecosystem and why the UNCONVENTION will be a pathbreaking event.

It’s quite a heavy-handed statement to call your first-ever conference the ‘UNCONVENTION.’ Talk about pressure. The expectations and hopes that lie in the details of the day, not to mention in the days that follow, are paramount. But that’s what makes Villgro so special. We’re ready to take on the social entrepreneurship and innovation sectors in a BIG way – we don’t want to take baby steps, we want to make huge efforts to shed light on the ecosystem in a way that has never been done before. And we hope we can create a revolution.

Villgro is bringing something new to the table with the UNCONVENTION. Though there have been numerous forums in India where either innovation or social entrepreneurship have been discussed and knowledge has been shared, there has been no single forum that has addressed both of these ideas – and has brought in the most important element – the rural poor. India houses 70% of her population in her villages. Villgro, with its 9 years of experience in linking innovation, social entrepreneurship, and the rural poor, realizes that they cannot be left behind in the revolution. » Continue reading “The Unconvention”

“Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.” -Robert F. Kennedy

Last weekend, I came across a few young people who, like Robert Kennedy, believe that through small acts, they can redefine this generation. In India, a country still riddled by the barnacles of a caste system unwilling to let go, seeing young people working together across class to make change proffered hope for a new India.

While waiting for the monsoon to arrive in an auditorium in Mumbai, I met a series of social entrepreneurs, part of Ashoka’s Youth Venture program, who have taken on the responsibility to change our world, with perseverance and steady energy.

Eighteen year old Shubhangi has started an initiative to inform her community about child sexual abuse. Monika is 15, and raising awareness of substance addiction among young people in her neighborhood. Prabal has started an alternative magazine called SLAP. Prashant is sending drop-outs back to school.

Each of these projects is led by a young person (15-24) and has produced measurable results. 18 conversations about alcohol abuse. 12 drop outs re-enrolled in school. 4 girls returned to school.

As I watched the video about a young woman helping send girls back to school, I caught myself in a wave of cynicism. Four girls, I thought. It’s quite a small number. But then, I tried to imagine the girls. In a classroom. Learning. Playing. Reading aloud. Proving their point. » Continue reading “Blurring Social Divides”

Last week, over 400 social entrepreneurs, social investors, and socially motivated types converged to talk shop in Bombay (that’s Mumbai for you progressives). The Sankalp Social Enterprise and Investment Forum brought people from across India, and some very committed folks from abroad (who we hope used some sort of carbon off-setting system), to discuss how we can create inclusive wealth for those living at the base of the pyramid.
» Continue reading “Bridges to Entry”