Youth Social Entrepreneurs Hold The Key to Sustainable Change in Africa

Rules are made to be broken, so some say. But unlike skipping school or sneaking into the house after the curfew, some rules bind our hands so tightly that the chain leaves a scarring tattoo.

We have tried to break the invisible links of poverty in Africa for decades with aid, relief, and development but as Sabrina Natasha Premji described in a recent blog post, such interventions to  “save Africa” more often than not, spark a disastrous domino effect, however well intended.

So how can we move beyond merely dictating their needs, relying on our “us versus them” attitude to solving extreme poverty?

Even though I joined StartSomeGood only a couple months ago, it has been an incredible journey thus far empowering courageous risk-takers and off-the-beaten-path rule-breakers start some good. Co-founders, Alex Budak and Tom Dawkins, created a crowdfunding platform for social entrepreneurs because they believed that these impact-preneurs are the most capable people to uplift the members within their own community and create long-term change.

As such, we are doubly excited to launch two campaigns focused on Africa – with a third on the way – to help these young, creative leaders ignite their ideas, together! All three are part of the YouthActionNet fellowship, which provides young changemakers with ideas, resources, and connections to other like-minded people around the world, ultimately strengthening the global peer-to-peer support system. The younger generation’s instinct for rebellion might be the only thing that could shatter the status quo and ignite a path towards a more prosperous future.\

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Clem is currently helping social entrepreneurs ignite their ideas at StartSomeGood. He had also volunteered at Ashoka's Youth Venture in Minneapolis.