Paragon Fellowship 2009 Asia Pacific’s most inspiring young entrepreneurs and social Changemakers
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Table of Content Welcome Letter
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6
About FYSE
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Introduction Fellowship
9
Selection criteria
12
Jury 2009
Statistics fellowship 2009
12 10 11 12
Fellows 2009 Bangladesh Cambodia
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China
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Hong Kong
15
India
16
Indonesia
25
Nepal
26
Pakistan
28
Philippines
30
Singapore Mentors
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Partners & Sponsors
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Asia’s most inspiring young entrepreneurs and social Changemakers
Bangladesh
Cambodia
China
Hong Kong
India
Indonesia
Nepal
Pakistan
Singapore
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Philippines
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Welcome Letter It is with great honor we announce the first batch of Asia Pacific Future 100 fellows. Young entrepreneurs like these are a rare exception in Asia Pacific; many young people dream -they dream big- but ultimately they rarely act and it is only if we move from dreaming to actions that can we turn dreams into reality. Our selected fellows have done just that, they are still the exception and many of them are exceptional. Being part of the Paragon fellowship is a great honor of their achievements as young entrepreneurs so far, as well as increasing expectations on them to achieve much more in the years to come. We clearly believe they are capable of achieving more, we believe we can help them achieve more, and we also believe we can work with them to encourage millions of other young people in Asia Pacific to both dream, and to turn their dreams into reality, just like our fellows. This year the Foundation for Youth Social Entrepreneurship received 560 Nominations for the Paragon fellowship program, The selection into the fellowship is a once in a lifetime opportunity for young entrepreneurs to network and to initiate collaborations and cooperations with other young entrepreneurs in the region, to access capacity building and training to progress their personal and professional development, and at the same time, to inspire more young people to follow their entrepreneurial dreams. We have initiated a diverse coalition of organizations from the region who have recognized the importance of young entrepreneurs for the creation of jobs, and for economic and social development in our countries. This coalition and our network of experienced business leaders and entrepreneurs from all over the region will support fellows over the course of the year. We want to thank all our partners and sponsors for their dedication and support for the program and we are looking forward to fostering youth entrepreneurship throughout the region in the future.
Andrea Krause Executive Director Foundation for Youth Social Entrepreneurship
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Foreword It is a critical time to promote youth social entrepreneurship. The world at the moment houses the largest number of youth in its history. Unfortunately, majority of these young people are living in deplorable conditions. They are facing complex challenges. Youth Social Entrepreneurship is the best response to the enormous challenges affecting millions of young people around the world. It is the best response to the enormous global challenge of unemployment affecting millions of people. Youth social entrepreneurship is a growing alternative for young people to become self-reliant and contributing members of the society. A growing number of young people are taking-up the challenge of starting their own social enterprises. We should also remember that youth social entrepreneurship is a means not an end. It helps young people to acquire skills, confidence, connections, status, experience, knowledge and better understanding of their self and the problems being faced by their communities. Despite of the fact that youth social entrepreneurship is gaining momentum everywhere, it is still being misunderstood. The general understanding of youth social entrepreneurship is to provide services to young people rather than encouraging young people to create or provide innovative and affordable services to local communities. New concepts and ideas are introduced all the time. Some never gain attention and recognition. Some gain a lot of popularity and attention. Youth Social Entrepreneurship has the potential to continue to gain momentum because it is very well-led many young social entrepreneurs. These young people have provided exemplary leadership and solid evidence to the effectiveness of the idea of youth social entrepreneurship. FYSE is one of those institutions which have emerged as a change champion. It is playing a lynchpin role in filling the huge vacuum exiting in the area of youth social entrepreneurship in our region. It has provided hope, opportunities, platform, connections and resources to young people in a short-period of time. It has demonstrated that when young people are provided opportunities they have the capacity to transform themselves from victims to social entrepreneurs. It has taken several exciting initiatives to build the momentum of youth social entrepreneurship in the Asia and to promote an entrepreneurial culture among youth. I am particularly very impressed with the Paragon fellowship of FYSE. It has provided a hope, structure and opportunity to young people to showcase their ideas, work, accomplishments and challenges. I would like to encourage young people living in Asia Pacific to apply for this fellowship program and be part of the global movement of youth social entrepreneurship.
Ali Raza Khan Founder and CEO - YES Network Pakistan
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Foundation for Youth Social Entrepreneurship (FYSE) Unlocking Potential. Igniting Ideas. Empowering Actions. The Foundation for Youth Social Entrepreneurship (FYSE) is a regional organization with the aim to inspire and empower young people to become entrepreneurs. By building an entrepreneurial environment for young people we support them to realize their ideas, to make a positive impact on their society and to gain valuable soft skills while doing so. We believe young people in Asia have the passion and potential to succeed as entrepreneurs, all they need is further encouragement and support to turn ideas into successful ventures. By providing a range of tailored support including our regional youth entrepreneurship campaign and entrepreneurship training that is youthful, exciting and dynamic, we aim to inspire youth to take actions now, no matter how big or small their actions might be.
Vision Asia’s young people are inspired and empowered to change their community for good.
Motto Unlocking Potential. Igniting Ideas. Empowering Actions.
Our Uniqueness Our unique positioning arises as we not only support already entrepreneurial youth as other entrepreneurship programs, we take one crucial step back and aim to stimulate entrepreneurial activities and inspire youth on a large scale to become entrepreneurs. The only program in Asia focusing on raising awareness and inspiring young people to become entrepreneurs on a large scale. The only network celebrating and developing youth entrepreneurs, both commercial entrepreneurs and social Changemakers, regionally. The only community network of youth entrepreneurs from Asia, to mobilize peer-to-peer action learning and the generation of business relationships. The only network, which provides resources and training without requiring membership in partner organizations or institutions - therefore open to everyone interested. A program that catalyzes on the collective strengths of various organizations incl. Media, Youth Federations, Chambers of Commerce, Universities and NGOs to collectively make a difference to youth entrepreneurs in the region
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship 2009 Inspiring and nurturing the next generation of young social Changemakers and Entrepreneurs in Asia Pacific today. The Paragon fellowship draws 100 young entrepreneurs from across Asia Pacific, and supports them throughout a one-year fellowship. The programs main goal is nurture these young social and commercial entrepreneurs to have a greater impact on their surrounding communities, and to promote them as positive role models for today's youth.
EMPOWERING YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS : FELLOWSHIP MENTORSHIP
NETWORKING
VIRTUAL LEARNING
ACCESS TO FINANCE
More than 50 leading business and nonprofit leaders will advise and mentor fellows on personal and management issues.
Fellows will build a strong network of young entrepreneurs and business leaders regionally and globally.
Virtual conferences and podcast will enable fellows to tap into global leaders‘ knowledge to develop their business and themselves
A network of investors will ensure long-term access to capital.
Paragon profile
The profile of the Paragon fellows includes young entrepreneurs and social Changemakers of max. 30 years of age who are an inspiration to other young people. They are young people who dared to stride out by setting up their own business, social enterprise, NGO or sustainable project. They have overcome challenges by realizing their vision and believing in themselves.
Components of the program Website: a dedicated animated and youthful website will enable young people to get to know the stories of fellows incl. videos from the ground, photos, blog updates Young people who are inspired to take actions will find extensive online resources about available entrepreneurship courses in Asia Pacific Campus Tour: fellows commit to speak at least twice during the fellowship year to young people at youth conferences, universities etc so that we and our fellows reach out to young people instead of expecting that they will find us. Network: We connect young fellows with investors, VCs, Foundations etc for further financial support Profiling: we will promote fellows via our media and supporting partner Online Workshops: during the one-year fellowship fellows will benefit from podcast and online workshops to improve their knowledge and business management skills Attend the Asia Change Catalyst Conference to meet other young entrepreneurs, and to attend leadership and capacity building workshops. (Tentative date: July 2010)
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship 2009 Inspiring and nurturing the next generation of young social Changemakers and Entrepreneurs in Asia Pacific today. Key Nomination information: 1. 2.
3.
Nomination is open to everyone up to 30 years of age. The Paragon fellowship has a regional nomination process. Nominations are invited from: Mongolia, China, Japan, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines, Brunei, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Myanmar. At a minimum, the venture must must be operating for at least 12-month before nomination deadline.
Selection Criteria (total possible points = 100)
The following selection criteria apply to all nominees: 1. Personal Qualification (total points max. 30) 1.1. Leadership potential of the founder 1.2. Entrepreneurial characteristics incl. innovation, risk-taking, commitment 1.3. Strong passion and commitment for the venture 2. Entrepreneurial Qualification (total points max. 30) 2.1. Growth potential of project/business; 2.2. A clear vision for the venture 2.3. Continued record of achievements and progress 2.4. Did the entrepreneur define the venture’s niche? 2.5. Does the entrepreneur continuously improve the business idea? 2.6. An existing support network to sustain and grow the venture 2.7. Financial sustainability of the venture 2.8. Social impact of the ventur 2.9. The originality of the business/ project concept for his/her particular environment? 3. Role Model Qualification (total points max. 20) 3.1. A passion to share his/her experience and to work with youth 3.2. The ability to communicate effectively his/her story and venture history 4. External Qualification (total points max. 20) 1. The strength of endorsement The panel also considers: • The entrepreneur's age when the business was started; and • Any special challenges that had to be overcome
Jury • Julian Webb (Australia): Asia Region Facilitator for the World Bank’s infoDev Incubator Initiative; Director Business Innovation and Incubation Australia Inc. • Yvonne Yeung (Hong Kong): Founding Director and Vice-Chairperson; Hong Kong Social Entrepreneurship Forum • Dr. Meena Galliara (India): Professor Social Entrepreneurship at the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies Mumbai • Vivian Gee (Switzerland): Head of East Asia; Schwab Foundation • Ali Raza Khan (Pakistan): Country Representative; Youth Engagement Services (YES) Pakistan • Dixit Ajay (India): Visiting Senior Faculty; Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India • Nandan Kamath (India): Co-founder; GoSports India • Ryan Chapman (UK): Director; Leaders' Quest Foundation • Sameer Guglani (India): Founding Partner; Morpheus Venture Partners Page 10
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship 2009 Inspiring and nurturing the next generation of young social Changemakers and Entrepreneurs in Asia Pacific today.
Country of Origin - Fellowship Applications 2009/10
Education level - Fellowship Applications 2009/10
16% 13%
18% 56%
8%
1% 3%
High School
Master
3% 3% 3% 3%
8%
11%
Bachelor
7%
Postgraduate
49%
27
17
520
Average age of applicants
Countries represented
Nominations
Bangladesh Indonesia Phillipines
Cambodia Malaysia Singapore
Greater China Nepal Others
India Pakisan
“We support the Paragon fellowship as this program consists with our mission to cultivate business leaders who will contribute to creative change and innovation in Asia and Japan.” (GLOBIS)
"Wadhwani Foundation and NEN support this effort because we believe the economic greatness of a country is fueled by the strength and vitality of its entrepreneurs.” (Romesh Wadhwani, Chairman Wadhwani Foundation)
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship 2009 Inspiring and nurturing the next generation of young social Changemakers and Entrepreneurs in Asia Pacific today. 28%
As a young entrepreneurs in the program fellows are an exceptions to the norm by boldly starting their own business, NGO or social enterprise. Their selection in the Paragon fellowship highlights their success as young entrepreneur and their potential to deliver more results and impact in the future.
Social Venture
Non- Profit
For- Profit
However, as young entrepreneurs they are faced by various challenges:
Perceived Barriers for start-up management lack of finance; fund-raising Team-building, qualified staff society's mentality, cultural barriers lack of experience, business related skills institutional barriers family opposition, personal issues customers' outreach product/service development; maintain business focus volunteer recruitment overall political and economic situation limited internet access lack of infrastructure, technical resources absence of best practices to emulate other 0
15
30
45
60
Number of answers (multiple answers possible) (Data from questionnaire among Paragon fellows 2009)
Industry Representation
Throughout the fellowship fellows will benefit from a learning environment that will provide them with an opportunity to tackle those challenges with the help of your mentors, peers and various courses.
4%4%
DEVELOPMENT GOALS: 4% 17% FELLOWSHIP ENTREPRENEUR Develop the skills and knowledge of fellows to increase their personal effectiveness and efficiency as an entrepreneur.
4% 6%
+
VENTURE
COMMUNITY
Increase brand recognition, access to capital and operational performance of fellows businesses
Increase impact on the community.
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Bangladesh “I am entrepreneur because I wanted to change my society and for me social entrepreneurship provided the perfect platform.” Name: Ejaj Ahmad Age: 28 Country: Bangladesh Venture: Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center (BYLC) Focus: Youth development Website: www.bylc.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to bring an institutional shape of indigenous knowledge especially on agriculture.” Name: Faisal Islam Age: 29 Venture: Padma Research and Development Organization Company: Social venture Focus: Agriculture Website n/a
“I am an entrepreneur because enterprise is the starting point of social development.” Name: Taslima Mishu Rahman Age: 29 Venture: Media Arts and Technology Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: Media Website: www.PURPLEonline.net
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Cambodia “I am an entrepreneur because I believe the old paradigm of charity and aid work needs to make way for the adoption of business-like approaches within the development sector.” Name: Allison Hoffman Age: 26 Venture: The Pari Project Company: Social venture Focus: Consulting Website http://www.thepariproject.com
Name: Chab Vannkunn Age: 28 Country: Cambodia Venture: Yasmine Lodge Focus: Tourism & Hospitality Website: http://www.jasminelodge.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I follow my dreams.” Name: Kristin Hansen Age: 30 Country: Cambodia Venture: Soria Moria Boutique Hotel Focus: Tourism & Hospitality Website: http://www.thesoriamoria.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to live on my own strength, create lucks for myself, and provide jobs to people who needed it.” Name: Rithy Thul Age: 23 Venture: ProCambodia Company: for-profit Focus: Consulting Website: http://www.procambodia.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 China “I became an entrepreneur because I have a strong sense of my mission in the world from a very early age and I believe it is this that has informed the need to grow an organization.” Name: Caroline Watson Age: 31 Venture: Hua Dan Company: social venture Focus: Community development Website: http://www.hua-dan.org
“I am entrepreneur because I think it must be in my DNA. My father was an entrepreneur as well and I could not imagine any other work on earth that could make me feel as alive and fulfilled as entrepreneurship.” Name: Casey Wilson Age: 25 Venture: Wokai Company: social venture Focus: Finance Website: http://www.wokai.org
“I became an entrepreneur because I commit to supporting disadvantaged people and I take innovative actions in achieving great social impact.” Name: Lily Wang Age: 24 Venture: Chinese University Students Union for Health Company: non-profit Focus: Health Website: n/a
“I am an entrepreneur, because I enjoy the feeling of bearing a high level of risk to pursue opportunity and to make large influence and I also want to transfer the philanthropy in China through my own entrepreneurial efforts.” Name: Li Zhang Age: 25 Venture: Social Venture Group Company: social venture Focus: Consulting Website: www.socialventuregroup.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Hong Kong “I am entrepreneur because I'm "choice-aholic". I have a strong need to have autonomy, which is absent if employed. and believe I can paint my own future.” Name: Kwai Bun (Bonnie) Age: 30 Venture: ManyMany Creations Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: Design & Art Website: http://www.manymany.com.hk
“I am an entrepreneur because I enjoy an adventurous life.” Name: Wallis Wong Age: 30 Venture: 3 Dynamics (Asia) Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.3dynamics.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to make use of the talent of young people to contribute to society. ” Name: Kam Fan Wong Age: 22 Venture: Glomote Internaitonal Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: Consulting Website: http://www.glomote.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur, because this is the only and the best means to get to my goals of Impact, India and Innovation.” Name: Abhishek Humbad Age: 22 Country: India Venture; NextGen PMS Pvt. Ltd. Focus: Energy Website: http://www.nextgenpms.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I wanted to contribute to the betterment of my village!” Name: Amit Kataria Age: 23 Venture: Rose Computer Academy Company: Social venture Focus: IT Website: http://www.rosecomputeracademy.com
“I am an entrepreneur because it is the straight path towards my dreams. I want to achieve them and then encourage my people to achieve theirs'.” Name: Amit Singh Age: 25 Venture: Headstart Network Foundation Company: non- profit Focus: Youth development Website: http://www.headstart.in
“I became an entrepreneur because I was very uncomfortable with the status quo and could not blame others for not being able to change it.” Name: Arindam Dasgupta & Anirban Gupta & Nidhi Arora Age: 30 Venture: Dhriiti - The Courage Within Company: Social venture Focus: Education Website www.dhriiti.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I would like to spread a good message with my "Brush".” Name: Anjali Chandrashekar Age: 16 Company: non-profit Focus: Design & Art Website n/a Page 18
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because the Instablogs idea struck me, and I had to give it a shot.” Name: Ankit Maheshwari Age: 30 Venture: Instablogs Company: for-profit Focus: Media Website http://www.instablogs.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I think it has helped me to know myself better and it made it possible for me to positively affect the lives of people around me.” Name: Anshumaan Verma Age: 27 Venture: Beans & Intellect Company: for-profit Focus: Finance Website: http://www.beansindia.com
“I am entrepreneur because the dream I had could not be fulfilled with any regular job.” Name: Akhil Ravi Age: 24 Venture: Khelo Communications Private Limited Company: for- profit Focus: Sports Website: http://www.indiakhelo.com/
“I am an entrepreneur because its gives me opportunities.” Name: Ashish Kumar Age: 30 Venture: Tekriti Software Company: for- profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.tekritisoftware.com
“I am an entrepreneur because each day is an adventure and it was the easiest way to get a head start in my career.” Name: Biju Savindran Age: 26 Venture: SA Metroplots Pvt. ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: Property Website: http://www.metroplots.com Page 19
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because of the inherent need in me to bring about and experience change in the lives of many unfortunate children, given my country's social and economic conditions.” Name: Dr. Prahalathan KK Age: 26 Venture: Bhumi Company: NGO Focus: Education Website: http://www.bhumichennai.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to open opportunities for village communities by encouraging responsible tourism.” Name: Inir Pinheiro Age: 29 Venture: Grassroutes Company: non-profit Focus: Tourism & Hospitality Website: http://www.grassroutes.co.in
“I am an Entrepreneur because entrepreneurs are born to succeed.” Name: Irfan Alam Age: 29 Venture: SamaaN Foundation Company: social venture Focus: Community Development Website: http://www.sammaan.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I have always had a keen interest in working with the diverse community I grew up with and I wanted to apply design for social impact.” Name: Joshua Hishey Age: 29 Venture: Studio Alaya Company: social venture Focus: Design & Art Website: http://www.studioalaya.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I love the challenges it puts across for me to handle. I believe I can achieve my dreams by being an entrepreneur.” Name: Jyoti Ramnath Age: 28 Venture: CraftMyGift Company: for-profit Focus: Design & Art Website: http://www.CraftMyGift.com Page 20
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because I want to serve the people.” Name: Karthik Sunkara Company: social venture Focus: Agriculture Website: n/a
“I am an entrepreneur because I love the challenge to create value and to solve a problem. The flexibility to experiment and discover makes it an enjoyable ride.” Name: Keerthikiran Kiran Age: 22 Venture: Grassroutes Company: non-profit Focus: Youth Development Website: http://www.grassroutes.in
“I am an entrepreneur out of sheer lack on information regarding education opportunities.” Name: Ketan Deshpande Age: 21 Venture: FUEL Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website: http://www.studentsfuel.com
“We are entrepreneurs because it allows us to dream, take risks and be the change we wish to see.” Name: Madhusudan Agrawal and Meghna Agrawal Age: 30 Venture: MAM Movies Company: social venture Focus: Media Website: http://www.mammovies.com
“I am an entrepreneur because deep down I have always wanted to establish something for myself and others around me.” Name: Manish Sankla Age: 20 Venture: Yuva Ignited Minds Company: social venture Focus: Education Website: http://www.yuvaignitedminds.com Page 21
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am entrepreneur because I want to create a future for India’s rural youth by improving the employability situation in India’s rural hinterlands.” Name: Manoj Vasudevan Age: 25 Venture: Pilani BPO Private Ltd. Company: social venture Focus: IT Website: http://www.sourcepilani.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I love making my own decisions, taking risks and proving that nothing is impossible.” Name: Mathews Jose Age: 30 Venture: BlueLabs Technology Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.bltsol.com
“I am entrepreneur because I prefer to initiate good things rather than waiting for them to happen.” Name: Medhavi Gandhi Age: 23 Venture: Happy Hands Foundation Company: social venture Focus: Handicraft Website: http://www.happyhandsfoundation.info
“I am an entrepreneur because I decided to do something, instead of being a mere witness to the situation.” Name: Nanda Kumar D S Age: 29 Venture: JEET Company: non- profit Focus: Youth development Website: n/a
“I became an entrepreneur because I have vision and goal in my life and I want to develop myself along with my community.” Name: Ganapati Bhat Age: 29 Venture: Manuvikasa Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website: www.manuvikasa.blogspot.com Page 22
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because I always felt strongly for using technology for social good and NGO post was a small way to start doing that.” Name: Parul Gupta Age: 29 Venture: NGO Post Company: non-profit Focus: Media Website: http://ngopost.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I saw a social need that had to be addressed immediately and I felt that I could adequately address it by taking it up institutionally.” Name: Piyush Tewari Age: 29 Venture: SaveLife Foundation Company: non- profit Focus: Health Website: http://www.savelifefoundation.org
“I am an entrepreneur because I act, beyond talking. I am no more a part of the society that either creates the problem or just watches it. I am the part of a silent minority who are busy in doing something.” Name: Prabal Bhardwaj Age: 22 Venture: Media4Change Company: non-profit Focus: Media Website: http://www.media4change-slap.blogspot.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I took risks, believed in my idea and worked passionately to make my dream a reality even when all the odds seemed stacked against me.” Name: Radhika Nair & Rohini Fernandez Age: 29 Venture: Animal Angels Company: non- profit Focus: Health Website: http://www.animalangelsfoundation.com
“I am an entrepreneur because the idea just clicked with me.” Name: Raghu Khanna Age: 24 Venture: CashurDrive Company: for-profit Focus: Design & Art Website: http://www.cashurdrive.com Page 23
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because I love to innovate and create models and start implementing them by working all day and night. It allows me to be who I really am!” Name: Rajkumar Janagam Age: 21 Venture: Cycle Chalao! Company: social venture Focus: Environment Website: http://www.i-initiate.org
“I'm an entrepreneur because i've always believed in being a catalyst of change and not a mere follower.” Name: Ram Kumar Rajagopal Age: 27 Venture: Dreamajax Technologies Private Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.dreamajax.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I didn’t enjoy a routine 9 to 5 desk job and had a lot of other hobbies that I wanted to pursue.” Name: Rashmi Vaswani Age: 28 Venture: Rage Chocolatier Company: for- profit Focus: Food & Beverage Website: http://www.ragechocolatier.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to create something out of nothing.” Name: Sahil Parikh Age: 30 Venture: DeskAway Company: for-profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.synage.com
“I am an entrepreneur because that’s the most responsible thing to do!” Name: Sameer Segal Age: 22 Venture: Engineers for Social Impact (E4SI) Company: social venture Focus: Education Website: http://www.e4si.org Page 24
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an entrepreneur because I believe in 'stay hungry...stay foolish'. Wealth & employment generation is the need of the hour, especially in 3rd world countries like India.” Name: Sasikanth Chemalamudi Age: 26 Venture: Habits Edutainment Pvt. Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: Entertainment Website: http://www.habits.in
“I am an Entrepreneur because I wanted to take up a responsibility for my country to light up rural lives and the dimensions just grew further.” Name: Saurabh Bhandari Age: 24 Venture: illusion4real - Energy saving solutions Company: for- profit Focus: Technology Website: http://www.illusions4real.com
“I am an entrepreneur because challenges are an integral part of my life and adventure in day to day activity keeps me motivated.” Name: Varun Gupta Age: 22 Venture: Khelo Communications Private Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: Sports Website: http://www.indiakhelo.com/
“I am an entrepreneur because I wanted to to learn better.” Name: Vijaya Switha Grandhi Age: 29 Venture: Chitrika Company: social venture Focus: Handicraft Website: n/a
“I am an Entrepreneur because I enjoy the freedom to follow my passions and make a mark with whatever I do.” Name: Vineay Jaju Age: 26 Venture: Why new Coal Company: social venture Focus: Energy Website: http://www.WhyNewCoal.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 India “I am an Entrepreneur because I am very passionate about my job and that is why I knew I could do more in this field.” Name: Vineet Kumar Age: 20 Venture: National Anti- Hacking Group (NAG) Company: social venture Focus: IT Website: http://www.nag.co.in
“I am an entrepreneur because it provides me with space to set and achieve bigger goals!” Name: Vinoth Kumar Arumugam Age: 30 Venture: Vinjey Software Systems Pvt. Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.vinjey.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I like the challenge and success of building successful brands and businesses.” Name: Vivek Pahwa Age: 28 Venture: Accentium Web Pvt. Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.accentium.com
“I am an entrepreneur to be the master of my destiny.” Name: Vamsi Krishna Age: 26 Venture: Lakshya Company: social venture Focus: education Website: www.lakshyainstitute.com
“I am an entrepreneur because it is inspiring to work for your own venture and life can not be better when work becomes play. If your hobby is your work, you will enjoy each bit of the journey.” Name: Prabhpuneet Kaur Age: 24 Venture: Bookcurry Company: for-profit Focus: Media Website: http://www.bookcurry.com Page 26
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Indonesia “I am an entrepreneur because I wanted to fulfill my passion in becoming an independent worker, while constantly being responsible and work to better myself.” Name: Bellamy Benedetto Budiman Age: 26 Venture: Neuro- Designs Company: for-profit Focus: Design & Art Website http://www.neuro-designs.com
“I am an entrepreneur because my curiosity was bigger than the smartest man on my campus.” Name: Hendy Setiono Age: 26 Venture: PT Baba Rafi Indonesia Company: for-profit Focus: Food & Beverage Website: http://www.babarafi.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I enjoy expanding my experience in working though I'm still young, especially in earning multi-benefits and social improvements to participate helping people.” Name: Vania Santoso Age: 17 Venture: AV Peduli Indonesia Company: social venture Focus: Environment Website: http://www.avpeduli.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to do what I want with all responsibility and I also want to be more useful for all mankind.” Name: Yanuar Rahman Age: 25 Venture: Sekolah Komik Pipilaka Company: for-profit Focus: Design & Art Website: http:// www.pipilaka.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Nepal “I am an entrepreneur because I am MAD (making a difference) with my work and passion.” Name: Jiban Kumar Baral Age: 26 Venture: Allternatives Company: social venture Focus: Youth development Website: http://www.alternatives.com.np
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to create an opportunity for myself to make a contribution to the community I belong to and society as whole.” Name: Kanchan Jha Age: 26 Venture: Sano Paila (A Little step) Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website: http://sanopaila.org “I am an entrepreneur because I have always craved for initiation, creation and achievement, what better way to achieve and to give back to the world.” Name: Kumud Singh Age: 28 Venture: Alpine Coffee Estate Ltd. Company: social venture Focus: Agriculture Website: http://www.alpinecoffee.com.np
“We are entrepreneurs because we have designed various useful electronics devices for the developing societies.” Name: Ram Prasad Rimal and Laxman Prasad Rimal (Ramlaxman) Age: 29 Venture: Technology Sales Pvt. Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: Technology Website: http://www.technosales.com.np
“I am an entrepreneur because I am passionate about creating new things that bring positive changes around me.” Name: Nimesh Ghimire Age: 19 Venture: Invasive EducatioN Program Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website www.minimallyinvasiveeducation.org Page 28
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Nepal “I am an entrepreneur because I have an idea for how youth can be able to change their own face of Future and what society needs.” Name: Nirmal Thapa Age: 26 Venture: Color Nepal (CNEP) Company: non-profit Focus: Design & Art Website n/a
“I am entrepreneur because I wanted to make a difference in the lives of children.” Name: Pushpa Basnet Age: 25 Venture: Early childhood Development Center (ECDC) Company: social venture Focus: Education Website: http://www.edcd.org.np
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Pakistan “I am an entrepreneur because I cannot accept the deeply rooted gender inequalities, and I do not want to be part of the injustices!” Name: Gulalai Ismail Age: 24 Venture: Aware Girls Company: non-profit Focus: Youth empowerment Website: http://www.awaregirls.webs.com
“I am an entrepreneur because life offered me much much more than any other young person in my family and in my community could have ever imagined to get. ” Name: Khalida Brohi Age: 21 Venture: Participatory Development Initatives (PDI) Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website: http://www.pdi.org.pk
“I am an entrepreneur because it’s about the burning desire to create and contribute without climbing a corporate ladder and be able to fully utilize your thinking and creativity. ” Name: Muhammad Jamil Anwar Age: 29 Venture: Cultural Classics Company: social venture Focus: Handicraft Website: http://www.culturalclassics.com
“I am entrepreneur because I wanted to do something different and make a living from something that I am passionate about.” Name: Raheel Waqar Age: 29 Venture: White Rice Communications Company: for- prrofit Focus: Art & Design Website: http://www.whiterice.pk
“I am an entrepreneur because I always wanted to contribute for the betterment of my community with fewer bureaucratic formalities.” Name: Rana Bilal Ahmad Age: 29 Venture: Youth Alliance for Human Rights Company: non- profit Focus: Youth development Website: http://www.yafhr.org Page 30
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Pakistan “I am an entrepreneur because I love to be innovative and creative.” Name: Shamila Keyani Age: 28 Venture: Jaroka Company: social venture Focus: Technology Website: http://www.tele-healthcare.org
“I am an entrepreneur to empower myself and eventually the people around me. I could not think of a better way than doing something of my own.” Name: Yasir Hussain Sheikh Age: 26 Venture: Al Rug Company: for-profit Focus: Trade Website: http://www.alrug.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I accept challenges and believe in changes through innovation.” Name: Zeeshan Shoki Age: 30 Venture: PAK Education Society (PES) Company: social venture Focus: Education Website: http://www.pakedu.org
“I am entrepreneur because I wanted to create opportunities for other, the opportunities that actually have positive impact on the lives of others.” Name: Naveed Ahmed Age: 27 Venture: Mustakbil.com (Technobirds) Company: for-profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.mustakbil.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I dream of creating a sustainable social enterprise that changes trends of communication flow and information management in my mountainous society in the Gilgit - Baltistan region of Pakistan.” Name: Noor Muhammad Age: 26 Venture: Pamir Times/ Pamir Media Service company: non- profit Focus: Media Page 31 Website: www.pamirtimes.net
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Philippines
“We are entrepreneurs because it makes it possible for us to turn our ideas for good into reality and sustain what we're passionate about at Ideals Creatives.” Name: Marie Bernice de Leon, Marielle P. Nadal, Jan Virnice Sering, Daniel Matutina Age: 28 Venture: Ideals Creatives, Inc. Company: social Venture Focus: Design & Art Website: http://ideals.ph
“I am an entrepreneur because it gives me the opportunity to expand myself and to contribute to my community as a means of my self-expression.” Name: Alexander Reyes Age: 27 Venture: RuralLight Corp. Company: social venture Focus: Energy Website: http://www.rurallight.com
“I am an entrepreneur because I wanted to make my passion work for the community. ” Name: Clare Amador Age: 27 Venture: youth trip (YTriP) Company: social venture Focus: Tourism Website: http://youthtrip.org/
“I am an entrepreneur because I want to be able to sustain my environmental advocacies without having to ask help from others!” Name: Denise Margaret Matias Age: 25 Venture: The Green Itch Porject Company: social venture Focus: Environment Website: http://www.thegreenitch.multiply.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Philippines “I am an entrepreneur because entrepreneurship is for me a challenge as it involves not only technical but social and economic skills.” Name: Jed Christian Sayre Age: 22 Venture: Aley- Nm (Association of locally empowered Youth - Northers Mindanao) Company: social venture Focus: Agriculture Website: n/a
“I am an entrepreneur because I turned my dream of helping other people into reality by taking the risk and establishing YAFE.” Name: Laiden Pedriña Age: 29 Venture: Young Artists Fellowship for the Environment (YAFE) Company: non-profit Focus: Art & Design Website: http://www.yafe.ph
“I am entrepreneur because after years of doing development work, there was an increasing need for the developmental projects to be innovative as well as sustainable.” Name: Melissa Yeung Age: 24 Venture: Got Heart Foundation, Inc. Company: social venture Focus: Community Development Website: http://www.gotheartfoundation.org/
“I am an entrepreneur because I believe that entrepreneurship is a platform to start and revolutionize things and I want to ignite the revolution that would encourage businesses to do well by doing good.” Name: Therese Clarence Fernandez Age: 24 Venture: Rags2Riches Company: social venture Focus: Fair trade Website: http://www.rags2riches.ph
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Fellows 2009/2010 Singapore “I am an entrepreneur because I realised what a need there was in my country to equip young people for social progress in my country, and that there was something I could do about it.” Name: Bernice Ang Age: 29 Venture: Syinc Company: non-profit Focus: Education Website: http://www.syinc.org
“I am entrepreneur because creating value and bringing it to the world has always been my dream!” Name: Ming Guang Yong Age: 30 Venture: SocialWok - Enterprise Social Media Company: for- profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.socialwok.com
“I am an entrepreneur because it gives me the freedom to fight for my dreams and to be an advocate of change in a more proactive path.” Name: Nina Halim Age: 29 Venture: RightBrain Pte Ltd. Company: for-profit Focus: Media Website http://awan-awan.com
“I am an entrepreneur because if gives me the freedom to tackle the challenges I want to take on.” Name: Rishi Kumar Age: 27 Venture:TenCube Pte Ltd. Company: for- profit Focus: IT Website: http://www.tencube.com
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Mentors 2009/2010
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship - Mentors 2009/2010 During the fellowship year fellows will be supported by a number of experienced professionals and entrepreneurs on issues ranging from management to personal development. Adam Lane Title: Associate, Advisory Services Company: BSR Country: China Ajay Dixit Title: Sr. Faculty Company: Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI), Ahmedabad Country: India Annie Lyn B. Sison Title: President Company: D'MIIA Technologies Phils Inc. Antoine Bruyns Title: Associate Consultant Company: Bain & Company Curt Shi Title: Managing Director Company: Imprint Investment Partners Daniela Papi Title: Executive Director Company: PEPY David Simpson Title: Co- Founder Company: Teambuilding Asia Country: Hong Kong Dhakshinamoorthy (Dash) Balakrishnan Title: Founder & CEO Company: Warisan Global Sdn.Bhd Country: Malaysia Dr. Patrice Braun Title: Deputy Director & Senior Research Fellow Company: Centre for Regional Innovation & Competitiveness, University of Ballarat Country: Australia Dr. Peter Chandra Title: Managing Director Company: Strategy4 Pty Ltd Country: Australia Erika Helms Title: Executive Director Company: Jane Goodall Institute China Country: China Page 36
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship - Mentors 2009/2010 Hera Sui Title: Deputy President Company: Nokia China Country: China Jim (James) Parsons Title: Founder and Executive Vice President Company: GuildMaster Inc, and Narrow Gate Country: China Jonathan Hursh Title: Executive Director Company: Compassion for Migrant Children Country: China Kelly Lau Title: Marketplace Director for Nike China’s Sustainable Business & Innovation Team Company: Nike Sports (China) Co., Ltd. Country: China Kris Nair Title: Managing Partner Company: Opdrage Venture Partners Country: India Li Le Title: MBA candidate Company: Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business Country: China Lucky Chhetri Title: Founder and CEO Company: Empowering Women of Nepal / 3 Sisters Adventure Trekking Country: Nepal Mahesh Masal Title: Chairman Company: Adept Foundation Country: India Michael Olsson Title: President Director Company: PT Bo Michael Olsson Indonesia Country: Indonesia Nina Alag Suri Title: Group CEO Company: Nastrac Group Country: Singapore
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Paragon fellowship - Mentors 2009/2010 Philip Tong Title: Head of Residential Channels and Marketing Company: CLP Power Hong Kong Ltd. Country: Hong Kong Ranjith De Silva Title: Senior Lecturer Company: Australian College of Business & Technology Country: Sri Lanka Rick Kroos Title: Director Company: Debeers Country: Hong Kong Roy Ling Title: Founder and Managing Director Company: RL Capital Management Country: Singapore Sablok B S Title: Director Company: Foundation for Teaching of Entrepreneurship Country: India Sameer Guglani Title: Founding Partner Company: Morpheus Venture Partners Country: India Shantanu Bawari Title: MBA candidate, Freelance Consultant & Writer Company: CEIBS Country: China/ India Shariful Hossain Title: Project Director (Agro Processing Zone), Manager, R&D Company: Bestway Foundation Country: Bangladesh Tony Liang Title: MBA candidate Company: Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business Country: China Vidhyaa M Title: General Manager – HR, Performance and Talent management Company: Orchid Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Yvonne Li Title: Founder & CEO Company: Avantage Venture Page 38
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Partners and Sponsors
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Partners & Sponsors "Digital Opportunity believes youth entrepreneurship empowers young people to create wealth for social good and bring positive change in their communities and countries, and so supports the Paragon program for inspiring Asia’s youth to action." (Digital Opportunity Channel)
“I have associated with number of initiatives for start-ups but I must say this is one of the most well organized effort. Kudos to you and your team for that.” (Sameer Guglani, Morpheus Venture Partners)
“We support the Paragon fellowship as this program consists with our mission to cultivate business leaders who will contribute to creative change and innovation in Asia and Japan.” (GLOBIS)
"Wadhwani Foundation and NEN support this effort because we believe the economic greatness of a country is fueled by the strength and vitality of its entrepreneurs.” (Romesh Wadhwani, Chairman Wadhwani Foundation)
“I am someone passionate about making a difference and working with people to drive change. I am interested in working further with young people passionate about making a difference, and hope I can help others in their quest.” (Adam Lane, Associate BSR China)
“I joined the program as mentor because I enjoy sharing my life experiences with people. I highly enjoy talking to young people because I deeply believe that given the right direction, co-operation, love, and respect, youth will find confidence, develop positive attitude, and thus will be future change agents.” (Lucky Chhetri, Founder and CEO Empowering Women of Nepal / 3 Sisters Adventure Trekking)
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Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Partners & Sponsors Technology Partner
Official Auditor
Media Partner
Talent Pipeline Partner
Supporting Partner
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Investment Partner
Paragon Fellowship - 2009
Foundation for Youth Social Entrepreneurship http://www.fyse.org http://www.paragon100.asia
Tel: +852 8170 3587 Email: hello@fyse.org Twitter: @fyse
Contact: Ms Andrea Krause - Executive Director andrea@fyse.org
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