Supporting the winners of the SEED Awards 2011 - 2012

The SEED Awards for Entrepreneurship in Sustainable Development is an annual international competition, organised by adelphi for the fifth time in 2011. SEED rewards innovative start-up ventures that have the potential to make tangible improvements in poverty eradication and environmental sustainability, assisting them in strengthening and extending the impact of their activities.

In addition to the hosting the 2011 awards, adelphi provided tailored short-term consultancy services to SEED Winners and their partners. Based on the Sustainability Entrepreneurship Toolkit that adelphi developed especially for the SEED Awards, this support was provided during a remote support phase and complemented by an individually tailored in-country workshop. The topics covered ranged from marketing strategies, partnership management and acquisition to community involvement, benefits management, funding and financing. In addition, adelphi organised bilateral meetings between the initiatives and international organisations to explore possible financing and partnership opportunities.

As in previous projects, responsibilities included the preparation and management of the award cycle and the provision of capacity-building support to award winners. In this context, adelphi implemented more than 30 in-country workshops in Africa and Asia to help the winners scale up and extend their impact. Further capacity-building support was provided through online platforms, as for example webinars on sustainability entrepreneurship topics. Additionally, adelphi organised a funding event to link up SEED Winners with interested investors and grant-makers during the international prize ceremony.