Concordia crafts a family space for such youth daily where they receive the support they need and deserve.
NESsT focuses on improving economic autonomy because it improves community autonomy. As much as "Workforce Diversity and Inclusion" is used to solve this problem, it will not. We must pursue Workforce Equity and Justice.
Meet Victor. Victor is a coppersmith in the Romanian village of Brateiu. There used to be 200 Roma coppersmiths in his village. Now there are only six left. He says he’s proud he can continue to practice the craft of his ancestors and make a living doing so.
NESsT's portfolio director for the Andean Region offers three top tips for social entrepreneurs: (1) Look Deep, (2) Seek Feedback and (3) Test, Test, Test.
In Latin America, while the participation of women in the labor market increased in recent years, women are still overrepresented in low-income or non-remunerated household work. Two social enterprises in the NESsT - IKEA Social Entrepreneurship Latin America Accelerator run training programs designed to help women land salaried employment, freelancing opportunities, and micro-entrepreneurship -- the choice is theirs!
As impact first investors, we have a responsibility to be more intentional in our investments and recognize how gender inclusion creates the comprehensive approach that is needed given the urgency of these issues. NESsT strives to achieve gender equality within its internal operations and encourages its portfolio companies to strive for gender parity within their operations.
As an impact lender, we view our business assistance as having as much of an impact on these businesses as our capital. By this summer, NESsT’s Business Assistance Facility will have provided advisory services to 20 businesses in South America. Our services focus on two main areas: financial management and social impact measurement.
Women are key to alleviating poverty in emerging and low-income countries. NESsT’s current portfolio companies are 51% women-owned and 44% of the senior management teams are comprised of women. By bringing a gender lens to their businesses, community-based enterprises perform more efficiently and effectively and are able to achieve greater impact.
