Social Ventures
Our Social Ventures model is proving its innovative impact
29 July 2024
As UCLB’s Social Ventures launches a new webpage detailing its eclectic roster of companies with a social purpose, Senior Business Manager Ana Lemmo Charnalia and Associate Business Manager, Dr Christine Madla Angeles reflect on how the department’s innovative model is driving innovation, today.
A quick scroll through our new webpage’s company profile section reveals the broad scope of projects from UCL academics that we’re lucky enough to help nurture: from inspiring childhood healthy eating through artistic activities, to printing tactile information through a smartphone interface.
UCLB has championed the social venture model from its inception, becoming the first technology transfer office in the UK to create a department dedicated to limited companies with a social purpose, complete with a dedicated business manager to support projects with a social purpose.
As the UK prepares for a new government, we hope that the diversity of the world changing projects demonstrates the effectiveness of embracing the social ventures model.
Indeed, the activity of our projects and spinouts in the last month alone proves that real change is constantly emerging from our dedicated support. Here we share just a few of our projects and spinouts’ recent bold initiatives and benchmarks.
EDRAF
Prof Lucia Michelutti from UCL Anthropology has been awarded entry to ARC the Accelerate, an accelerator part of the ESRC/AHRC SHAPE Catalyst which provides £62,500 of funding and support, for the EDRAF tool. EDRAF is an app which helps microfinance and other financial institutions to assess risk and minimise risks in social lending, and generate measurable impact for unbanked communities in rural South Asia.
The ReadClear app
This assistive reading aid for people with brain related visual impairment was developed by Dr Aida Suárez-González (UCL Dementia Research Centre). It has been featured in the UKRI Health Aging Challenge Impact Report. Aida also recently secured a £100,000 award from the Healthy Ageing Follow on Fund Accelerator to develop Read Clear.
Planet Munch
Meanwhile, Dr Julie Lanigan, Director, TrimTots Community Interest Company (trading as Planet Munch) revealed that the company is digitising the nutrition component of the Planet Munch programme to make it available more widely as a training programme. This will be completed in the summer as they relaunch the website in unison.
The company are also in discussions with the Edith Neville School in Camden to run the programme, and a potential new partnership is under discussion to further develop the programme and its resource.
As ever, we’re keen to hear from businesses and partners that share our quest to create a positive impact. If you’re interested in working with one of our social ventures projects, please get in touch.
Are you a UCL academic with an idea that could make an impact? Visit our Launch a social venture page to see how we could help to develop your ideas for social good.