Meet the Indian and South East Asian Finalists of Sankalp Forum2012

• Sankalp Forum, an annual platform for social and sustainable ventures by Intellecap has announced this year's finalists. This year Sankalp expanded to South East Asia and 6 ventures from the region will be taking part in the summit. The finalists were chosen across 5 high-impact sectors:Agriculture, Food & Rural Business
• Clean Energy/Technology
• Education and Vocational Training
• Health, Water & Sanitation
• Technology for Development

All Sankalp finalists get to attend a residential bootcamp at Indian School of Business, Hyderabad . The finalists from India will also compete for the Grand Prize of USD 40,000. Finalists will receive continuous mentorship from sector experts to validate their business model, access to eminent personalities from both mainstream and impact investment houses during the grand jury presentation, an opportunity to showcase their business to a 700+ global audience and nationwide branding and visibility. Click here to visit the Sankalp website.

The finalists in each sector: 

Agriculture, Food and Rural Business:

Driptech is a water technologies company operating from Silicon Valley, with offices in Pune and Beijing. Driptech produces affordable, high-quality irrigation systems designed for small-plot farmers. The company distributes its products through local governments, corporate partners, and NGOs in India and China. Drip irrigation increases crop yields 20-50% and requires less labor and less money spent on diesel or electricity for pumping water. With its proprietary manufacturing technology, Driptech is able to produce and price drip irrigation systems at least 50% lower than the nearest competition. Driptech is growing rapidly to address the needs of the 600 million subsistence farmers who lack appropriate irrigation.

Kautilya PhytoExtracts Pvt Ltd work closely with the farmers of Jamui, Baniapur, Banka, Munger, Gopaljung (Bihar) and Mal, Kalinpong, Jal Dhaka (North Bengal), taking orders from aromatic oils and medicinal plant companies and cultivating the required crops. Kautilya supports local farmers, with a focus on delivering the largest amount of profit to the farmers themselves.

Bhushan Agro aims to contribute towards rural transformation and 2nd Green revolution of India by improving yield/revenue of agricultural lands in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh.The Company is involved in agriculture using modern scientific methods resulting in improved agricultural yield and productivity. There are plans to set up food processing units to produce value added items. The business model is to lease agricultural land from farmers at Rs. 8000-10,000 per acre per year and carry farming using modern scientific methods, equipment, systematic crop rotation, and water harvesting techniques. The projected result is an improved yield and 3 crops per year instead of the 2 currently possible in that region. The revenue from agricultural activities per acre per year is approximately Rs. 100,000 – 150,000.

Vinfinet Technologies mission is to “Shape the future of farming in emerging economies using sustainable technologies and make agriculture a safe and profitable occupation.” It is an IT firm building Technology Solutions for Agriculture and offering Career Oriented IT Trainings.The principle objective of ‘KISAN RAJA’, their main product, is to provide an easy to use and economically viable motor communication and controlling system that enables a user to remotely operate a pump set through a mobile phone or landline, changing the way the farmer interacts with motors.

Safe Harvest is a supplier of fresh, locally grown, high quality organic produce to wholesalers and consumers. Safe Harvest farms its product indoors, producing crops year round. Their proposal is to scale indoor farming so that a wide variety of produce is harvested in quantity enough to sustain even the largest of cities without significantly relying on resources beyond the city limits. The enterprise aims to do so in a sustainable manner using no herbicides, pesticides or petroleum based fertilizers and eliminating agricultural runoff by recycling black water.

Clean Energy and Clean Technology:

Ecoreco was incorporated in September 2007 to manage end of life electrical & electronic waste in an organized manner employing necessary technology & methodology to derive commercial objective and also to protect ecology & environment. EcoReco provides the full spectrum of activities covered under e-waste management right from collection of e-waste from the door step of the generators, transporting, sorting them into working / non-working equipments / components, secured data destruction, dismantling of end of life equipments, size reduction, sorting in to different commodities like glass, plastic, iron / steel, aluminum, copper and other fractions, remarketing of reusable equipments, components and various recovered commodities as well as disposal of hazardous substances as per the prescribed rules. Ecoreco‘s facility carries out the above activities near Mumbai.

GreenTech Aqua uses ‘Pneumatic Saturation & Condensation Process and System’ (PSC). This technology utilizes waste heat present in exhaust gas of fossil fuel fired power plants or other sources of waste heat as the main source of energy to desalinate seawater. GreenTech Aqua’s technology will generate high quality water in large quantities (greater than 7 mld per 210MW power plant) from a sustainable source like seawater or brackish ground water. The water generated is of high purity and can be used for industrial as well as potable purposes.

Ampere Bikes designs and manufactures a wide range of reliable, cost effective and quality Electric Vehicles (EV) for providing economical, comfortable, stylish and well performing electric mobility solutions for all categories of people and businesses in Asia and beyond. Ampere’s vision is to enhance and empower the lives of people through affordable mobility solutions, worldwide. The most popular bike is equipped with a 25 W motor battery. Once the battery is charged for 6-8 hours, it can carry one rider a distance of 45 km. The battery doesn’t require any maintenance.

GIBSS Green India Building Systems and Services (GIBSS) is a multi-channeled diversified business that provides best value products along with operational, maintenance and energy solutions to help buildings reduce costs and raise productivity. GIBSS assists building owners in making responsible decisions, reducing the overall building life cycle expenses and helping the building occupants live more efficiently. They cite the benefits of a green building as, better health and productivity, low life cycle cost, reduced liability, enhanced building marketability, cost effective design, better environment.

NextGen help businesses measure, manage, mitigate and communicate carbon emissions, save energy, develop a low carbon strategy and help them harness other green benefits. They developed an in-house biogas technology for decentralized organic waste to energy application, focusing on reliability, hygiene and aesthetic values. This technology is currently being deployed across IT parks, university campuses, housing complexes and hotel chains to substitute LPG and at rural telecom tower sites for powering them.

Education:

Edusports: Edusports is India’s first & leading sports enterprise working with nursery -12 schools for providing world-class sporting experience to millions of school going children. Edusports through its pioneering SOAR(TM) platform offers Learning through physical Activity and sports to the school children. Edusports programmes help create “physically educated” children while ensuring that all stakeholders (schools, parents & policymakers) are involved in the process. Edusports programmes are designed around the core principles of inclusiveness (every child must play); age-appropriateness (right skills at the right age); and all programmes are designed specifically to work in Indian context.

Rose Computer Academy: ROSE Computer Academy was launched in 2007 with a vision to spread computer literacy all over in India, especially in rural areas. Their aim is to impart quality computer education at an affordable rate to the youth in rural areas in order to prepare them for either starting their own enterprise or to get a job. ROSE Computer Academy has trained more than 5000 rural youth in computer education out of whom more than 1500 students have got jobs in private and public sector companies. ROSE Computer Academy has given employment to about 50 people in village Choma.

EZvidya: EZ Vidya is an educational services organization. All its endeavors are aligned to the Mission – ‘Let the child blossom’. Its services encompass development of academic curriculum, training initiatives and strategic engagement with schools. EZvidya believes in a ‘cross-fertilized’ approach, wherein sharing and learning happens across different functions within and with the partners. Their services encompass development of academic curricula, training initiatives and strategic engagements with schools. They are also the pedagogy, research & implementation partners of leading organizations in socio-educational initiatives.

Classle: Classle was started with a mission to solve the issue of quality instruction faced by students pursuing higher education. Classle.net is a resource hub for learners to learn, search, create, share and discuss in their chosen disciplines. This is accomplished by a dedicated team of learners, knowers and experts including educators, professionals, academicians and career counsellors. Classle.net is a learner-centric community and is a free-for-use platform. Classle expands the availability of knowledge and learning material and allows for the student / learner to be an active contributor. In the process, it empowers the learner and enlists them as an important member of the learning eco-system.

Priyadarshini Taxi Service: Priyadarshini is a taxi service driven by women. The spirit behind Priyadarshini Taxi Service is to create an income generating capacity in Women. The training provided to the participating women is free of charge. It as an exhaustive, 3 months training, where the woman is expected to drive at least for two hours daily, on the roads of Mumbai. Priyadarshini Taxi service is an all women enterprise, where not only the drivers but all employees, directors & even share-holders are Women.

Health, Water and Sanitation: 

NationWide are an Indian chain of family physician and paediatric clinics that aim to make primary healthcare affordable and accessible for every Indian. Founded in 2010 by a team of UK-trained doctors and management experts, NationWide envisages bringing the best international practices in Primary Healthcare to India and spearheading a paradigm shift in India’s healthcare delivery system. Through a network of clinics, they provide personalised GP and paediatric services to our health plan subscribers as well as walk-in-patients.

India Home Healthcare provides healthcare to Indians in Chennai and Banglore at their bedside. They give personalized care after an initial assessment, involving immediate family members with the “Care Planning.” The teams provide specialized care to newborns and new mothers, the elderly, orthopedic patients, cardiac patients, and stroke and neurological related illnesses.

Eram Scientific aims to develop innovative and utility solutions by combining cross platform technologies and domains. Eram scientific created ‘Delight’, the automatic public Toilet Unit developed by ESS is intended to improve the sanitation facilities in urban geographies especially in developing nations. The unit has a unique structure that facilitates the display of advertisement boards on its outer surface. This can act as a source for additional income. This can also be a source of income for the people who are given charge of operating a unit. Another major project is a ‘Connected Home Security Project.’ Their focus is on combining platform technologies to solve social problems.

Waste Ventures operations are oriented around three main activities – Build, Disseminate, Foster. In order to create a new sector of waste management in developing countries it is necessary to go beyond simply creating waste picker corporations, but also enable others to follow a the regulatory environment for waste management. The aim is to incubate and ensure financing for sustainable waste picker corporations (WPC) and
Publish & share best-case practices, technology and materials to allow any organization to employ their blueprint, as well as, create and promote an environment of best-case practices in solid waste management.

MediAngels is an eHospital that connects its users to trained healthcare professionals from across the globe. Set up with a mission to streamline the healthcare delivery supply chain with the innovative use of technology, MediAngels is the first venture of its kind globally. One registers on the MediAngels website, choose a doctor and put forth your questions. It avoids patients having to travel, shuttling between specialists, waiting for appointments, and queuing up at doctor’s offices. Patients can upload their reports so that doctors have a full outline of their current ailment for an eConsult. For simple questions they can ask using the eQuery function. The site also provides a knowledge center that is similar to a laymen terms medical dictionary.

Technology for Development:

Milaap: Milaap is an online platform that enables people to lend to India’s working poor enabling access to education, clean water, energy and more. Milaap combines the internet and human intent to create sustainable social change. Milaap aims to catalyze the next generation of microfinance through online microlending and fulfill varied unmet needs of the poor that go beyond just credit. Milaap’s field partners monitor the progress of the borrowers throughout the loan cycle to ensure effective use of both, the loan amount and the market links provided.

Eko India Financial Services: The Eko model works on the fundamental premise of giving everyone a bank account. Eko is building a low cost financial services infrastructure to increase the reach of financial institutions to the un-banked and to democratize financial services for the un-banked in urban as well as rural areas: powered by innovation and technology. The endeavour is to build a rapidly scalable model by addressing the challenges of the existing models and by using mobile technology to help bring down significantly the network cost.

B2R Technologies: B2R (Business 2 Rural) Technologies as a rural BPO organization, envisions delivery of business value together with social value, by way of setting up clusters of rural BPO service delivery centres to provide business support services to global clients. Their aim is to tap into the potential of rural India, to create livelihood opportunities in local context and to create best-in-class service delivery capabilities for global clients. B2R wants to facilitate and contribute to the integrated development of other capabilities in the villages by investing 33% of the profits (PAT) generated by B2R back into the community within these villages.

Avaz: Avaz is an Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) Device from Invention Labs, India. It enables people with cerebral palsy to communicate by converting their muscle movements into speech. Avaz’s unique feature is the availability in multiple Indian languages, so essential in a country like India that has multiple regional languages. Avaz is portable, highly customizable and has been strategically priced right for the Indian market through appropriate use of technology. The cost is just 1/6th of similar devices available internationally.

Inventure: Inventure is a micro-investment platform that allows everyday individuals to invest in small businesses from under-served communities across the globe. Inventure unleashes the potential of developing entrepreneurs to lift themselves and their communities out of poverty by connecting individuals directly with these entrepreneurs, thus enabling the opportunity to create long-term substantial impact. Inventure envisions a world where business owners, regardless of their location or background, will have access to the financial, social and intellectual capital necessary to expand their businesses and drive local growth.

South East Asia:

Sunlabob, Laos: Sunlabob has successfully developed and pilot-tested several innovative solutions for providing affordable off-grid lighting and clean drinking water using renewable energy to many poor rural households in Laos. Sunlabob provides renewable electricity for lighting and other applications there by reducing reliance on kerosene and/or diesel generators. They also provide renewable electricity and integrated equipment, such as water irrigation pumps, for income generating productive use and provide safe drinking water through locally established micro-enterprises, reducing exposure to water borne diseases.

Hapinoy, Philippines: The Hapinoy Store Program focuses on the sari-sari stores in the Philippines (sari-sari is the Filipino word for “many or various kinds”), small neighbourhood convenience stores that sell various things, mostly basic commodities. The Program starts with the infusion of capital (through the resources of the microfinance institution program partner) to and conversion of an existing sari-sari store in a specific town to a Lead Store or in Hapinoy terms, a Community Store. Hapinoy’s ability to reach the “last mile” through its distribution network significantly impacts the lives of multiple stakeholders, including sari-sari storeowners, small producers and consumers.

Bali Recycling, Indonesia: Bali Recycling operates an integrated waste management system that focuses on reducing, reusing & recycling while also producing upcycled products from certain waste components. Bali Recycling extracts or produces valuable byproducts from the solid waste and at the same time reduces the total waste. They also collect & process hazardous materials for businesses and households, the first operator in Bali to provide these services.

Kokoboard, Thailand: Kokoboard started with the idea of using agricultural waste to make ‘Particle Boards’ with the desire to stop deforestation and extend the life of living green forest for future generations. Driven by environmental and social missions, the enterprise aims to save trees and keep the forest for future generations through innovative technology while at the same time alleviate poverty in the rural farmer community.

Marine Gifts, Vietnam: Marine Gifts Ltd provides vocational & life skills training for women living in and around Marine Protected Areas in Vietnam. They provide vocational skill training to women to produce crafts, provide services and tap into the tourism industry. Marine Gifts also works on raising awareness about marine conservation and livelihood development of local communities. They support community based tourism and handicraft business development in the Marine Protected Areas.