Assignment - Social Problems and Opportunities
Your Assignment for the week will be a bit more challenging. We ask you to select one of the following four social problems and to try to identify an opportunity for turning the problem into an opportunity for social innovation.
1. Only one in three blind people is employed.
2. Boys with ethnic minority backgrounds tend to drop out of school early and are at higher risk of unemployment.
3. Poor people do not have essential resources such as access to clean drinking water due to a lack of support infrastructure.
4. Producers of handicraft often have to work in an environment in which they do not have access to electricity making production unreliable.
My answer:
I would like to provide solutions to problems faced by handicraft producers in Africa. Producers of Africa have no access to electricity, but they have the skills to produce handicrafts which can be used to solve the problem. When producers have access to electricity, production of handicrafts will be reliable and this will enable them to make more income for themselves.
Producers can be provided electricity using renewable energy technology like solar PV system. Producers will not be charged for their solar PV system at once. Once they have access to electricity, they will have increased income which can be used to pay for the system over a period of time. Once they have made full payment for the system, electricity for the rest of life of system will be free (as solar energy is free). Now this increase in production of handicrafts, and consequent increase in income, will help them to improve their lives.
Since solar PV system may require maintenance or service, this can be achieved by training local people. This will provide employment for other people in the community.
Peer feedback:
Peer 1 → This was a nice and well-thought answer - I liked the fact that you also thought about the maintenance of the system and identified an additional opportunity for employment. Not sure of how difficult or easy it would be to provide people with PV systems (from a technical perspective), but I would be very interested to see the implementation of such an approach.
Peer 2 → Interesting idea, but why would a company invest? What are the returns, and how is it sustainable. Very good idea, stay on it.
Peer 3 → [This area was left blank by the evaluator.]
Peer 4 → [This area was left blank by the evaluator.]
Peer 5 → Excellent solution. It's such a simple idea solving more than just the handicraft reliability problem. The solution will also inspire them to be innovative and solve their own problems. Delighted to read this solution.
Peer 6 → Good work.
Effective grade is 3/3.
1. Only one in three blind people is employed.
2. Boys with ethnic minority backgrounds tend to drop out of school early and are at higher risk of unemployment.
3. Poor people do not have essential resources such as access to clean drinking water due to a lack of support infrastructure.
4. Producers of handicraft often have to work in an environment in which they do not have access to electricity making production unreliable.
My answer:
I would like to provide solutions to problems faced by handicraft producers in Africa. Producers of Africa have no access to electricity, but they have the skills to produce handicrafts which can be used to solve the problem. When producers have access to electricity, production of handicrafts will be reliable and this will enable them to make more income for themselves.
Producers can be provided electricity using renewable energy technology like solar PV system. Producers will not be charged for their solar PV system at once. Once they have access to electricity, they will have increased income which can be used to pay for the system over a period of time. Once they have made full payment for the system, electricity for the rest of life of system will be free (as solar energy is free). Now this increase in production of handicrafts, and consequent increase in income, will help them to improve their lives.
Since solar PV system may require maintenance or service, this can be achieved by training local people. This will provide employment for other people in the community.
Peer feedback:
Peer 1 → This was a nice and well-thought answer - I liked the fact that you also thought about the maintenance of the system and identified an additional opportunity for employment. Not sure of how difficult or easy it would be to provide people with PV systems (from a technical perspective), but I would be very interested to see the implementation of such an approach.
Peer 2 → Interesting idea, but why would a company invest? What are the returns, and how is it sustainable. Very good idea, stay on it.
Peer 3 → [This area was left blank by the evaluator.]
Peer 4 → [This area was left blank by the evaluator.]
Peer 5 → Excellent solution. It's such a simple idea solving more than just the handicraft reliability problem. The solution will also inspire them to be innovative and solve their own problems. Delighted to read this solution.
Peer 6 → Good work.
Effective grade is 3/3.
This blog post is based on my learnings from the course on ‘social entrepreneurship’ offered by Copenhagen Business School through Coursera (2014).
Comments
Post a Comment