Blogs

At the height of the pandemic, social enterprises around the world were facing an existential crisis: sink or swim. In London, one impact startup incubator, Year Here, found itself in the middle of the storm.

"I do this work because ensuring every mother, everywhere has the access to affordable, nutritious food is my 'dharma'. It’s how I earn my place in this humanity. I personally believe no family should go hungry while 30% of the food produced is lost or wasted."

"My hope is that all companies and organizations will find the courage to do the same, and see the shared value in creating a world without hunger and waste, together. It’s not a competition. We can do this and we must do it, together, and transcend the economic and cultural structures that may be holding us back."

I am passionate about the role of innovation, entrepreneurship, markets and system investing as a theory of change particularly in promoting change towards a healthier and sustainable food system. Food impacts community and human health and wellbeing— it is the most critical aspect of our lives. 

For Earth Day 2021, we're highlighting leaders who believe in a world with zero hunger and zero waste and currently serve as advisory committee members for The Kroger Co. Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation Innovation Fund. In collaboration with Village Capital, the Innovation Fund has developed an investment-readiness program for startups working to prevent, recover and recycle food waste in the U.S.

Unexpectedly landing back home in the UK at the start of the pandemic, my partner and I decided that it was time to embrace the enforced stability of closed airspaces and start looking for a long term home for our growing family. 

El Banco Mundial ha encontrado que las mujeres son dueñas de cerca del 30% de los negocios alrededor del mundo. Sin embargo, mucho menos del 30% del financiamiento para startups en etapas tempranas es destinado a negocios fundados por mujeres.

We love the spotlight that International Women’s Day puts on women around the globe who are breaking barriers, creating groundbreaking new innovations and shaping the future. And for us at Village Capital, we also think this day warrants reflecting once again on the fundamental math problem that exists in early stage investing.

India has made impressive strides on financial health in the past five years. Mobile money and government programs have helped millions of people open bank accounts, find capital to open a business, or build savings for the future.

Purchasing a home is a complex and often opaque process – and a process that is increasingly out of reach for millions of individuals and families. That was certainly true for Bryan Young’s mother.