Youth Venture

Ashoka, a global organization with a 26-year history of supporting social entrepreneurs, is pleased to expand its youth program, Youth Venture, to young changemakers across Canada.

Beginning today, young Canadians in all provinces and territories can apply to Youth Venture for support in launching their own “social ventures” – sustainable youth-led projects that benefit communities or the world at large.

Youth teams (with leaders between the ages of 12 and 20) that meet Youth Venture’s criteria may qualify for seed funding of up to $1,000. In addition, they are invited to join a global network and movement of young changemakers, organized and supported by Ashoka’s Youth Venture, now in 14 countries.

“Youth Venturers” come in all stripes. Some start tutoring services at their schools, a space camp for girls, after-school arts programs, or small businesses for underprivileged youth. Others start drop-in centres for youth, recycling programs, and classes on healthy cooking.

The possibilities are endless – Youth Venture’s projects are as diverse as the youth themselves. What the young people have in common is a desire to change the world for the better, and a belief they can do so… at any age.

Ashoka believes a nation’s greatest asset is its entrepreneurs – not just in business, but across all sectors of society. In helping young people create change (through Youth Venture), it hopes to ensure each generation is more innovative and entrepreneurial than the previous one, and more ready to take on the complex challenges of our new century.

Young Canadians who are ready or willing to launch social ventures may apply at this website. In addition to many useful tools and resources, the website also provides downloadable action plans to guide youth step-by-step in launching their project. Applications are accepted three times a year. The next deadline is July 31, 2008.

Youth Venture launched in Canada in June 2007 with the support of STAPLES Business Depot and Staples Foundation for Learning, the non-profit charitable arm of Staples, Inc. A global partnership between Staples and Youth Venture has allowed Youth Venture to launch in eight countries to date, including Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, France, Spain, Belgium and the United States.

About Ashoka

Ashoka is the world’s community of leading social entrepreneurs – individuals with innovative and practical ideas for addressing social needs.

Working with these social entrepreneurs, Ashoka builds communities of innovators who work collectively to transform society and design new ways for the social sector to become more productive, entrepreneurial and globally integrated. For more information, please visit www.ashoka.org.

About Youth Venture

Youth Venture leads an international community of young people who are powerful now, changemakers now. Youth Venture inspires and invests in teams of young people to create and launch their own lasting social Ventures. Youth Venture then connects them into a global movement of young changemakers, who are together redefining the youth years as a time of leadership and positive social change.

This is the foundation of an Everyone a Changemaker™ world – the key factor for success in every part of society. Youth Venture currently operates in 14 countries and online at www.genv.net.