Five business ventures driven by the desire to create positive social and environmental impact are being welcomed into a one-year accelerator program at the University of British Columbia’s Sauder School of Business.
One of the ventures – dubbed Wize Monkey – is keeping coffee growers in Guatemala employed year-round by building up a market for coffee-leaf tea. All five ventures have created innovative ways to combine their passions for doing good with smart business sense.
Wize Monkey produces and sells tea made from coffee leaves, helping growers in developing regions earn money year-round, rather than just the traditional three-month harvest season for coffee beans. The venture is committed to making the coffee industry more sustainable by turning seasonal jobs into permanent ones.
“Social ventures are thriving in Vancouver’s dynamic entrepreneurial community and there’s a growing recognition of the power of business to do good in the world,” says Sauder Associate Professor James Tansey, Executive Director of the Centre for Social Innovation & Impact Investing.
“This year’s ventures have the potential to solve some very important social and environmental challenges. We’re excited to help them accelerate to their next stage of growth and continue our work establishing Vancouver as a global hub of social innovation.”
