Specified non-profit organization ARUN Seed
Discovering startups aiming to achieve nature positivity ~Start of business competition “CSI Challenge 5”~
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ARUN Seed (Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Representative: Satoko Konno, hereinafter referred to as ARUN), a non-profit organization, is hosting the 5th CSI (Cloud Cloud), a business competition to discover and invest in startups that contribute to solving biodiversity issues. Social Investment Challenge” will be held. Additionally, starting today, we will begin crowdfunding to collect 7.5 million yen in investment funds from the general public.
[Image 1: https://prtimes.jp/i/63431/23/resize/d63431-23-8bcd010b9e696af922f8-0.jpg&s3=63431-23-555fac8be603ad0090f73224976a6e2d-1942×1085.jpg] ARUN has supported social entrepreneurs who are solving social issues through business through social investment.
ARUN’s social investments involve entrusting donations received through crowdfunding to companies selected in the business competition “CSI Challenge” in the form of investments, and monetary returns from the investee companies are used to create new social businesses. This is a system to reinvest in. After making an investment, we provide support to companies and report to our supporters about their activities and progress in resolving issues.
The theme of this year’s CSI Challenge is “Biodiversity.”
Business competition held on the theme of “biodiversity”
ARUN focuses on people in rural and developing countries who are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change and biodiversity loss, respects the diversity of people and nature, and uses innovative business ideas and methods to create a sustainable society. We support businesses working on construction.
Specifically, we envision the following business examples.
We aim to preserve the natural environment by promoting business that takes biodiversity into account while using innovative methods and technologies.
Providing a safe living environment for people who are greatly affected by climate change and biodiversity loss
Summary of the 5th CSI Challenge
business competition
Theme: Biodiversity
Application reception schedule: February 26th to March 25th, 2024 Selection criteria:
・Social impact: quality and size of impact on theme issues
・Sustainability: whether the business model is viable and sustainable ・Team: Creativity, commitment to solving social issues, presence of skills ・Innovation: presence of original ideas and technology
・Initiatives on gender and diversity: Gender equality in business and organizational management
Sponsorship/Sponsorship:
・Deloitte Tohmatsu Group (main sponsor)
・MS&AD Unizon Smile Club
・Mizuho Securities Co., Ltd.
・Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
In implementing the business competition, we will solicit
entrepreneurs from all over Japan and from abroad to tackle
biodiversity issues. Recruitment requirements and application details will be posted on the ARUN webpage (https://www.arunseed.jp/). Also, starting today, we will start crowdfunding to collect funds for investment. This is an opportunity for anyone to participate in social investment through donations.
crowdfunding
“Supporting social entrepreneurs who take on the challenge of biodiversity crisis! Toward a society where people and nature coexist” Period: February 21, 2024 (Wednesday) to May 21, 2024 (Tuesday) Target amount: 7.5 million yen
Crowdfunding recruitment page URL: https://readyfor.jp/projects/arun2024 If you are interested in CSI Challenge 5, ARUN’s program consisting of a business competition to discover startups aiming to achieve nature positivity and crowdfunding, please feel free to contact us. Contact: csi@arunseed.jp
Message from Representative Satoko Konno
The theme of this year’s CSI Challenge is coexistence between humans and nature, and biodiversity.
Until now, we have discovered and supported entrepreneurs who are working to solve social structural problems such as poverty and employment. It is truly gratifying to see that our business is producing tangible results, such as improved productivity in agriculture and dairy farming, and increased education and income opportunities.
At the same time, the more I learned about the background of their business, the more I realized that social issues and poverty are closely connected to the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity. As development progresses around the world, forests are being cut down and biodiversity is being lost, sometimes even in the name of climate change countermeasures. People who depended on the forest lost their livelihood and headed to the cities in search of cash income, creating slums. When natural disasters become more severe due to climate change or accidents such as dam bursts occur, the people living in the surrounding areas are the first to be affected. Poverty issues and environmental issues are inextricably linked. However, don’t we tend to think of “society” and “environment” separately?
This time, it was an entrepreneur who gave me the opportunity to specifically work on biodiversity. When I visited rural villages in Cambodia and India after the coronavirus pandemic finally ended, I met a new type of entrepreneurs who were rediscovering the value of local nature and traditional culture and exploring ways of doing business that coexisted with nature. Ta. They see the natural environment being destroyed and culture lost due to development, and they believe that this will not make people happy. What kind of society is a sustainable society? Beyond that question, I think we are looking at a future that is different from easy development or urban economic development. I believe that business that takes biodiversity into consideration will be an important step in the search for a sustainable society that focuses on nature and the environment, instead of the human-centered and economy-centered way of being.
In Japan, new movements are also emerging, such as agriculture that increases biodiversity, cooperative farming, new civil engineering that takes into account the subsoil environment, a review of forests and water sources, and businesses that take advantage of their value. At the center of these movements are young people around the world who have a sense of crisis about the current situation. We believe that by supporting youth-led change and expanding biodiversity-friendly businesses, we can move one step closer to a sustainable future. Please join us in recruiting entrepreneurs who are working on biodiversity issues. Also, in order to support the challenges of entrepreneurs, please cooperate with ARUN’s crowdfunding. Thank you very much.
Satoko Kunou
[Image 2: https://prtimes.jp/i/63431/23/resize/d63431-23-566c63ef26337173fbd6-1.jpg&s3=63431-23-3eddaa7ba3a615cd9eb9ab1cc2f4f062-2048×1536.jpg] What is “CSI Challenge”?
The CSI (Cloud Social Investment) Challenge sets a social issue theme each time and combines a “business competition” to recruit social entrepreneurs and a “crowdfunding” to raise funds for social investment through donations. It is a platform that discovers and supports social entrepreneurs who aim to solve social issues through business. The CSI Challenge has been held four times so far (2016, 2018, 2020, and 2022-23), and approximately 300 social entrepreneurs from 30 countries in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East have
participated so far. The selected companies will receive social investment (up to $50,000) through ARUN, regular business advice, impact measurement and monitoring, and long-term support through collaboration with companies and investors leveraging ARUN’s network. We support business success and social impact creation.
What is ARUN Seed, a specified non-profit organization?
ARUN Seed is a non-profit organization established for the purpose of disseminating, developing, and researching social investment. Since 2009, we have supported entrepreneurs tackling social issues through social investment and support, and have been working to build and disseminate social investment mechanisms. We also carry out
educational activities through schools and seminars to spread the importance of social investment throughout society. Furthermore, we support communication between investors and investees by building a participatory social investment platform.
https://www.arunseed.jp/
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