Social Innovation driving the process to #shapeafrica
Social innovation will be very important in shaping Africa. I think we all agree we need critical thinking, creative working and entrepreneurial acting in driving progress on the continent. That must be social though, it must be done together, in groups, in organizations, in systems, in partnerships and collaboration. I am in Cape Town this week. I applied and got invited to join the World Economic Forum on Africa event this week. Before that starts on Wednesday, I am attending SHAPE Africa, which is the first gathering of Global Shapers from around the African continent. I've been in the midst of multiple awesome Africans but never have I been a group like this, on the continent itself. Interestingly, I know very few of the people attending SHAPE Africa so far. I know the Director of the Global Shapers Community, Yemi Babbington-Ashaye, from our time at MIT and also half-knew Nancy Sumari, and I later realized her husband, Luca Neghesti (of KINU) who I knew was there. Yeap. I had mostly never heard of the rest before. Wow. I am here with Yawa Hansen-Quao, another of the Accra Global Shapers.
I am extremely excited to be here, meeting, greeting, learning, sharing, networking, vimming :-) Some of that has happened already. Let's recap what has happened so far today. The theme of the SHAPE Africa event is "social innovation" so I will share some tweets on the subject.
Greetings from Cape Town, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Assembling with global shapers from Africa. #shapeafrica #wef
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
Social innovation is about us working together, will have impact when it is disruptive. - Francois Bonnici at the #shapeafrica event at UCT.
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
There may be a shortage of jobs,but there is no shortage of work. Let's shape #Africa through social innovation. #shapeafrica.
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
A dream team is full of unreasonable people, a team of misfits. They expect the world to adapt to their ways. - via Yemi @ #shapeafrica
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
Development is often linear progress towards what might already be. Evolution is creating what should be. #shapeafrica
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
Adeyemi Babingtin-Ashaye,Director Head of Global Shapers Community, WEF talks to us about the birth of #SHAPEafrica twitter.com/RaeleneRorke/s…
— Raelene Rorke (@RaeleneRorke) May 6, 2013
Francois Bonnici talking Social Innovation. @ctglobalshapers #shapeafrica twitter.com/MoniqueTheron/…
— Monique Ross (@MoniqueTheron) May 6, 2013
An unreasonable man expects the world to adapt to his ways. Unreasonable people shape the world. #ShapeAfrica
— Shape Africa (@CTGlobalShapers) May 6, 2013
A social enterprise is one route to take social innovation to the market. - Francois Bonnici at #ShapeAfrica
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
2:33pm in Cape Town, South Africa. I guessed 233 as the age of Coca Cola at the #shapeafrica event. Was off by 106 years. #233moments
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
Met Luca Neghesti @simplyluca again & his awesome wife Nancy Sumari @nancysumari for the first time today. Tanzania Shapers! #kinu #bongo5
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
"We are not youth leaders, we are leaders who are young". "You are not youth leaders, you are leaders who are young". #shapeafricaThis is just a part of Day 1. I should be going to bed to prepare for an early Day 2. But I will lose sleep to get this blog post in. I wanted to do this so bad. When it comes to Africa, I just want it so bad. Let's shape the Africa we want. No one should tell us we cannot do it. Because we can. Let it be us.
— Ato Ulzen-Appiah (@Abocco) May 6, 2013
Comments
You are shaping Africa to you! Morevim to you bro!