Created by the Trico Charitable Foundation in 2011, the biennial Social EnterPrize celebrate and advance leadership and excellence in social entrepreneurship in Canada. Social enterprises are organizations, for-profit or not-for-profit, that blend the social and the entrepreneurial by using business models/markets to solve social problems.

“There is a growing number of truly amazing Canadian social enterprises, but the sad reality is those efforts are but a drop in the bucket compared to the social challenges the world faces”, said Dan Overall, Executive Director of the Trico Charitable Foundation. “We hope the enhanced prize money will be a clarion call to the best and brightest so that we can: a) help truly extraordinary examples of Canadian social enterprise get to the next level of impact and b) analyse the ‘how to’ of their journeys so as to inspire and empower multitudes of Canadian social enterprises, would-be social entrepreneurs, and those who seek to help them.” Dan Overall

Overall says the Trico Foundation reads almost every publication that covers social enterprise, and has found the studies they commissioned on their Social EnterPrize recipients to be the some of most useful resources in helping the Foundation advance its work (the studies are undertaken by post-secondary institutions that are local to the recipients). He points to the Foundation’s recent article, “Building on Getting Beyond Better: Rethinking Social Entrepreneurship”, as an example in this regard.

The 2017 edition of the Social EnterPrize will honour two of Canada’s leading social enterprises. Each of the recipients will receive:

• NEW: $100,000 prize money for each recipient;
• A video profile; and
• An in-depth profile in a case-study undertaken by a Canadian post-secondary institution.

The awards will be formally presented during Global Entrepreneurship Week; the week of November 13, 2017; in Calgary (specific date TBA).

Key application information:

• Applications must be received by email to socialenterprize@tricofoundation.ca by 4 pm MST, April 18, 2017;
• Please click here to view details on the eligibility requirements and guidelines;
• Click here to begin the application.

See Videos & Case Studies of previous recipients.

Source