CINEC and CSBM hold country’s first ever conference on social entrepreneurship

The Colombo International Nautical and Engineering College (CINEC) and the Colombo School of Business Management (CSBM) together with the Academy for Global Business Advancement (AGBA) Sri Lankan Chapter, recently held a two day conference on the topic of ‘Social Entrepreneurship; Opportunity Identification and Value Creation for Emerging Economies’ (ICSE 2016)’.

Held at the CINEC auditorium in Malabe, the main aim of the conference was to provide a global platform for facilitating the exchange of ideas and discussions of concepts for effective advancement of knowledge in the field of business management and social entrepreneurship. They were joined in this initiative by the Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies of the University of Kelaniya, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Thailand and the British Council, Colombo.

The two day conference, the first of its kind to be held in the country, consisted of a series of multi-disciplinary presentations, expert discussions and open exchanges of current and future business goals and social entrepreneurship initiatives in the emerging economies .These topics were discussed by an eminent panel of personalities from both business and academia that included Fais Shah,Director, Yoonus Centre, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) , Prof. Ranjith Bandara ,Head of the Business School, Colombo School of Business and Management,  Dian Gomes, Chairman, Hela Clothing, Prof.(Capt.) Nalaka Jayakody,Vice President, CINEC, Dr. Dehigama, Chairman, EPIC Technologies, Samantha Kumarasinghe, Chairman, Nature’s secrets, Dr. Janaki Kuruppu, Founder, Mother Sri Lanka Trust, Eranda Ginige, Co-Founder, Social Enterprise Lanka, Dulith Herath , CEO and Founder, Kapruka.com, Chandula Abeywickrama, Chairman, Lanka Impact Investing network, Selyna Peiris, Managing Director, Selyn Handlooms,  Isura Silva, General Manager, Sarvodaya Fusion and Lalith Edirisinghe Head – Department of Logistics and Transport.

Addressing the gathering at the opening ceremony, Prof. (Capt.) Nalaka Jayakody, Vice President, CINEC stated that CINEC was very happy to accommodate a conference of this nature in their premises and to join hands with other institutes in this initiative. He said that CINEC in its 26 year journey in the education and training industry always believed in the value of strong collaboration between organisations and its synergic impact for the betterment of the society at large. He added that such partnerships create the opportunity of working together in converging their efforts to address and solve the key issues faced by our communities.

He further stated that CINEC currently sets an example for entrepreneurship by generating USD millions to the GDP by producing quality education and training to the relevant industry.

Dian Gomes, Chairman, Hela Clothing, in his welcome address stated that social entrepreneurship can lead to social innovations that can transform societies in ways that fully empower individuals, businesses and communities. He invited all the participants to take an active role in the conference and explore what social entrepreneurship will entail and to be the catalysts that will inspire the business, social and policy solutions for our country in the future

Centred along the core theme of Social Entrepreneurship the topics discussed included Social Value Creation, Social Entrepreneurship and Social Business, Identify opportunities in Social Enterprise, Emerging Policy Space for sustainable and regional development, Social Enterprise is next generation of CSR, Effective strategies for sustainable business through Social enterprise, Logistical industry and Social Enterprise, The role of educational institutions in fostering Social Entrepreneurship among youth, Innovation and technological drive towards social entrepreneurship, Opportunities for government in channelling social enterprise into GDP contributions, Green entrepreneurship, Sports Education as a viable Social Enterprise, Women in Social enterprise and Emerging Innovations of new social enterprise business development .

Each of the sessions discussed initiatives and examined integrative approaches to fostering communities and in having a shared purpose of going beyond established notions to develop solutions to issues affecting the society and to establish an ecosystem that will work to transform our environments and create smart and inclusive communities. It also highlighted social entrepreneurs who are using business principles to solve social and environmental challenges. 

The event brought together a host of industry leaders, professionals, academics and students, who shared best practices and engendered new ideas surrounding the intersection of business and society.