Hello readers! Welcome to the FSI Digest, a shorter newsletter that is curated to keep you abreast of news and knowledge related to the theme of the latest issue of Brace for Impact. In the FSI Digest, we will also include the recent happenings at FSI and our portfolio of social businesses.
Read on and let us know your thoughts on this new addition to our newsletter series!
What We’re Reading on Food System Changes
- How can countries solve some of the most difficult food system challenges? The Johns Hopkins’ Alliance for a Healthier World, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have come together to create the data-driven problem-solving tool called Food Systems Dashboard.
- Just because it is biodegradable doesn’t make food waste harmless. Read this report by G.R.E.E.N. Hospitality to learn more about the scale of the problem of food waste globally and locally in Hong Kong, and the innovative solutions implemented by some hospitality businesses in the city.
- There are an estimated 10 billion people to feed by 2050, and 80% of the food produced will be consumed in urban areas. How can we ensure people’s equitable access to nutritious food while tackling climate change and empowering communities? These startups and youth offer some hope.
- The idea of lab-grown meat was born in a prisoner of war camp. For decades, Willem van Eelen couldn’t get enough researchers or investors interested in developing the idea further.
- The time to save the bees is now, or else we risk food insecurity, according to this recent research. What can we do as consumers? Avoid honey, and support organic farming. Read more from this piece by Green Queen.
- Want to revisit our two-part Brace for Impact on the global food system? You can read it on our website here.
FSI Happenings
- New Website
If you haven’t visited our new website yet, please do! Learn more about our vision and mission, the Shared-Impact Model, our impact-based higher-education program, impact stories, and many more on https://www.shared-impact.com/
- New Office
Sadly, we had to bid goodbye to our old coworking space (“Peak Impact”) last month. The good news is that we have already found and settled into our new space, still just a short walk from the HKU MTR Station. Talk to us if you are looking for a conveniently located and affordable coworking space!
- Community Connections
We are excited to be launching this new program soon! Community Connections is a program that connects professionals from the private sector with high-impact organizations to drive collective social impact. The first digital “Connection Session”, where corporate participants and our social impact partners meet and explore possibilities for collaboration, will be taking place on 3 September. Learn more about Community Connections here, and stay tuned to updates on the next Connection Session!
- Thought Leadership
Soon after the COVID-19 outbreak, FSI has been busy applying for funding opportunities on behalf of our portfolio companies. In case you missed this piece co-written by our board on giving the social sector a lifeline, find out how you can help, and help us share this article widely. Let us know if you’re interested in collaborating with us in publishing thought leadership pieces on starting a social business, driving and scaling collective social impact, and nurturing the next generation of social impact leaders.
From Our Portfolio
- G.R.E.E.N. Hospitality
Got ideas or solutions that can help advance sustainability in the hospitality industry? Join G.R.E.E.N. Hospitality’s Hackathon & Innovation Night on 20-21 November 2020, and stand to win up to HK$5,000 in cash awards! Get your tickets here.
- Migrasia
What should a government do when it is called out for complicity in relation to human trafficking and modern slavery? For the Hong Kong government, its response is to blindly divert money to the very industry that is the largest facilitator of these crimes.Read more about the problematic domestic worker employment agency industry in Hong Kong in this piece, written by the co-founder of Migrasia here.
