An interactive and insightful Live Q&A took place on 23 December, 2022 between Development Alternatives (DA) Group and social investing platform, Rang De, where Kanika Verma, Lead, Green and Inclusive Entrepreneurship and Associate Vice President, DA Group and Rang De’s Smita Ram, Co-Founder and CEO and Ram NK, Co-Founder and MD conversated on green jobs, innovation in finance, and the partnership in making low-cost and timely credit accessible to rural India’s entrepreneurs.Seeking to understand the systemic shifts created in the ecosystem, highlights from the conversation are as follows: i) Unlocking Innovation in Finance Speaking on innovation in finance, especially in building micro-credit products, Ms Verma remarked that one has to be dynamic and inclusive in recognising the aspirations of an individual. She shared an example of persona-based credit and stated, “DA has identified four personas in its programmes, namely women, youth, seasoned, and inclusive through which the team identifies the aspirations and needs of the individual, and which has also helped the entrepreneurs understand the type of financial products they would like to avail.” ii) Mainstreaming Inclusive and Green Entrepreneurship Micro-enterprises are wired to veer towards green economy opportunities by virtue of their ability to capitalise on local resources and create local jobs. For instance, juxtapose the carbon footprint of a local chips manufacturer to that of a multinational corporation’s, not to mention the number of jobs it creates within the local economy! Another example would be the Integrated Fishery and Poultry (IFPE) model which optimises poultry waste as a resource to reduce input cost in the fishery model. iii) Listening to Nurture Constructive Communities At DA, deep listening has been central to include the voices of communities responding positively to shifts in the new social system. Through co-creating proactive solutions, the entrepreneurs have been spearheading micromovements of change on ground such as
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