Just for a Change

The truth is that not all entrepreneurs are created equal.

When faced with a backwards system with inadequate funding structures, restrictive policies, outdated networks, a huge skills gap and all the red tape around registering a business, you’re nothing less than a hero as an entrepreneur in Africa.

In this episode, we shine a light on some of the incredible people who are solving social challenges in Africa through innovative entrepreneurial ideas. As JASIRI and Raymond Ackerman Academy Alumni, they are no strangers to catalysing change with their business ventures.

To kick off the podcast, JASIRI staff, Daniel Hampton and Akalisa Keza and JASIRI fellows Peace Iraguha and Brian Simiyu join host, Fergus Turner, to talk about what the initiative is about and how it is making a difference in the continent. In the inspiring positive outlook segment, Kentse Radebe interviews Ayanda Cuba about how enlisting in the Raymond Ackerman Academy transformed his life and inspired him to start his business.

Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss any future episodes!

The links you need to know about:

Music used from () ‘Midas Touch’ by Ketsa via https://freemusicarchive.org/genre/African

license available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/legalcode

https://jasiri.org/about/

https://www.wired.com/story/opinion-the-global-south-is-redefining-tech-innovation/

https://www.ackermanacademy.co.za/AlumniStory.asp?intAlumniID=43

https://www.ackermanacademy.co.za/AlumniStory.asp?intAlumniID=40

https://www.socialchangecentral.com/as-the-virtual-un-general-assembly-debates-how-to-get-the-sustainable-development-goals-back-on-track-social-entrepreneurs-have-the-solutions/ freemusicarchive.org · creativecommons.org · jasiri.org · · · · · Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter · JFAC Ep 4-Transcript.pdf — PDF (133.3 KB)

Do you believe that entrepreneurship has the power to transform Africa?

It all boils down to the systems change privately owned businesses bring and their potential to drive continental development. The problems are evident in the global south but are the solutions just as evident?

In this episode of Just for a Change, we feature The Raymond Ackerman Academy as well as JASIRI, supported by the Allan & Gill Gray Foundation, to unpack entrepreneurship as a solution for real change.

Join us as we discover how innovative changemakers are changing the world in Africa and beyond.

Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss this episode! Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter

The record-high youth unemployment statistics both nationally and internationally can be overwhelming. In season 2, episode 2 of the Just for a Change podcast, we explore the power of a systems thinking approach when attempting to slay this ‘giant’ of an issue. Systems thinking is a lens that helps to understand the grand scheme of things and how its parts interact in order to determine sensible intervention points for impactful change.

The guest host for this episode, Luvuyo Maseko, heads up the youth innovation portfolio at the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship. He is joined by Kristal Duncan-Williams from Youth Capital, Dr Solange Rosa, director of the Bertha Centre and Zimbabwean-based Bertha Scholar, Hillary Musarurwa. What are some small shifts that can drive systemic change? How is the Youth Development Collab driving this conversation and how can we tackle these issues head-on so that we don’t have another generation of young people repeating cycles of unemployment and poverty?

Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss any future episodes!

The links you need to know about:

- Shift 2020: https://youthcapital.co.za/youth-capital-annual-publication-shift-2020/

- https://www.dcme.nu/systems-thinking-episode-1-what-are-wicked-problems-and-why-should-i-care/

- https://youthcapital.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/YC-SECOND-CHANCE-GRAPHICS-2-6.pdf

- https://newcities.org/four-cities-global-south-fighting-youth-unemployment/

- http://www.statssa.gov.za/?p=14415

- https://www.mercycorps.org/blog/youth-unemployment-global-crisis youthcapital.co.za · www.dcme.nu · youthcapital.co.za · newcities.org · www.statssa.gov.za · www.mercycorps.org · Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter · Transcript — PDF (141.3 KB)

With more than 64 million youth unemployed worldwide and 145 million young workers living in poverty, it is evident that youth unemployment is a complex problem that needs a complex solution. This global challenge can become overwhelming if seen as a one-dimensional issue. This is where systems thinking plays a powerful role in finding a solution. In this episode of the Just for a Change podcast, we explore the topic of youth unemployment and unpack how small shifts can drive change.

Join us as we discover how innovative changemakers are changing the world in Africa and beyond.

Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss this episode! Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter

Women are still changing the way we’re changing the world.

In season 2, episode 2 of the Just for a Change podcast we tackle an important topic - empathic advocacy. The idea of a single life with multiple narratives running in parallel, is an intriguing one. It throws us off, and can perhaps even cause some discomfort. Who deserves our time and attention? How do we advocate for people on the margins? What is empathic advocacy and how does it affect the work we do in the area of systems change? What role does stigma play in reducing people’s stories to a single narrative when really they are more complex.

In this episode’s feature story podcast host, Kentse Radebe, hosts a conversation with Duduzile Dlamini from SWEAT - an organisation that advocates for the rights of sex workers in South Africa and Zeenat Hendricks from Rape Crisis. Rape Crisis is a feminist organisation that works towards achieving women’s rights by offering counselling, education and training, advocacy and community mobilisation. How does empathic advocacy work in these spaces? Why is this work so important and how are we moving towards making the world a more just place - especially for women.

In the positive outlook segment Simnikiwe Xanga chats with Velna - a mentor mother from mothers2mothers to hear about the innovative work they are doing by employing women to help other women and their families on the journey to good health.

Links:

https://rapecrisis.org.za/

http://www.sweat.org.za

https://mobilisationlab.org/stories/the-force-of-empathy-in-advocacy-storytelling/

https://theconversation.com/the-stigma-of-sex-work-comes-with-a-high-cost-79657

Resources on creative activism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh-aoYWrACw rapecrisis.org.za · www.sweat.org.za · mobilisationlab.org · theconversation.com · www.youtube.com · Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter · Transcript.pdf — PDF (151.6 KB)

Although stories are powerful and have the potential to change our thinking, perceptions and perhaps even our actions. But it is empathy that gives stories their power in advocacy.

In this episode of the Just for a Change podcast, we tackle the topic of empathic advocacy as we recognise the complexity of people's stories.

Join us as we discover how innovative changemakers are changing the world in Africa and beyond. Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss this episode!  Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter

The Just for a Change podcast team is back for another season of this noteworthy podcast on social innovation and systems change! In season one we focussed on unpacking and showcasing social innovation and entrepreneurship through the lens of systems change thinking. Season two builds on this foundation and we start to look both locally and outside our borders to the global south. What is the global south? What social innovation is happening and what aids this innovation? Who are the changemakers behind these innovative approaches and solutions? What keeps them going and what keeps them awake at night? How do we continue to change the way we’re changing the world?

In season two’s inaugural episode the focus is on changemaking collaborations and innovations in health across the global south. The Social Innovation in Health Initiative, also known as SIHI was started in 2014 - a collaborative effort amongst a number of funders and organisations to encourage collaboration and create a community of support in the health sector across. Podcast host, Kentse Radebe, chats to 4 SIHI members across the global south to hear about this collaboration, the health innovations they’re part of in their respective countries as well as the value that they have found being part of this global initiative.

If you’re looking to change the way you’re changing the world - then this podcast is for you.

The links you need to know about:

Bertha Centre:

https://www.gsb.uct.ac.za/berthacentre

SIHI:

https://socialinnovationinhealth.org/ · socialinnovationinhealth.org · Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter · S2. Ep1. Change makers in the global South - Collaboration and innovation in the health sector_Transcript_.pdf — PDF (150.1 KB)

In this episode we'll talking about changemaking collaborations and innovations in health across the global south. And a great example of collaboration and innovation in this sector is the Social Innovation in Health Initiative, also known as SIHI

We have managed to bring together members from the Global South which is the regions of Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. We have Manuel Espinoza from the SIHI Honduras Hub , Claudia Nieto from SIHI Latin America, Phyllis Dako-Djeke from the SIHI Ghana Hub and Noel Juban from the SIHI Philippines Hub.

Join us as we discover how innovative changemakers are changing the world in Africa and beyond. Click the subscribe button on our podcast profile to make sure you don't miss this episode!  Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter

It’s hard to believe that the ‘Just for a Change' powered by the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship is wrapping up it’s first season! When this podcast launched in the middle of the pandemic last year it was a leap into the unknown and it’s really special to reflect back on all the episodes so far in this wrap-up episode of season one.

Podcast hosts Kentse Radebe, Simnimkiwe Xanga and Fergus Turner gather together to reflect on their highlights from each episode and frame this in such a great way, delving deeper into the topic of what it really means to make sense of systems justice.

The backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic has certainly given us a lot of food for thought and has merely exposed many systemic cracks that have been there for a long time. According to a great article by Anna Birney from the School of Systems Change at Forum for the Future there are 5 key components of creating lasting impact. Using these elements as a framework Kentse, Simni and Fergus discuss things like diagnosing systemic issues and then designing solutions that solve these things. It’s so important to innovate and collaborate - but what does this really look like on the ground? And how does one even begin to lead in creating change when the future is so uncertain?

Some great news is that the Just for a Change podcast will be back in July 2021 with season two! The podcast hosts also share with you what you can look forward to in this second season. One thing is certain - if you enjoyed season one, then you definitely don’t want to miss season two.

Hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss the launch of season two coming soon.

The links you need to know about:

https://medium.com/school-of-system-change/what-are-the-capabilities-we-need-for-system-change-cba2047a4ffb

https://www.forumforthefuture.org/school-of-system-change medium.com · www.forumforthefuture.org · Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter · S1. Ep13 - Season Wrap up - Transcript.pdf — PDF (140.4 KB)

‘Just for a change powered by the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship’ show notes

Season 1 wrap-up episode teaser: Making sense of systems justice

Can you believe that we’ve reached the end of season one of the Just for a Change podcast? It’s been a jam-packed first season and in this season’s finale we unpack some of the themes we’ve covered in the first season and look at how we can make sense of systems justice.

Join all three podcast hosts, Kentse Radebe, Simnikiwe Xanga and Fergus Turner as they journey through the highlights of season one and share some exciting news about upcoming developments launching soon!

Hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss this episode! Bertha Centre · Subscribe to the Bertha Centre newsletter