[We also have a] bit of a siloed ecosystem where you either fit into the box of being social impact in the not-for-profit sector or you’re a business.

There’s not much opportunity to bridge the gap between the two of those in terms of funding opportunities, so social enterprises often fall through the cracks of funding opportunities in SA. We are getting more exposure to national funding opportunities, but we do tend to find that SA does get a little bit left behind as quite often there is a bit more favour towards the East coast contenders.

I definitely think that having some more funding programs really requires recognition and support from government and philanthropy to open up requirements and be a little bit more flexible in some of those opportunities.

Speaking about the entrepreneurs still, what would be one piece of advice that you think all entrepreneurs need to know?

I think there’s a piece of advice that I feel is pretty timely at the moment, and that’s to not let ego hinder progress. I say this on a couple of levels, and I guess firstly it is a reminder to entrepreneurs at both ends of the ego spectrum, because I think that no matter whether you have a bigger ego or you’re super humble, often entrepreneurs won’t ask for what they need because they don’t want to be a bother or because they think they can do it all. I think that that is a common challenge that entrepreneurs face.

I think definitely you should try not to let ego get in the way of progress, but more importantly what I’m keen to convey in this message about not letting ego hinder progress is actually for our broader social enterprise ecosystem.

It feels like the sector and ecosystem is really growing so quickly across Australia, and this means a lot of new players are coming into the space. This is just quite naturally making people who work in the sector feel nervous and want to protect their patch a bit, but I think

there’s a risk of the sector becoming fractured if we let ego get in the way of broader sector progress.

We just need to keep reminding ourselves why we’re in the sector in the first place, [and how] we’re here to really create big sustainable social change and that everyone is necessary to be part of this thriving ecosystem.

It doesn’t matter if you’re a social entrepreneur, funder, researcher, intermediary or capacity builder, I feel like we’re really on the precipice of real change. We’re finally getting state and federal governments on board and having a collaborative and united sector which celebrates each other and the role that each of us plays is just so important at the moment.

What inspiring projects or initiatives have you come across recently that are creating a positive social change in their space?

Specifically, I’m probably most inspired by Taboo sanitary products and I have been for many years, well before Isabel was recently named Young Australian of the Year. Taboo and I started our social enterprise journey pretty well at the same time, and so we’re kind of operating under the same challenges and lack of ecosystem support. Yet, Isabel and Eloise, who are the co-founders of Taboo have just made really smart, savvy business decisions.

I’ve always been so impressed with the way that they conducted themselves, they took their time, built their community and they were still in high school when they started this, so I think they’re just a great example that age and experience doesn’t always mean you won’t be successful.

It’s been fantastic to see Isabel named as Young Australian of the Year and how much that’s been able to project their platform and the way that they work around addressing period poverty and having those conversations. It’s helping them to sell more products which means that they can donate more back and run more initiatives to address this issue in Australia but also around the world. I think Taboo is just a fantastic example of what social enterprises can do and Isabel and Eloise are fantastic examples of social entrepreneurs who have been really smart about the way they’ve gone about it.

I’ve had the pleasure of coming across Taboo and their work recently. It’s amazing to hear they started around the same time as you as well, so you’ve taken quite different journeys into this space and it really shows how diverse this sector is. To finish off Amy, what books or resources would you recommend to our listeners?

Things are evolving so rapidly for social enterprise here in Australia but also across the world.