For the fifth anniversary of the prize, winners have been selected for their socially impactful practices in community healthcare, employment of the homeless, empowerment of young leaders, the delivery of independent news for the global impact community, and working with organisations to create impactful supply chains.
The 2023 Cambridge Social Innovation Prize is awarded by Trinity Hall and the Cambridge Centre for Social Innovation at the University of Cambridge, supported by a generous donation from Trinity Hall alumnus Graham Ross Russell.
These awards are made annually to extraordinary founder-CEOs of scale-up social enterprises to support their growth as leaders. Uniquely, the Cambridge Social Innovation Prize recognises mid-career social innovators; and the prize includes a £10,000 cash award for personal and professional development. Additionally, mentoring from experts at Cambridge Judge Business School and support from an expanding community of social innovators at Trinity Hall will help them to develop the skills, resources, and networks they need to create more impact from their work.
The winners are:
- Liz Dennis – co-Founder of Filo Project, a Community Interest Company based in Exeter that provides quality day care for older people with mild to moderate dementia.
- Aoise Keogan-Nooshabadi – co-Founder and COO of Supply Change, a London social enterprise working to create impactful supply chains.
- Zakia Moulaoui – Founder and CEO of Invisible Cities, a social enterprise that trains those who’ve experienced homelessness to be tour guides in Edinburgh, York, Manchester, Glasgow and Cardiff.
- Poku Osei – Founder and CEO of Babbasa, a Bristol social enterprise that develops young people into future leaders through skill development and professional mentoring.
- Tim West - Founder editor and CEO of Pioneers Post, an independent news network based in Middlesex focusing on the work of changemakers working across business, civil society, philanthropy, government, and public services.
Winner, Zakia Moulaoui explains how being a tour guide with Invisible Cities breaks down the stereotypes of homelessness:
“The tours are designed to break down the stigma that may exist around homelessness. People are definitely curious and want to know more about homelessness, and I think the tours give them an opportunity to have this conversation without it being awkward. I think the benefit is that people realise everyone has a great story to tell, everyone has the skills to be entertainers, to be wonderful tour guides.”
Nicole Helwig, Executive Director for the Cambridge Centre for Social Innovation says of the prize’s importance in the social enterprise space:
“On this the fifth anniversary of the Cambridge Social Innovation Prize, we are thrilled to celebrate five outstanding individuals. They come from diverse backgrounds with expertise and skills channelled towards creating social impact. They represent their ventures, but also the many people who work alongside them, behind the scenes and who are empowered through their efforts”.
About the prize
The Cambridge Social Innovation Prize is the cornerstone of an ongoing collaboration between Cambridge Centre for Social Innovation at Cambridge Judge Business School and Trinity Hall, one of the oldest colleges at the University. Together, the School and the College are working to foster an interest in social innovation and entrepreneurship among students, fellows, and alumni, encouraging them to create new businesses and to pursue careers rooted in social and environmental impact.
