The conference promoted by Casa do Impacto under the banner of Social Good Week happened on June 30 in Lisbon under the scope of “How to support the national entrepreneurship ecosystem to make it a European impact reference?”. At this presentation attended, many speakers from the entrepreneurial and impact ecosystems, such as Jeanne Bretécher, President of Social Good Accelerator EU; Margarida Couto, president of GRACE – Empresas Responsáveis; Nuno Brito Jorge, CEO of GoParity, an ethical investment platform and António Dias Martins, Executive Director of Startup by Edmundo Martinho, Provider of SCML.

The programme will culminate in Brussels in November 2022. Starring in 2010, it is promoted by the Social Good Accelerator, which brings together more than 60 European networks, social organizations and citizens committed to empowering companies, startups and NGOs in the technological area. Created to stage the digital, social and solidarity transition in Europe, Social Good Week brings together the active and diverse community along the EU countries to share a forward-look and bold vision of the future. The annual event will take place 3 thematic conferences at different European capitals:

> Conference #1, Brussels, January 25 2022, co-organized by Social Good Accelerator and Social Economy Europe, under the scope “How to scale up Social Tech in Europe.”

> Conference #2, Lisbon, June 30 2022, co-organized by Social Good Accelerator and Casa do Impacto/SCML, under the scope “How to support the national entrepreneur ecosystem to make it the European impact benchmark?”

> Conference #3, Paris, September 2022, under the scope “Transforming digital social economy into an asset for the territories.”

“We believe Portugal has what it takes to become a European reference of Impact. This initiative will show that this goal is achievable with the necessary strategic support. We want Portugal to be at the forefront of this movement, and at Casa do Impacto, we provide the various players in the digital social sector the know-how to navigate the digital world, enabling and driving hundreds of impact initiatives. Synergies between innovators and organizations, the share of knowledge and our ability to promote this type of meeting demonstrate this. This is another way for us to support the entrepreneurial community, inside and outside Casa do Impacto, so that we can become an example for the international entrepreneurial community,” said Inês Sequeira, director of Casa do Impacto. Furthermore, she explained why she brought this event to Lisbon: “to advocate technology at the service of citizens and the common good”.

With an entire room to discuss the challenges and opportunities of the impact ecosystem, António Dias Martins from Startup Portugal explained that “Startup Portugal has the role in providing stage and building bridges for all startups. We are increasing our international recognition, driven by the innovation ecosystem we’re creating. Impact startups, linked to the Sustainable Development Goals, have access to a positive markup so that projects of this size have more space in the Portuguese ecosystem”, he stated.

Margarida Couto, president of GRACE, assured, “The ESGs (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance) framework is a ‘must have’. Companies without this framework lose competitive advantages – if they want to seek prosperity, they must adopt these tools. In addition, impact entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to work with large companies to meet the impact goals they are required to meet. But, on the other hand, companies are already finding in the impact ecosystem an innovative way to improve their levels of sustainability and innovation, mainly in the ‘Social’ axis of ESGs”, she explained.

Nuno Brito Jorge, Co-founder and CEO of Go Parity, reinforced the role of Casa do Impacto in the startup’s journey to date. Nuno Brito Jorge said, “the safety net Casa do Impacto gave us was fundamental to cross the valley of death, a typical period of the entrepreneurial journey of all startups. Portugal has a safe environment to test projects, locations, and necessary tools, such as Casa do Impacto, for the first steps of impact startups. It is easy to validate the product, and it is easy to enter the market; it is unattractive to the competition. Therefore, it is a very safe environment for the national entrepreneur to start his journey”, he concluded.

The Social Good Accelerator is working at the European level, from France, to help accelerate the technological transition of foundations and non-profit organizations in the European Union. “The digital transition will allow the social economy to increase its capacity to act and do it. Several initiatives – and models – from the non-profit or limited-profit sector deserves to be further recognized and implemented on a massive scale. It is time to help social economy organizations scale up through digital media”, explained Axelle Lemaire – sponsor of the Social Good Accelerator and French Secretary of State for Digital Economy and Innovation (2014-2017).

Through these initiatives, Casa do Impacto intends to lead, along with its partners, a fair, inclusive and sustainable digital transition movement for the common good. In this way, it increases everyone’s skills, positioning Portugal as a point of reference in Europe for the future of the impact ecosystem.

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