It’s been eight years of fast-paced daily life, constant initiatives, special occasions and memorable events, unusual situations, and funny episodes that still make us laugh today. There are moments we remember as if they happened yesterday, and others we recall only in a few details. What they all have in common are the People who experienced them with us. These People are truly impossible to forget, and so intrinsically part of Casa do Impacto’s history that, after eight years, we still want them close by, walking with us for many years to come.

But anniversaries and “trips down memory lane” aren’t made up of memories alone. Celebrating an anniversary is always a great opportunity to bring all these People together in one place: those who’ve been here from the start, those who’ve joined us along the way, and those who’ve just arrived. And that’s exactly what we did: we brought together our Community, Partners, and Friends to blow out the candles and launch an initiative we hope to make a tradition, a Showcase where our Projects and Alumni have the chance to take the stage, tell their stories, share their journeys, and update us on what they’re up to.

Class of Wonders, GreenDash, L.ai – Holistic Waste Management, Mykor, and Pedalar Sem Idade Portugal helped us launch this Showcase, setting an example through their Purpose and the Impact they’ve made, and proving that Impact Entrepreneurship can reach everywhere through a variety of solutions, products, and services focused on Social or Environmental Sustainability and improving the lives of diverse audiences. They work every day to build an Impact Society and inspire us to take action and build it alongside them:

• > Class of Wonders: Class of Wonders is an Impact-driven Edtech company that develops gamified learning experiences for Public Elementary Schools, with a focus on Literacy and Numeracy. Its mission is to transform classrooms into spaces where no Child is left behind, using tools that help Teachers combat Educational Poverty. Operating on a subscription model for schools, the company is active in Portugal and expanding into Spain. In previous implementations, 84% of students improved their literacy and numeracy skills. It is led by a Team with over ten years of experience in Education and Social Impact.

• > GreenDash: GreenDash is a Portuguese Startup that develops an Artificial Intelligence platform to simplify and automate Sustainability Reporting. The solution enables SMEs to collect, organize, and analyze ESG data, transform existing documents into structured information, and generate reports aligned with European standards, specifically the VS. The platform is also designed for Sustainability Consultants, helping them reduce the time and costs associated with report preparation and serve more clients. The goal is to make Sustainability Reporting more accessible, efficient, and beneficial to companies’ competitiveness.

• > L.ai – Holistic Waste Management: L.ai is a technology company that develops waste reduction and waste management projects. We combine artificial intelligence, apps, websites, and waste-measurement heuristics, tailored to each industry and project. We work with municipalities, waste management operators, the hospitality industry, the construction sector, and cafeteria chains, transforming data collected at the source into better operational decisions. What drives us is the tons of waste that, thanks to our work with our partners, no longer end up in landfills.

• > Mykor: Mykor’s biofabrication platform combines Sustainable Engineering and Mycelium to transform agricultural and industrial waste into high-performance, cost-competitive, bio-based building materials that sequester carbon and help protect human health.

• > A Pedalar Sem Idade Portugal: Pedalar Sem Idade Portugal is part of an international nonprofit movement that combats unwanted loneliness and Social Isolation through regular rides on adapted bicycles and trishaws, led by properly trained Volunteer Riders. Launched in 2012 in Copenhagen and founded by Ole Kassow, Cycling Without Age is now active in 59 countries, with more than 3,500 trishaws and over 35,000 volunteers involved. Pedalar Sem Idade Portugal provides significant benefits for integrating Seniors and People with limited mobility into their Local Communities, fostering opportunities for social interaction and improving overall well-being. This movement is not just about bicycles, nor is it merely about mobility or sustainability; it is an innovative approach to volunteering, one centered on human relationships, generosity toward those who lack access to life’s simple pleasures, taking things slowly and with purpose, and the stories that inspire us.

This Showcase will take place every quarter, and each edition will be dedicated to a specific sector whose challenges our Entrepreneurs and Teams are working to address.

“It’s symbolic that we’re celebrating this anniversary with Casa do Impacto’s first Showcase. These are eight years of shared experiences with a Community that grows every day, thrives on new ideas, is dynamic and resilient, and believes the future can be better. These are the People who swim against the current and make things happen. We wear their jerseys; we continue to open our doors and knock on many others so that, together, we can build the Impact Society”— Nuno Comando, Director of the Department of Entrepreneurship and Social Economy and of Casa do Impacto.

This provides a platform for Projects that work tirelessly toward the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN’s 2030 Agenda, with the overarching goal of transforming Society and making it more just, representative, diverse, accessible, and sustainable.

This has also always been the Mission of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa: to be on the front lines, providing direct support and care to those in need in a wide variety of ways. They have always been in the right place at the right time. And it was at the right time, eight years ago, that they recognized that Tradition can go hand in hand with Innovation, and that, even so, People remain the most important element: the reason and driving force behind everything, and the center of all that is built. Eight years ago, Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa decided to create Casa do Impacto and open the doors of our Hub to anyone who wanted to make the world a better place. On the unshakable foundations of a past dedicated to serving others, the story of the future also began to be written, the future of Impact we are building.

Thank you to everyone who has been part of this journey with us; thank you for the stories we’ve shared. We want to continue living and telling them for many years to come.

Happy Birthday to all of us!