The month opened with our Social Enterprise Bootcamp in Mpigi, and it was intense in the best way. This was not entrepreneurship as theory. People joined real early-stage SINA social enterprise teams, worked directly with customers, questioned assumptions, adjusted their offers, and pushed toward problem-solution fit, prototypes, pricing, and first revenues. What made it even stronger was the mix of people in the room, with participants from many different SINA Communities and 12 countries across four continents.

For the first time, we also welcomed individual international participants from the UK, Germany, Italy, the USA, and South Africa. Each joined one social enterprise team for the week and became part of the real work behind testing ideas and shaping growth. Their reflections captured that well. Esra Kucukciftci called it “work worth doing” and praised the founders’ “unparalleled market wisdom.” Bex Hewett described the week as “life changing” and wrote that seeing SINA in practice “changed my perspective entirely.” We will have a similar bootcamp coming up in June.

Then Mpigi filled up again for Impact Week Uganda 2026 at Jangu International. From March 4 to 12, with the Train-the-Coach phase followed by the challenge week, Impact Week brought together participants from 16 countries. The programme set out to equip 24 local and international Junior Coaches and 75 young challenge participants with Design Thinking skills to work on real community challenges. This diversity brought high quality to the week. Different backgrounds, different instincts, different ways of asking questions, and suddenly the learning goes deeper because nobody is coming from exactly the same place.

Also in March, the SINA Global team, made up of 14 members from different SINA Communities and replicators and Nomads, met in Jinja for a retreat. Some of the most important work in a growing movement is quiet work, the kind that does not make for many photos but shapes everything that comes next. We used the time to reflect honestly on what SINA needs now: stronger shared systems, strong human connection between the 23 locations across 9 countries, better documentation, clearer learning loops across communities, and more financial resilience so the ecosystem can keep growing.

And then Zambia started. Our newest SINA Community in Lusaka began with its pioneer scholars on March 30th after an intensive replication journey, and it builds on the partnership with Circus Zambia.

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Starting in June 2026 with a 6 months learning journey in Uganda and in January 2027, we will open SINA in Berlin, a self-organised learning and entrepreneurship community for disadvantaged young people in Berlin, joining our growing movement of currently 23+ SINA Communities. It is a big step for us, because it brings the SINA Framework into a German context with all the opportunity, diversity, and difficulties.

Right now, we are looking for two Community Starters, also called Replicators or “Changemaker-Makers”. They will co-found SINA Berlin from the inside. This is not a typical job, see below and help us spread the word.

SINA Berlin – Ausschreibung für Changemaker-Makers (German)

SINA Berlin – Call for Changemaker-makers (English)

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The event was designed as a space to listen, reflect, and learn from one another. Community founders shared how new SINA spaces are taking shape on the ground, often in places marked by displacement, unemployment, or limited access to education. Social entrepreneurs spoke about the realities of building enterprises that respond directly to local needs, from health and care to food systems and youth livelihoods.

Throughout the sessions, one theme was clear: transformation happens when people are trusted with responsibility and supported to act on their own purpose. Across different contexts, we heard how young people are turning personal challenges into solutions that serve their communities, and how learning by doing creates confidence that no classroom alone can offer.

To capture the essence of this gathering, we created a 24-minute highlight video. It weaves together voices, moments, and reflections from the day. It offers a glimpse into what it means to grow the SINA ecosystem together:

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The Corporate Rebels Summit brings together organizations that are actively reinventing how work is done in practice. Instead of abstract concepts, participants share concrete systems, experiments and decisions from their own journeys with self-management, distributed authority and human-centered workplaces. The summit is the annual gathering of the Rebel Cells network, a global community of companies that learn from each other and jointly push the boundaries of what work can look like.

In Barcelona, Etienne and Tonny will tell the story of how SINA evolved from a small experiment in Uganda into a growing movement of self-organized learning communities and social enterprises, and they will explore what it takes to build a movement that runs itself. They will share how SINA’s concept of “freesponsibility”, the balance of freedom and responsibility, shapes daily life, how scholars step into real roles to run their communities, and how governance and ownership are distributed so that decisions move closer to those directly affected.

We are excited that the Summit will also launch an animated video by Corporate Rebels to explain how SINA works.

You can read the full Corporate Rebels article here:
“From Refugee Camps To Self-Management: What We Can Learn From SINA”

For those interested in the wider context, more information about the Corporate Rebels Summit 2025, the full lineup of speakers and how to join via the Rebel Cells network is available on the summit website:
https://www.corporate-rebels.com/summit-2025

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Representing SINA were Morris Micheal Ojok and Eva Kirabo of Tunaweza Innovation Hub (Bombo), Kalindi Brian of Kamuli Innovation Academy and Charles and Birugi of Kiira Innovation Academy (Nyenga). They were greeted in Cairo by Uganda’s embassy in Egypt before heading east into SEKEM’s green campus—an oasis built over decades on formerly barren desert land and now a working showcase of biodynamic agriculture, community health, education and culture. “It’s not just about farming. It’s also about how a community lives, learns, and grows together,” said Ojok, reflecting on the first morning circle with music and poetry before field visits.

SEKEM set the context. Founded in 1977 by Dr. Ibrahim Abouleish, the initiative has spent nearly five decades greening the desert through biodynamic methods, circular resource use and renewable energy, while linking farm enterprises to education and arts that nurture the whole community. Its program with the Egyptian Biodynamic Association scales regenerative practices across thousands of farmers through standards such as Economy of Love.

The Forum itself was deliberately practical. Organizers framed the days around building the individual and collective capacities needed to make sustainable development tangible across sectors and scales, inviting participants to craft a shared “new narrative” grounded in action. For the SINA delegation, the learning cut across soil, school and society. Kirabo described the regenerative farm tours as a turning point: compost made from local organics, drip irrigation and careful crop rotations protecting soils in a water-stressed landscape, and solar integrated into daily operations. “Seeing barren land bloom through dedicated effort and smart systems was a wake-up call. Our hubs can do the same with waste and neglected spaces,” she said after a session on circularity. SEKEM and SINA both foster regenerative communities with mindset shifts, self-organization, and real-world impact.

Education at Heliopolis University gave the visitors a second anchor. Labs and studios sit alongside community projects so that students test ideas with real users and real fields—a cadence the Forum encouraged all participants to adopt. The Forum’s stated aim—to fuse practices across places and cultivate the capacities that “serve all forms of life”—mirrored that intention.

Culture threaded the experience. Morning reflection, music and poetry at SEKEM modeled how communities can align purpose before work begins. Kirabo put it simply: “Standing in the desert, surrounded by green life and music, I realized regeneration is not theory—it’s lived experience.” Those rituals resonated with SINA’s own “freesponsible” approach, in which young people gain freedom with accountability and co-create their learning by taking real roles in their communities and ventures. SINA’s purpose—“regenerative communities in a freesponsible world”—and its five-stage empowerment framework already push scholars to turn past adversity into social enterprises; the Egyptian field lessons now give them new regenerative tools to add.

Back home, the SINA Communities are translating impressions into action. Delegates outlined early steps: short daily reflection circles to build focus and cooperation; waste audits and compost pilots linked to demonstration gardens; and inter-hub exchanges so ideas travel fast—one morning circle, one compost heap, one applied project at a time.

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Let’s have a chat and share about social entrepreneurship and regenerative traveling.

Stall Number: Hall 1 A34

See you then.

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Join us (anytime within the 6h) in this celebration on zoom or the LinkedIn and Youtube Livestreams.

Hosted on Zoom and streamed live on LinkedIn and YouTube, this event offers an extraordinary opportunity to connect with and support SINA (Social Innovation Academy).

🌟 Event Highlights:

• Live on-ground Tours and interactions with the 5 SINA Communities and 3 Social Enterprises.
• Breakout rooms for one on one engagements with the presenters
• Participants and networking opportunities from all over the globe, including philanthropists, foundations, partner organizations, SINA friends, former SINA members and more…
• Opportunities to sponsor a SINA Scholar or Social Enterprise and make a tangible difference.
• You can pop-in anytime and leave anytime between the beginning and end of the event

🌍 Our Mission: At SINA, we reverse the role of disadvantaged youth from passive aid recipients to active architects of their futures. Through our 23 communities across Africa (and Nepal), we enable youths, especially those from challenging backgrounds, to create their own curriculum, gain vital skills, and establish social enterprises. Our changemaker-maker model is becoming a global movement to empower an entire generation to build a self-sustaining future in Africa and beyond.

Spread the word and invite anyone you feel should be part of this event!

We look forward to seeing you!!!

Your SINA Team

See also the highlights of our 7h live event of 2024:

The post SINA Changemaker-maker Live Event 2025 on Dec 2nd appeared first on SINA (Social Innovation Academy).

Social Impact Award (SIA) is a global program that helps young people discover social entrepreneurship and launch their first ventures through training, incubation, community, and seed awards. Hosted by SINA and running across two language clusters in East Africa—English (UG, KE, TZ, SS) and French (DRC, BI, RW)—this year’s edition culminates at the SIA Global Summit in Ljubljana, Slovenia (18–21 Nov 2025), where the East African winners will join winners from also 17 other countries from around the world.

Winners (with invitation to the SIA Global Summit):

• Community Vote — Candela Habitus (Uganda): Outdoor and sensory experiences, plus supportive tools, helping children with autism build independence and social connection. The team plans to equip their space with therapy tools, expand awareness, and pursue a Ministry of Education recognition to serve schools more widely.
• Jury Selection — Natural Uhai Food (DRC): Nutritious, locally sourced foods designed to prevent and stabilize diabetes.
• Jury Selection — Nest Guard Ltd (Rwanda): Solar- and electric-powered smart incubators and a supply of fertilized eggs for rural poultry farmers; the award will support product development and breeding stock to improve egg quality.

The finals were judged by a panel bringing both expertise and lived experience: Marcus Warry (My Social Impact), Nantongo Barbra Jane (SIA alumna and 2022 finalist turned judge), and Aisha Ali (advocate for youth and women in innovation). Their questions pressed for clarity on customer segments, unit economics, and measurable outcomes, mirroring the focus of the incubation that preceded the event.

English-speaking cluster finalists (Top 9):

• Candela Habitus (Uganda) — Inclusive outdoor activities and sensory tools for children with autism.
• Danylual Poultry Farm (South Sudan) — Affordable, high-quality broiler chicks for smallholder farmers.
• Safari Queens Rider (Tanzania/Zanzibar) — Female-led tours and transport tailored for solo travelers.
• Soo Qasil — Natural skincare powered by qasil.
• Silicon High School — Refugee-led secondary school blending academics with tech-driven entrepreneurship.
• Kibagenge Visionary Voices — Mentorship that helps out-of-school adolescents regain confidence and agency.
• Knowledge in Books: Digital Learning Hub — Computers, e-learning and digital-skills training for rural youth.
• Orya Briqs — Clean-burning briquettes from farm waste, reducing deforestation and household smoke.
• Empowerment Through Enterprise — Daily-repaid micro-loans plus financial literacy for small businesses.

French-speaking cluster finalists (Top 6):

• Nest Guard Ltd (Rwanda) — Automatic egg incubators (solar/electric) and fertilized eggs for rural farmers.
• Natural Uhai Food (DRC) — Dietary products that help prevent and stabilize diabetes using local ingredients.
• Inspired Hands (DRC) — Eco-bags from plastic waste, creating jobs for women.
• Organic Hair (DRC) — 100% natural hair-care for a healthy scalp and flourishing hair.
• Décorespo (DRC) — Thermo-compressed boards from plastic waste for eco-friendly furniture.
• Green Briquettes (Burundi) — Briquettes from agricultural waste to replace firewood and curb deforestation.

What stood out in Kampala was the ingenuity—clean energy, circular economy, inclusive education, and health—and pragmatism. Teams spoke clearly about distribution, certification, and partnerships. For SINA and our partners, this is exactly the pipeline the region needs: capable young founders building solutions to social and environmental challenges that create jobs and dignity while addressing real community needs.

SINA is grateful to every mentor, judge, donor, and voter who made the East Africa edition possible. The three winners now carry the region’s flag to Slovenia; the full cohort carries forward a shared commitment to execution. For aspiring changemakers, the message is simple: your idea can become a venture. For supporters and donors, your backing turns first steps into lasting impact and the seed capital that helps early-stage teams cross the starting line.

This video captures the voices of the winners and the atmosphere of the final pitch event in Kampala:

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The Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima, joined the occasion and underlined the need to turn Northern Nigeria’s raw materials and youthful potential into sustainable industries and solutions. “Katsina is reviving its legacy of craftsmanship and scholarship by empowering its young people to solve real problems,” he said. Also, Governor Dikko Radda, shared how DSIA has been a locally adapted replication of the SINA model and how a second cohort with 30 scholars, and a third cohort is set to begin in January 2026.

The event also featured the inaugural Katsina MSME Awards, and announcements of over ₦1 billion in investments for youth and enterprise interventions by the local government. The presence of national leaders at this graduation shows that youth-led innovation and regenerative community development are no longer fringe ideas but they are becoming central to regional strategies for transformation.

DSIA is proudly part of the broader SINA ecosystem of 23+ communities across Africa. Each one is unique and locally owned, yet all share the belief that purpose-driven action can reshape futures. Congratulations to our first Nigerian scholars. You are not the end of a journey, but the beginning of a new story for your communities and for Nigeria.

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Image Copyright by Vatican Media

For decades, survivor groups have pushed the Church toward clear, universal standards to prevent abuse and respond justly when it occurs. In the meeting, ECA, where Janet Aguti serves as the Vice-Chairperson, urged the Pope to embrace strict zero tolerance and consistent, global safeguards. The Pope signaled openness to continued dialogue with ECA and the ECA members described feeling “heard”.

Janet Aguti is a Ugandan survivor, social worker, and founder of Totya Platform, a social enterprise born at SINA. Totya—“don’t be afraid” in Luganda—helps survivors of sexual violence attain first aid medical support, psycho-social support and legal aid, while creating awareness and education on women’s and children’s rights and advocating for institutions to change how they prevent and respond to abuse.

When the Catholic Church adopts and enforces universal zero tolerance, transparent processes, and external accountability, it will set a benchmark other faiths, schools, and youth-serving institutions in Uganda and across Africa are pressed to follow. That’s the systemic lever Totya Platform champions and big steps were made towards in the Vatican.

Read more at BBC: “Catholic clergy sex abuse survivors hopeful after Pope Leo meeting”

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