Since 2014, Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Malmö University, in collaboration with Göran Bredinger and Dieden Group AB, has awarded the Göran Bredinger Scholarship to a social entrepreneur who is addressing a societal challenge. This year marks the scholarship’s tenth anniversary.
To address complex societal challenges, academia, organizations, and private companies need to collaborate and support new ideas, social entrepreneurs, and social startups. The Göran Bredinger Scholarship was established and founded by the then Malmö University and Forum for Social Innovation Sweden collaboration with Göran Bredinger in 2014.
Forum for Social Innovation Sweden's is to broaden understanding of what social innovation is and to highlight the power of social innovations. It’s fantastic to be able to award this scholarship in collaboration with Göran Bredinger,” says Charlotte Ahlgren Moritz, chair of Forum for Social Innovation Sweden vice president at Malmö University.
Since the establishment of the Göran Bredinger Scholarship, nine young entrepreneurs have received the award and been given the opportunity to develop their ideas and businesses. This year, the tenth scholarship will be awarded to a social entrepreneur who has successfully developed and implemented an innovative solution that directly addresses a societal challenge.
It's tough to start a business and succeed
Since its inception in 2014, the jury has received an estimated 250 applications, from which 9 winners have been selected. Most of the grant recipients have succeeded and are now thriving companies. The jury, consisting of six knowledgeable and experienced leaders in various fields, identified or singled out all of these young, successful entrepreneurs and their startups at an early stage. It is extremely difficult to start a business and succeed. Many fail during the startup phase. The period after a business idea has been tested in the market until sales can finance continued expansion is called the “Valley of Death.”
Humly is the most successful company among the grant recipients
All the winners have a unique business concept and personal qualities, but what all the scholarship recipients have in common is good timing, an entrepreneurial spirit, and the ability to solve a societal problem. Kristoffer Persson and Gustav Bild-Tofftin came up with the idea for Studentvikarie, now known as Humly, and were awarded the Göran Bredinger Scholarship in 2015. Humly has been incredibly successful, becoming the largest provider of educators in the Swedish market. They are currently expanding into England and are on track to reach a turnover of 350 million Swedish kronor this year.
“Humly is the most successful company during the ten-year grant period, having made an incredible entrepreneurial journey from its founding in 2015 to becoming a successful growth company with a strong market position today,” says Göran Bredinger.
“The reason Humly has been so successful is, first of all, their successful business model. Second, Kristoffer and Gustav are very ambitious and goal-oriented entrepreneurs who have managed to build a strong team of dedicated employees. Finally, the product itself is also unique,” he says.
App that supports victims of violence
Another example is Sofie Wahlström, co-founder of BrightAct, who was voted the most influential female founder of 2022 by readers of Dagens industri’s Di Digital. Together with Elinor Samuelsson, she created the BrightAct app in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise in domestic violence. The app coordinates support to help victims of violence and save lives. A third example is Daniel Vaknine and Måns Skogman, creators of the whistleblower platform Visslan, who were named 2021 grant recipients and have increased their customer base tenfold since last year.
It's time to apply for this year's scholarship
Applications for this year’s Göran Bredinger Scholarship are now open. In addition to the prize money of 50,000 SEK, recipients will receive one year of mentorship from Göran Bredinger, himself a multiple award-winning entrepreneur with an extensive and valuable network.
“What’s so fantastic about our scholarship isn’t just the prize money—which is, of course, a welcome boost for young entrepreneurs—but the fact that it comes with mentorship from Göran Bredinger. His extensive network, through which he can open doors and identify opportunities, and his long experience as a serial entrepreneur are incredibly valuable to our scholarship recipients,” says Charlotte Ahlgren Moritz.
Learn more about the Göran Bredinger Scholarship and apply by September 30
https://socialinnovation.se/si/goran-bredinger-stipendiet/
Watch a video featuring three of the scholarship recipients
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