Zalando and Ashoka have teamed up to create the Changemakers United initiative which will help the entrepreneurs working on solutions to the societal effects of the COVID-19 crisis bring their ideas to life. The duo is helping give entrepreneurs and their ideas the exposure they need in order to find supporters, experts, and other changemakers who want to get involved and make these ideas a reality.
Collaboration is incredibly important in the current climate and providing help to everyone affected by the coronavirus is going to be much easier when companies come together to provide that support. When more people come together more ideas are formed and noticed meaning the chances of finding and implementing innovative solutions is high.
On May 20th Zalando and Ashoka introduced the initiative with the Changemakers United Online Summit where 20 social entrepreneurs from 16 European countries presented their solutions for the current and future consequences of COVID-19 on our societies and economies. The initiative is clearly turning heads and more than 1,400 people joined to watch and contribute to the chat.
“As Europe’s leading platform for fashion and lifestyle, we share risks and opportunities with the broader fashion industry. We want to be part of the solution to this crisis. With Changemakers United, we join our strengths with Ashoka to help 20 entrepreneurs support their own ecosystems and scale their innovative solutions for many of the societal effects of the coronavirus”
– Rubin Ritter, co-CEO, Zalando
Next steps for the Changemakers
Each project within the program will receive at least one mentor and support from Zalando employees as well as experts and funders who will invest their time, knowledge, and resources into the projects. Zalando will continue to highlight the 20 specifically chosen ideas on its channels to encourage further positive changes that will push global development to help us deal with future crises effectively.