October 2025

Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 23 oct 2025

Volunteer-based travel provides oppotunities to do good, be purposeful and become a contributor to the communities and environment that one visits, in addition to exploration, exotic experiences and saving money. Some places in India are open to such socially conscious travel. Here are the few to consider - (1) World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WOOF) India, Uttarakhand: Stay at a host family; Rural life experiences; Agriculture and farm work; Connect with local community; Learn eco-friendly and sustainable agriculture practices. (2) Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), Ladakh: Participate in transforming region's education system; Experience intercutlural interactions; Engage in rural youth initiatives; Campus living and student interaction and project participation. (3) The Primate Trust of India, Goa: Opportunity for wildlife enthusiasts; Work with rescued primates and contribute to their care and rehabilitation; Experience rural Indian life. (4) Wahoe Community Volunteer Programmes, Shimla: Focuses on education, women's empowerment, spirituality, and nutrition; Tutoring children or work at community farm. (5) Ecosphere, Uttarakhand: Get involved to create sustainable livelihoods; Participate in construction of greenhouses and solar passive structures; Assist in daily rural acitivities; Provides opportunities to learn about local handicrafts and local culture. Read on...

The Beter India: Make Your Next Trip Meaningful: 5 Volunteer Experiences That Go Beyond Sightseeing
Authors: Mervin Preethi, Khushi Arora

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Mohammad Anas Wahaj | 22 oct 2025

The World Economic Forum's 'The State of Social Enterprise 2024' report finds that there are 10 million hybrid social ventures globally, and they generate US$ 2 trillion in revenue and create 200 million jobs. Moreover, women lead 1 of every 2 hybrid social ventures in the world, contrary to their 1 in 5 ratio in traiditonal businesses. According to the research study, 'Gender and social entrepreneurship fundraising: A mission drift perspective' (Authors: Yanhua Bird of Boston University; Junchao (Jason) Li of The State University of New Jersey; Yiying Zhu of Montclair State University; Zhenyu Liao of Northeastern University), published in Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes May 2025 (ScienceDirect.com), 'Female entrepreneurs are better positioned to alleviate funders' concerns over mission drift (i.e., entrepreneurs prioritizing financial gain at the expense of social missions) as they are perceived as having stronger prosocial motivation. As a result, they will garner more financial support for their early-stage hybrid social ventures relative to their male counterparts.' The research looked at archival data on social entrepreneur projects from crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. But this data only provided the relationship between funding and the gender of the entrepreneur. So researchers conducted an experiment where they presented investors with potential investments to see which ones they would invest in. Prof. Liao says, 'Ultimately, we found women tend to be perceived as having a higher pro-social motivation. Those kinds of higher social motivations will translate it into stronger confidence among those investors that those women entrepreneurs are more likely to commit to those social goals in their social, entrepreneurial projects...Women entrepreneurs have some unique advantages in certain domains. These can be really powerful. (I hope this paper) shines a hopeful light on this.' Read on...

Northeastern Global News: Female entrepreneurs have an advantage when it comes to funding social enterprises, new Northeastern research finds
Author: Erin Kayata

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