Once our project can reach more of a steady state, our end to end solution will focus on having the children who need services to have a pathway to access those.
Our screener will be used across Sierra Leone where parents will be able to find out if their child is suspected of having autism or not. As this is not a diagnostic tool, if a yes is the result of the screener, they will have a pathway to diagnosis.
After this, parents and children will have a pathway to services from partners in Sierra Leone that already exist: Sierra Leone Autistic Society and schools in the community. From our education and training that we plan to complete in the upcoming years, there will be at least one person who will be able to provide services in schools. Services and supports for children with autism differ from students without disabilities for a number of reasons. Within children diagnosed with autism, the amount of services also varies depending on severity of the disability, therefore it is not possible to detail this portion of the end to end solution as it is highly individualized.
Ten practical lessons from the business (revenue) models of ventures we reviewed today (or others you research) as they relate to your venture.
It was interesting to hear about grants and university supported funding was not considered part of steady state. I know that it should be phased out eventually, however I work very closely with many long term non-profits who do not rely on those grants but use them for many vital aspects. We did not have this funding as part of our steady state, but it did make me start to think about all of the places that do use it as steady state.
Khanjan’s comments about who will buy our materials made me start to think about other people who may want to purchase these materials. Teachers Pay Teachers, TPT, in America is a huge platform where anyone can sign up, upload teaching materials with any price they choose, and other teachers can purchase and receive the immediate download. Now in Africa, the website and technology are not as advanced, however I think we may one day be able to create ABA materials for children with ASD and we could sell them on this for anyone to purchase. Most items on TPT are under $10, with most of the items between $3-6. This is not a platform to get rich off of, however it is a great way to make money on materials you were already making.
I liked the concept of Greyston bakery and their hiring process to make the brownies for Ben and Jerry’s. Greyston’s bakery hired people regardless of their history and backgrounds. I think this is an important takeaway when we think about who we will be “hiring”, and more so training, to screen the children for autism. With a small number of psychiatrists available to screen, we need to think about who will be trained to screen the potential high volume of children displaying stereotypic behaviors. In Sierra Leone it will be important to hire people not based on their backgrounds, but based on their ability to understand and screen the children with validity.
The other project that I liked, for similar reasons, was the Barefoot college. They were able to train multiple women, in different countries, and have them go back to their village and make the solar lights. This is an important concept when we think about our screeners being accessible to other countries and other organizations. It will be important to have a type of person in mind (ex. Grandmothers in the BC video) to train and share that knowledge within the village and universities/companies using our educational training and implementing our autism screener.
In the video about Barefoot college, the presenter talked about how it’s the community that certifies you, a piece of paper that just hangs on the wall isn’t what is important. It was interesting to see how this applied later in the talk when he discussed how all the men weren’t interested in the Barefoot college because they just want to get the certificate and leave their village. But when they sought out the Grandmothers they ended up being people who were very passionate about the work and who wanted to use the knowledge they gained to help their village and to share it with others. This highlights the importance in identifying the right people to help with your venture because you want to find those who are also passionate about your venture and making a change, rather than gaining the information (or certificates) and leaving to use that information elsewhere.
It was interesting to see how much the Greyston’s bakery was able to provide to their workers and their bakery, particularly for a company that seemed to be on the smaller side, especially compared to larger companies like Ben & Jerrys. It shows that even the smaller companies, with the right business model, can have a large impact on the community around them.
I personally enjoyed hearing the feedback for the other teams. Although our project is completely different from some of the others, it was helpful to hear how their portions of their business model are not that far from ours. It also helped us think in a more steady state as it can always be difficult when we are starting this year and now is more pertinent. However, five years from now maybe even more important.
I found the story about the Reel Gardening to hit home for me specifically. It is a very good idea for those who do not have the knowledge on a large scale. However I also did not enjoy the example for a personal reason. My significant other runs a nonprofit who teaches citizens in urban areas that are nicknamed as “food deserts” how to grow their own food from community gardens, the type of seeds, and the entire process that is eliminated with Reel Gardening because it is pre-packaged. I think the large scale in other countries will greatly benefit from this venture, however it takes away a part of learning that I have seen first hand to be so genuine when watching kids learn how to prepare seeds for soil. With that being said, I think it is important for ventures to make processes more simple how Reel Gardening does as not everyone has organizations like my significant others who provides that education and training.
I enjoyed examining the website for the envirofit. That website was a great example of how to take your model and make is visibly for all consumers and pushing what matters.
On the last slide of the PowerPoint for the week, there were some additional links to follow. I spent some time exploring these websites. One of the social ventures mentioned in the one website talked about the donation of books. I remember we talked through an example similar to this when we still were taking classes face to face. This made me start to think that we could ask organization to donate products that they are no longer using as students with autism often use many manipulatives and products in schools. They also outgrow them often and may sit unused in closets for a long time. This may be an interesting option for our team to look into.
I found a really important takeaway in learning about Greyston’s Bakery. I found their hiring process really interesting. It made me think about our own project and how we will need to be able to include individuals who are willing to work. This means that aside from qualifications, we must be able to give everyone who is willing to advance the dream forward a chance.
I thought that the process behind Reel Gardening was particularly interesting. I also liked how they ensured that their project was self-sustaining. They did this by visiting African countries to train farmers, who in turn, trained other individuals. They also donated seeds after every purchase.This allowed for their project to reach a wider audience and to sustain itself.
