Review by Adriaan Lucassen (5 EC)
The Hustle Economy Programme was launched by the Africa Foundation in 2018. Based in South Africa, it selects beginning entrepreneurs and helps them start their business in a ten-week programme. It works from the fact that formal employment can be difficult to find in South Africa and that there is nothing wrong with working in the informal sector. It helps people with everything needed for that, so they can have a source of income.
There is also a “credit system” involved; if participants volunteer in their own community, they can earn credits which they can then exchange for financial support in setting up their business. It is paid for by the Africa Foundation itself which, as far as I can find out, is registered in the USA, the UK and South Africa as a charity.
Whilst this is not strictly an environmental education project, sustainability is a big part of what is being taught and they strive towards you having an environmentally-friendly business.
This means that, not only does this project help people to get a steady source of income, but it also teaches them about their surroundings, motivates them to do good volunteering work, and makes them know how to do all this whilst minimising their impact on the planet. I think this is a great idea. The Foundation cannot change the fact that formal employment is hard to come by in South Africa, but it can make people happy with a less formal job just as well and simultaneously people (of all ages) learn even much more than that. There is little negative that I can say about this, except that I hope to see it rolled out into more countries.
sources:
https://www.africafoundation.org.za/hustle-economy/
https://www.africafoundation.org.za/hustle-economy/hustle-preneurs/