Social Startup Pitch

Teilhabe schaffen („Creating Participation“)

Since 2022, Düsseldorf / Germany

Together with Social Impact, for the first time in 2022, the Fritz Henkel Stiftung invited organizations and projects aimed at improving the lives of migrants to a Social Startup Pitch. The motto: „Creating participation“. The partners’ objective was to strengthen equal opportunities and social cohesion with the help of cultural education.

The seven participants who were carefully chosen from all the applications received comprehensive support, including workshops and coaching sessions to prepare them for their pitch. The winners also received prize money totaling 100,000 euros.

The winning teams

In December 2022, the initiatives presented their approaches to a high-caliber jury consisting of

  • Sylvie Nicol (Member of the Management Boards of Henkel Management AG and the Fritz Henkel Stiftung)
  • Thorsten Jahnke (Managing Director and co-founder Social Impact gGmbH)
  • Dr. Andreas Rickert (Board and co-founder Phineo gAG)
  • Cornelia Röper (Managing Director and founder Wefugees gUG, expert for startups and migration)
  • Reza Solhi (expert for cultural education, founder Heartbeat Edutainment gUG)

First place went to the Heartbeat Edutainment team. The up-and-coming social start-up from Frankfurt is passionately committed to educational equality, equal opportunities and personal development for young people. With their mobile „Heartbeatbus“, they bring creative workshops directly to schools and youth centers, especially in socially deprived and rural areas.

Nyabinghi Lab took second place. The start-up operates at the intersection of art, education, culture and activism. Its approach aims to enable migrants and people of color to participate more broadly in cultural production. In addition to collaborative projects, Nyabinghi Lab also offers advice for cultural institutions in order to have a systemic impact on the German cultural sector.

In third place was the myBuddy team, which is committed to cultural integration and social interaction. With a wide range of programs and events such as the annual myBuddy FESTIVAL and various impact programs, the startup creates opportunities for people from different backgrounds to connect.

The non-profit organization „Über den Tellerrand“ won the online voting and thus the audience award. Since 2013, the association has stood for active cooperation between people with and without migration and refugee experience in Germany. Through low-threshold encounters, the association promotes the elimination of prejudices and the development of friendships. Around 500 people in 13 federal states volunteer in this network, which is coordinated from Berlin together with full-time staff in Cologne, Hamburg, Frankfurt am Main and Munich.

Conclusion

The Social Startup Pitch „Teilhabe schafffn“ impressively demonstrated how cultural education and participation can be used as tools to promote social inclusion and diversity.

An impact analysis carried out in mid-2023 also demonstrated the positive influence of the Social Startup Pitch on the winning teams: whether for the further expansion of their services or help for unforeseen challenges – all four were able to come a step closer to their vision of cultural participation.