In the past few years, the world has been presented with numerous serious problems: economic crisis, global warming, regional conflicts, poverty, etc. While they are mostly regarded as separate issues, the roots, in fact, lie deeply in the development model of most parts of the world, which overlooked the importance of sustainability and harmony. However, in face of the challenges, it is our mission to explore a new model for the world’s future development. 

In the light of this goal, a group of students from the University of Michigan initiated China Social Innovation Foundation, which aims to innovate new development paths, from the stage of theory to practical experience, for underdevelopment regions in the context of China. CSIF features itself with strong social network among different fields, including the technology field, the business field, the academic field and so forth. With the collaborative devotion from these parts, CSIF wish to create a bright future for the grand China.

As its main concerns, sustainability and environmental-friendliness are, CSIF has been working on “Green Leap”, one of its major concepts. Instead of using the development model in the Industrialization Age, CSIF wishes the rural parts of China could adopt Clean Technology at the very beginning. Consequently, it works on introducing cutting-edge green technologies to the BoP (Base of the Pyramid) market of rural parts of China. This is the concept of “Green Leap”. 

Other than the program in technology, CSIF also works on education, medication, poverty alleviation and so on, in order to provide a holistic outline for the new development model. In order to involve in younger minds and cultivate entrepreneurs, CSIF launched its university based program CEN- China Entrepreneur Network.

China Entrepreneur Network (hereafter referred to as CEN) is a university based, student run organization attached to CSIF, which shares the same vision. CEN aims to discover and develop social entrepreneurship talents and potential in university students, and to pursuit social entrepreneurship for sustainable development and social innovation to serve for a sustainable future. By encouraging students to seek for innovative solutions to real problems of social development, CEN raises the awareness of social responsibility among the young generation and plants far reaching seeds of social entrepreneurship in the hearts of the young generation.

As its name suggests, CEN aims to develop as a network of entrepreneurs, academic professionals and university students, in order to share information, resources, experience and inspiration to jointly seek for innovative solutions for social developmental problems. With diverse activities held at different chapters, including China Business Challenge competition, China Entrepreneur Forum, themed Seminars and Lectures, etc., CEN is actively engaging professionals and the young generation to exchange and explore ideas in the field of social entrepreneurship.

Up until now, CEN has established 12 Chapters all over the world: Chapters at University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Cornell University, Thunderbird School of Global Management, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Guizhou University, University of Chicago, Stanford University and Princeton University and The University of British Columbia. With the development of more chapters in greater geographical scope, CEN is indeed becoming a global organization, playing a critical role in the exchange of social entrepreneurship inspirations across the ocean.

Inspired by our co-founder and adviser, Prof. Po Chi Wu, CEN-HKUST Chapter was established in 2010. Adopting and developing the CEN vision, HKUST Chapter aims to convene, cultivate and support passionate youth in social innovation and entrepreneurship. Our vision is to act as network for students, scholars and entrepreneurs to exchange ideas and induce social innovation.

As the first and currently the only Chapter in Hong Kong, CEN-HKUST plays a critical role in the interaction between US chapters and mainland ones. As Mr. Xiaojian You, Chairman of CSIF has pointed out,” We find problems to solve in mainland and technologies to solve them in US, and HK is the bridge in between, which plays the key role in financing and promotion.”