Kiera Wilkins, our Ethical Business Manager, shares her key takeaways from SEWF 2025
Last month, I attended the Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF) 2025 in Taipei as part of the Scottish Government funded Youth Delegation, organised by International Social Enterprise Observatory. The theme of SEWF2025 was “Shaping Tomorrow: Collective Action for People and Planet.” The week was packed full of insightful panel discussions and rousing talks from social entrepreneurs and support organisations across the globe.
Whilst there were plenty of key takeaways, I’d like to take the opportunity to share a few of mine:
Impactful supply chains
A key statistic that has stuck with me was offered by Jen Beason, Global Director of Social Entrepreneurship at SAP, she noted that “two thirds of a company’s potential for positive or negative impact lies in its supply chain.” Research conducted by the World Economic Forum found that FTSE 100 companies typically allocate $12 million to their corporate social responsibility budgets, yet their procurement spending averages $5 billion. This difference demonstrates the vast, often untapped, potential for positive impact through procurement. The Fair Trade movement has long campaigned for better, fairer supply chains. Today social enterprises are taking up the same cause through making the case for stronger social procurement, which is the process of buying from social enterprises and other mission driven organisations. This creates a real opportunity for collaboration between Fair Trade and social enterprise advocates because we share the same goal: for business and trade to put people and planet first.
Business with purpose
Throughout the week we heard from a range of fantastic social entrepreneurs who all had at least one thing in common: they were solving a social or environmental problem through business. An example of this is Bantu Tani Sdn Lhd – an agricultural social enterprise in Malaysia who, upon discovering that Malaysia imported all of its onions, worked to pioneer local onion production. Through doing so, they created sustainable income opportunities for producers, whilst strengthening food security. In a similar vein, Taiwan based social enterprise Micro PC is working to repurpose and eliminate marine waste. Hearing from social enterprises like these reinforced that resilient businesses often start with a clearly defined need and a deep understanding of the communities they serve. For me, the takeaway was that when social purpose aligns with market demand, impact becomes scalable and so arises the opportunity for both Fair Trade and social enterprises to grow.
Systems change
One of the strongest messages at SEWF2025 was that tackling today’s social and environmental challenges requires systems change. Participants discussed the importance of striving for transformative change that embeds fairness and sustainability into the way that businesses and governments operate and trade.
The session “The Economy is Broken – What Comes Next?” explored the urgent need for collective action and the role of purpose driven enterprises. We heard from Rick Macourt of First Nations Economics (Australia), who said:
“There are no economies without communities (…) We often think of the economy as separate from our communities. And it’s in that thought that we actually…perpetuate this idea of capitalism being the sole driving force of our economy. But what I often say is that you do not have economies without communities.”
His words captured the essence of what SEWF25 was about- re-centring people and community in the heart of how economies function. For Scottish Fair Trade, this means continuing to challenge the systems that keep trade extractive, and to build new ones that are inclusive, fair and regenerative.
Final thoughts
On a personal note, being part of the Under 35s delegation was a real privilege. It offered a chance to connect with others in the Fair Trade and social enterprise space who are working to change the way business is done both in Scotland and around the world. Attending alongside Scottish Fair Trade members, Dorcas from ASIGE and Jawahir from Ujamaa Spice, was a great reminder of the innovation within our own network and the fantastic people leading the way in doing business better.
I look forward to building on the connections made in Taipei, working with others across Scotland and beyond to build fairer, more sustainable forms of trade.
If you’d like to get in touch to discuss any of the above, please don’t hesitate to do so on info@scottishfairtrade.org.
