The Social Entrepreneurship Association of Latvia for the sixth time organised the social entrepreneurship pitch competition “Let The Good Ideas Grow”, which has become a tradition. The competition was held in cooperation with Luminor Bank, Development Finance Institution ALTUM and charity shop network “Otrā Elpa”. The two winners each received a cash prize of €4,000! Each year, the competition is open to existing and emerging social entrepreneurs from all over Latvia who need funding to implement a new social entrepreneurship idea or an existing project. The final of “Let The Good Ideas Grow” was broadcast live on internet news media Delfi.lv.

Winners:

🏆 Jury’s Choice – Association “Tavi draugi” with the idea to refurbish and rent out donated items as inventory.

🏆In the live audience vote – Creative Sustainability Platform Bourzma with the idea to create a textile upcycling workshop for the production of sustainable clothing.

Sympathy Awards:

🏆”Luminor bank” Sympathy Award winner – initiative of Elīna Zandere “Health in Every Bite”, which offers specialised food production for people after oncological and other diseases.

🏆”ALTUM” Sympathy Award winner – association “Krapes muiža” with an idea for environmental improvement to promote rural tourism and the creation of a fishing spot for people in wheelchairs.

🏆 “Otrā Elpa” Sympathy Award – went to “Mombee.lv” – a platform for information, emotional and practical support for expectant and new parents, especially mothers with postnatal depression.

🏆The “Social Entrepreneurship Association of Latvia” Sympathy prize went to Izipizi.lv with the idea to develop a network of food lockers to promote the sale of local food.

The colourful photo exhibition “Social Entrepreneurship in Latvia” introduced the public with 10 Latvian social enterprises and their creators working in different fields. The exhibition happened thanks to the support of Luminor Bank and ALTUM.

The exhibition was not only open to Riga residents and visitors, but also travelled to other cities in Latvia – Liepāja, Valmiera, Lūznava, Jelgava and Balvi!

Heroes of the exhibition: Visi Var; Ramala; Atbalsta māja “Brīvupes”; Visas Iespējas; RB Cafe; Dzīves oāze; Sonido; Difftravel; Barboleta; Neredzamā pasaule/ Sensorium

The exhibition is also available in digital version

At the beginning of September, a long-cherished dream of bringing social enterprises and large enterprises together came true! Under the leadership of SEAL, 15 social entrepreneurs and 15 representatives of big business gathered in the bustling premises of Āgenskalns Market to get to know each other, understand each other’s offer and needs, talk face to face and build new socially responsible business partnerships.

Participants – social enterprises:

| Visi Var | RaMaLa | Dabas Zirgi | Dspc Laipa | Neredzamā Pasaule | Tuvu | Esi/ | RB Cafe |BlindArt | Ziedoņa klase | GLASS POINT | tiptip.lv | Visas Iespējas | Sonido | Zvaigznājs

Participants – large companies:

| Rīgas meži | SCHWENK Latvija | Lidosta Rīga | Eco Baltia VIDE | SAF Tehnika | Valsts nekustamie īpašumi | Rīgas satiksme | Getliņi EKO | Omniva Latvija | DHL Express Latvia | ZAAO | Latvijas valsts meži | Rīgas ūdens | Latvijas Mobilais Telefons

In 2024, we would like to highlight:

🟣Work with the Ministry of Welfare on the Social Economy Plan. Active participation of the SEAL and various recommendations in the development of the plan.

🟠ALTUM grant launch event at Āgenskalns Market. The available funding is 7 million euros and will support around 120 social entrepreneurship business ideas.

🟢Evaluation of the “Augšup” grant programme. 21 applications were received from companies and idea developers from the municipalities of the Pierīga region, who competed for a total amount of 52 thousand euros. SEAL Director Regita Zeiļa was among the jury members who evaluated the applications. 9 social entrepreneurship ideas were funded, two of which are also our members: the Privātā Glūdas pamatskola/mājskola un Laimes bļoda! Watch the event report HERE!

🟣Meeting the European Parliament election candidates. These meetings were important for the Association to understand to what extent the parties are interested in the development of the social economy and what should be done in this field at European level. 5 parties responded to the meeting. Click HERE to view the galleries!

🟠Meeting of social entrepreneurs with Riga City Council representatives. This event was a great opportunity not only to raise awareness about the social economy ecosystem and the role of social enterprises in it, but also to share real stories of social entrepreneurs; experiences, as well as to work practically on various topics relevant to social entrepreneurs. View the gallery HERE!

🟢Following the recommendation and opinion of SEAL , changes have been made to the Public Procurement Law, including the possibility to reserve the possibility to participate in procurement procedures only for candidates or tenderers with SE status and employing target groups (at least 30%). Previously, the law only covered people with disabilities, but now there is a much broader view.

Members elect the SEAL Council at the General Meeting for a two-year term. It acts as the strategic advisory body of the Association, defining the main directions of the SEAL’s activities and voting on the admission of new SEAL members.

The day-to-day duties of the Association are carried out by its Director Regita Zeiļa, Project Manager Līva Švarce and Event Coordinator Līga Ivanova. The team has grown bigger this year with the addition of new colleagues – Project Coordinator Annija Krūmiņa and Project Manager Anete Urka.

This year also marked an expansion of the SEAL’s capacity to participate in the various discussions where important decisions are made. SEAL representation is ensured:

• Ministry of Welfare Social Enterprise Commission (Inga Muižniece, SEAL Council Chair)
• The Council of the Society Integration Foundation (Liene Reine-Miteva, SEAL Council Member)
• EU Funds Monitoring Sub-Committee “A More Social Europe” (Regita Zeiļa, SEAL Director)

The Association is a member of several international networks – ENSIE (European Network of Social Integration Enterprises) and DIESIS Network – one of the largest networks specialising in supporting the social economy, social entrepreneurship and social innovation. Since 2021, SEAL is also a member of the Latvian Civic Alliance, the largest umbrella organisation for the non-governmental sector.

SEAL is a non-governmental membership organisation whose members are not only social enterprises, but also individuals and  associations, companies, foundations that participate in the development of the social entrepreneurship ecosystem. At the end of 2024, there were 140 members in the Association.

Special benefits for SEAL members:

🟢Useful contacts and new cooperation opportunities;

🟢”Member-to-member” discount offers;
🟢First to know in an aggregated form about various funding opportunities, current events in the field;
🟢Participation in networking events, trainings, visits to other social enterprises in Latvia and abroad organised by SEAL;
🟢Participation in discussions with representatives of local governments and ministries and other related organisations and institutions;
🟢Special offers for SEAL members only, such as the opportunity to apply for a Christmas donation worth 400 euros, to apply for health insurance, to upgrade/create your website or other digital solution for free, to be featured in a catalogue with your service/product;
🟢Additional visibility and recognition – on SEAL social media, in the traditional media, at local and international conferences and discussion panels.

2024 events for members: 1.training event “How to communicate to reach your customer?”, 2.inspiration and experience afternoon “Do you need your own podcast?” 3.SEAL General Assembly, 4.Members networking event in Sigulda city at the social enterprise “Visi Var”, 5.Two-day summer holiday event at “Upeslīči Atpūtai”, 6.SEAL members networking and training event at “Atver Durvis Betānijā”, 7.International Social Entrepreneurship Day and SEAL Birthday – experience stories, 8.Christmas event – gingerbread baking at Āgenskalns market.

There was also a meeting with the Riga City Council on support opportunities for social entrepreneurs in Riga, as well as two members meetings with the Ministry of Welfare. In cooperation with “VAIRO”, we organised a seminar for members on financial wellness, as well as an informative webinar on the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs programme, participated in an event on mentoring skills development, etc.

International exchanges also marked 2024. During this year, members worked with colleagues abroad on topics such as social impact assessment, adult and public education, sustainability and green living, representation of the enterprise and international networking.

In May, three SEAL members travelled to cities in the northern region of Poland to visit social enterprises there. Read more about the trip HERE! In September we hosted the Social Entrepreneurship Association from Poland and the social enterprise KNOF from Slovenia here in Latvia. During three days we introduced the foreign guests to different Latvian social enterprises and organisations that include adult and public education in their activities. In total, 9 SEAL member organisations were involved in hosting the guests. Find out more about the visit HERE!

For the second year in a row, the Baltic Sea Impact Network brings together more than 50 social entrepreneurs from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Sweden, Denmark and Ukraine, creating a space to gain useful contacts and knowledge for the development of their business. Latvia is represented by 10 social entrepreneurs. In October, 30 members of the network gathered in Tallinn to meet in person and participate in the Impact Day Sustainability Festival. A recap of the event is available HERE!

We hosted Danijela Paska, a researcher representing ACT Grupa, the leading social economy promoters in Croatia, for a two-day exchange visit. Both theoretically and practically, members had the opportunity to learn more about social impact assessment methods. The Croatian researcher also visited SEAL members –  “Latvian Samaritan Association” and “Free Riga”. Find out more about the visit HERE!

In 2024 we would like to highlight:

🟣Participation in the discussion and social experiment on employment opportunities for people with mental disabilities at the “Lampa” discussion festival together with the Latvian Samaritan Association.

🟠Opening of the photo exhibition “Social Entrepreneurship in Latvia”. In cooperation with Luminor Bank and ALTUM, SEAL invited the public to get acquainted with 10 Latvian social enterprises and their creators working in different fields. The exhibition toured several Latvian cities and was featured in more than 20 media publications. View the digital version of the exhibition HERE!

🟢Information event in cooperation with the Ministry of Welfare on European Union funding opportunities for social entrepreneurs. 42 participants attended the event.

🟣Presentation at the conference “Opportunities and Challenges of the Social Economy” within the Social Entrepreneurship Week. The final conference was well attended by sector related organisations, politicians, social entrepreneurs and other stakeholders.

🟠Leading a panel discussion on youth entrepreneurship at the Baltic Sustainability Awards event.

In 2024, we worked on a record number of projects – 13 – many of which started in that year.

In 2024, we started work on:

The Interreg project aims to improve the social entrepreneurship environment at regional level – in the case of this project focusing specifically on Zemgale and Northern Lithuania. The project will: develop practical educational materials on social entrepreneurship for schools and business centres, strengthen the skills of social entrepreneurs and organise experience exchange trips, improve the capacity of the public sector to develop social entrepreneurship.

SICC – Social Innovation Competence Centre. Conventional solutions to many challenges are no longer effective, which is the main reason why Social Innovation Competence Centres are being set up across Europe. In the long term, such a centre will be established in Latvia by the Centre for Social Integration and SEAL will have the opportunity to contribute to its creation.

DO Impact project will provide various opportunities for SMEs to learn digital technologies and data management to address social challenges more effectively.

Scaling Catalyst – 91% of social entrepreneurs across Europe want to scale their businesses and the Scaling Catalyst project aims to provide social entrepreneurs and their supporting organisations with the tools they need to scale.

ValuEU project aims to bring together higher education institutions and social innovation actors, as these groups play a key role in the innovation landscape and often university students/graduates become agents of innovation and change in society. New problem-solving models based on the experience of the target audiences will be developed in cooperation with both parties.

ThinkGoal offers Latvian social entrepreneurs the opportunity to exchange experiences with Polish and Slovenian social entrepreneurs and support organisations on sustainability, adult and community education.

ImpactED is developing an educational game on social entrepreneurship that can be used as a teaching tool in schools to make learning about social entrepreneurship more engaging.

In 2024, we continued our work on:

BSIN – Baltic Sea Impact Network aims to build international cooperation and exchange of experience among social entrepreneurs. The network has 50 members from Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Denmark and Sweden.

EU Fund Guardians provide the SEAL with the opportunity to participate in the Monitoring Sub-Committee “A More Social Europe” of the European Union Funds 2021- 2027 programming period and to work together with different ministries, to take part in discussions on investments.

BuySocial – the cooperation of many European countries in this project significantly raises awareness and cooperation opportunities between social and traditional enterprises. This means more successful and socially responsible partnerships.

B-Wise project ended in November 2024. For four years, European countries collected and analysed data on social entrepreneurs for labour integration and looked for ways to support them. During the project, the Latvian Samaritan Association obtained licences for three training programmes.

PODIMP project ended in April 2024. Its main objective was to use the podcast as a tool to create communication materials on the social impact of social entrepreneurs.

THANK YOU TO OUR MEMBERS, PARTNERS AND SUPPORTERS! MAY 2025 BRING NEW OPPORTUNITIES!