Conversations with Social Entrepreneurs

On Tuesday, May 15, the Incubator at Sasaki hosted social entrepreneurs in a conversation-focused event that was free and open to the public. At the event, co-sponsored by MIT Solve and the Sasaki Foundation, Solve research fellows and a chef-turned-entrepreneur each gave a brief presentation on their work, followed by open dialogue session.

Brigaid, Dan Guisti, Founder

Dan Guisti was formerly the Head Chef of Noma in Copenhagen (perennially named the best restaurant in the world). He left the fine dining world to feed schoolchildren better. His startup, Brigaid, aims to put a chef in every school kitchen and redesign the school lunch to be healthy, delicious, and affordable.

Fresh Direct Nigeria, Angel Adelaja, founder and CEO

Fresh Direct Nigeria is an ag-tech social enterprise that uses stackable shipping containers as high-tech, portable, vertical and hydroponic greenhouse farms to grow fresh produce directly inside urban centers.

Erase All Kittens, Dee Saigal, CEO

Erase All Kittens (E.A.K.) seeks to transform how girls aged 8-13 perceive code education and software. E.A.K. is the first game designed from the ground-up to inspire girls to code, and teach them practical coding languages, via highly gamified, story-driven gameplay.

MealFlour, Gabrielle Wimer, Co-Founder

MealFlour is a protein rich powder that can be added to meals to improve nutrition for those residing in urban food deserts. MealFlour provides people with the skills to produce their own low-cost and environmentally sustainable source of protein to improve their health.

Sustainable Community Development on Standing Rock, Kimberlynn Cameron, Researcher

This project aims to develop a multifaceted systemic solutions approach to creatin a sustainable, community-scale housing initiative. It aims to provide both culturallyappropriate, affordable housing, and a year-round net-zero greenhouse operation that leverages the tribe’s renewable energy resources.

WATERIG, Patrick Suen, CEO

WATERIG is a decentralized water and energy collection point that collects energy from the surrounding environment including solar, wind, waste energy and ground cooling to produce 2,000 liters or more of drinking water per day. WATERIG can be used for vertical farming, greenhouse growth, rainwater processing, water purification, and algae farming.