3 Clear Goals for Mobile World Congress

We’re going to be giving a voice to homeless people at Mobile World Congress another time this year and we have 3 clear, tangible goals to create real social impact and get 100 #HomelessEntrepreneurs back into the professional world and off the street. We know it’s going to be a challenge, but we’re up for it.

To reach our objective, we are set 3 clear goals for #MWC18.

1)  Collect 100 smartphones. This device is an essential part of our plan to reach our goal. Learn more >
2)    Raise funds or get mobile network operators to provide free mobile connectivity for these 100 smartphones.
3)    Raise funds to finance 100 #HomelessEntrepreneur programs: 600€/month for 1 year = 7,200€/year/program.
 

Why do we need these 100 smartphones?

Have you ever thought about applying for a job without a telephone number for them to contact you at? How about how difficult it would be to check your email without internet on your phone?

How do we send our CV or answer that phone call that tells us we got the job? How do we prepare for that job interview or learn more about that company? A bit complicated, isn’t it?

The #HE program is much more complex than this. We provide a holistic approach that provides the homeless people in our program with all the support they need until the get a job and then we make sure they keep growing so they can keep that job. The program consists of 9 managers (Professional Development, Education, Health, Housing, Communication, Finance, Legal, Sales and Assistance) along with a team of volunteers in each department. 

Everyone needs to participate in order to create real sustainable solutions for the people in our program i.e. mobile network operators, institutions, and citizens are all invited to participate in the process.

If you’d like to help us reach any of these 3 goals, please contact
Andrew Funk  funk@homelessentrepreneur.org

On Sunday, February 25th, at 10h30, we are holding a solidary brunch where all of the guests, who are also speakers, have a similar connection: they understand the importance of connectivity to end homelessness. Some will be experts on mobile connectivity; others on entrepreneurship; and others homelessness. Various #HomelessEntrepreneurs will be participating as well!

On top of that, you will be able to enjoy a Delicious brunch prepared by Bar Bota (C/Blai 29, Barcelona) with a lot of love, while getting to know other active citizens like yourself.
Please register and collaborate with our project:
https://www.eventbrite.es/e/entradas-brunch-solidario-con-networking-mwc18-43107765487
 

See you all there!

 

Donate a smartphone to help end homelessness for next 100 #HomelessEntrepreneurs #MWC18

#HomelessEntrepreneur is creating a better future by providing connectivity to homeless people to celebrate Mobile World Congress this year.

Our first goal is to collect 100 smartphones as donations for 100 #HomelessEntrepreneurs so we can speed up the process of creating work and housing for and with them.

We have already received 5 smartphones so we only need 95 more! 1 LG, 2 Samsungs & 2  iPhones.

Can you afford to donate a smartphone?

Of course! Almost everyone has an old smartphone they don't use anymore. Instead of letting it sit actively hidden in your home, you can donate it to help activate a person's life!

“Did you know that the share of smartphone users will reach 72.96 percent in 2021 according to Statista estimates?”

— https://www.statista.com/statistics/467185/forecast-of-smartphone-users-in-spain/

Which smartphone brand has more solidary users?

We will find out and let everyone know once we've raised 100 smartphones and then we will explain what our second goal is!

Please comment below or send us an email to funk@homelessentrepreneur.org if you'd like to donate a smartphone and help end homelessness. Thanks!

Homelessness affects everyone, even leaders in Davos

Homelessness affects everyone in the world and must be dealt with on a local and global level in order to provide better solutions that create work and housing for and with homeless people. As soon as you pay for the train ticket headed to the World Economic Forum at Davos and get on board, it only takes a few minutes to realize that poverty has been properly blocked off from this part of the world. Constant snowfall perfect for international skiers and casual conversations, highlighting the various ways they could have arrived to Davos such as a limo, helicopter or private jet make it challenging for almost every passenger to remember that poverty even exists. 

My name is Andrew Funk, and I am the president of an NGO called #HomelessEntrepreneur that helps homeless people who want to tell their story and work to get off the street, and I’m one of the passengers on that train who didn’t forget about the 2.5 billion people living in poverty. I’m currently writing this article while standing at the Sustainable Impact Hub thanks to Olivier Delarue and his amazing team. Not only is it challenging to focus after sleeping out in a teepee in the below freezing weather last night to be coherent with the people we support, but all the stimulating conversations in the background from leaders at UPS, Red Cross and UNHCR also make it easy for me to be distracted, which represents the beautiful chaos created at Davos thanks to all of the people that want to show their commitment to improving the state of the world.

-6ºC

We were freezing and couldn't sleep at night, but we would and will do it again to give homeless people a voice at the World Economic Forum.

The only missing factor is the audience that all of these leaders speak so fervently about. Where is the homeless man named Jose who became homeless after he lost his wife to a heart attack at 42 while walking to the grocery store because his love for her was so deep that he didn’t see a reason to live anymore? Where is Tomas’ success story of getting off the street and becoming a full time volunteer to help others during the last month he is supposed to live after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer? Where is the behind the scenes conversation between leaders and those being led?

Although our main message “active citizen participation will end homelessness” may seem to focus on the individual and the local community, we can’t forget that global leaders creating policy are citizens too. Governments are composed of people who have the same exact possibility of slipping on a frozen street or getting their vehicle stuck in snow like the Wall Street Journal, who we helped get out of that situation.

Debate must take place and leaders must listen to the voice of those they help to ensure that our future is shared and not lop-sided. The snow covered teepee which represents real housing for homeless around the world would be a perfect place for world leaders to debate about how greater wealth can be generated among the poorer communities. We have 2.5 billion people who are passively participating in today’s progress and they must be seen as an asset as part of the solution instead of the problem debated behind closed doors that are protected by armed soldiers.

Our sleepout at The World Economic Forum is a microcosm of the reality many homeless people suffer on a daily basis. It is often said that homeless people are invisible, but the truth is society is blind. We cannot expect global leaders like Macron, May, Modi, Trudeau and Trump to sleep in the streets of Davos to show their commitment to ending homelessness, but we can and should expect them to address the issue and start creating policies that will facilitate the work of all the large and small organizations who believe the world can be a better place and will if we actually care and focus on how to solve global issues by involving the local community.

Will homelessness be addressed this year in Davos? Will I get a world leader to have a 5 minute conversation over coffee in the cold? Will results be found in Google when you search for “Davos homelessness” this week? I can only determine the last answer, but I will do everything in my power to reach the heart and mind of at least one world leader while I’m here. Whether or not our future is truly shared is now in their hands because local communities are waiting for them to say yes to the first two questions.

Everyone has a voice and it’s time to recognize all of them! 

Andrew Funk, President of #HomelessEntrepreneur                                                                      Cell:+34 697 877 089                                                         Email: funk@homelessentrepreneur.org