I became interested in social entrepreneurship because I want to be a leader of change. In the last year, I’ve realized that in order to truly increase the wellbeing of the people and communities I care about most, I need to create economic solutions with tangible impact. Oddly, I had to travel halfway around the globe to recognize answers to the problems in my own backyard.

My political interests in the Arab/Israeli conflict defined my first two years of college. When I went to Cape Town, South Africa to study abroad last fall, my intention was to experience a country that survived intense social cleavages and hypothesize how to apply these successes to Israel/Palestine. However, what I found was that post-apartheid South Africa does not look very different from apartheid South Africa. Yes, you extend voting rights, but what does that mean for the real citizens every day? Intense inequality and poverty have stifled meaningful change.

I’ve come to similar conclusions in my studies. I study International Relations and International Development. I absolutely love studying politics, learning about the world, and have enjoyed my experiences at nonprofit human rights organizations. However, I have grown frustrated by the insincerity of many political systems. The unfortunate truth in our world is that those that conquer the majority all too easily ignore the voice of the disenfranchised. I have seen it in St. Louis (my hometown), New Orleans, and Cape Town.

Essentially, I could choose to spend my entire life trying to change outdated, controversial political relationships between people of different ethnicities and races in Israel… in St. Louis, in New Orleans, and in Cape Town. Or, better yet, I could improve lives by empowering people economically so as to gain freedom and opportunity in their own day-to-day. It has been proven – growing economies directly empowers the recipients of that growth, allowing those recipients greater power to participate in the societies in which they live. I know that I can effectively give back through business and design in a way that is both real and sustainable, so this is what I want to do. Social entrepreneurship allows me to fight for the issues that I am truly passionate about in a way that is meaningful to me, while also creating real impact for the people I serve. That’s why I care about Taylor and that’s why I wanted to be a Taylor Fellow!

By Sofie Kodner, Marketing Taylor Student Fellow