We champion eldership within social impact - amplifying the voices of elder social entrepreneurs and encouraging them to share their wisdom with the wider ecosystem - and the world.

It’s vital that we share and learn from the wisdom of our elders, building on the work already done and discovering the innovations they still seek to make. This is how we can create accelerated social impact, working together to navigate lessons already learned.

What we do:

We engage with the social entrepreneur community and beyond through webinars, workshops and more.

Insight.
A bank of wisdom for social entrepreneurs by social entrepreneurs, covering vital topics from succession to leadership and money to wellbeing. Through articles, podcast episodes and webinar recordings we share the wisdom of experienced social entrepreneurs, supporting you by highlighting the common opportunities and pitfalls of navigating a career in social innovation.

Webinars.
We run webinars on topics that are vital, but are often overlooked by the sector including succession planning, transition and financial sustainability - to name just a few.

Events.
We host workshops at some of the best conferences in the social innovation calendar. Look out for news of our next sessions by following us on our LinkedIn.

Mentoring.
We will soon launch a special mentoring service. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact katelynne@elderscouncil.net

Our Team

“We are creating a global network which is friendly and open where we can share our wisdom and move forward.”

CEO Chris Underhill MBE.

Founder of Thrive, BasicNeeds, citiesRISE and Mentor Services.

Chris Underhill MBE is a social entrepreneur, professional mentor and a global expert on mental health delivery.
In 1978 he started his first social enterprise. This is called Thrive and it is the UK organisation that uses gardening to bring about change in the lives of those living with disabilities or ill health. In 1985 he founded Action on Disability and Development (ADD) that works with disabled people in developing countries. In 1995 he was invited to be the CEO of the Intermediate Technology Development Group, now known as Practical Action and in 2000 he went on to found BasicNeeds the mental health charity working in developing countries which he retired from in 2016. Currently he is building his mentoring practice Mentor Services.
Chris is a Senior Ashoka Fellow, and a recipient of the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship and of the Schwab Foundation award for Social Entrepreneurship. In 2000 he was honoured by HRH the Queen with an MBE for services to disability and development.

“Social innovators create such a positive impact for all of us, I love that we can support them and share the wisdom within this community.”

Operations Director - Katelynne Kirk

Katelynne has been with the Elders Council for Social Entrepreneurs almost since its beginning. She has helped build the membership, developed their communications and built the Insight website.
Katelynne has worked in various roles within the charity sector including as Campaign, Communications and Admin Assistant for Jubilee Scotland and International Network Coordinator for the Homeless World Cup Foundation, leading on their Cities Ending Homelessness initiative.
She began her career as graphic designer with a love of causes and brands making a positive difference.

Our Board

Chair - Andrea Coleman.

Co-founder of Riders for Health and Two Wheels for Life.

Mel Young.

Co-founder and President of the Homeless World Cup Foundation.

Head & shoulders image of Therese smiling at the camera. She is wearing a turquoise dress with a red, brown, gold & yellow pattern and a matching head scarf. She is wearing a gold, red and dark & light green patterned scarf around her neck.

Therese Drammeh

Riders For Health.

Co-founded by Chris Underhill, Andrea Coleman and Mel Young.

Read Our Story

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Global Advisory Board.

Cecilia Flores - Oebanda

Voice of the Free.

Head and shoulders portrait image of Kathryn smiling straight at the camera. She is wearing a white top, beaded and silver necklaces, large yellow, blue, black and red earrings and a yellow head scarf. Her long light brown hair is in thin dreadlocks

Kathryn Hall-Trujillo

Birthing Project USA: The Underground Railroad for New Life.

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Attila v. Unruh

TEAM U.

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Marc Freedman

CoGenerate.

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Mark Cheng

Social Innovation Circle.

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Ágnes Geréb

Founder, Alternatal Foundation.

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Timothy Ma

Senior Citizen Home Safety Association (SCHSA).

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Neelam Chhiber

Industree Foundation.

Impact.

Eldership is an important issue. By highlighting the continued value and contribution of elder social entrepreneurs we intend to increase the personal wellbeing of the individual and strengthen the sector. By sharing hard-won wisdom we will make a contribution to the overall sustainability of the sector for social entrepreneurs of all ages.

Our first responsibility is to offer support to the elders in our own community. Each elder, who is a member, should feel that they have had their concerns listened to and where possible, acted upon.

Our second responsibility is to the wider Social Entrepreneur community. Wisdom is not something we dump on people from on high but rather it flows from our understanding, our mutual understanding, of what is possible, what pain feels like and what it feels like to alleviate that pain. The Elders Council for Social Entrepreneurs network is about genuine wisdom not pomposity.

Taken together, these two responsibilities, will deepen our impact and make individual social entrepreneurs more resilient as they grow older while improving the sustainability of the sector through an increased understanding of exit strategies.

Furthering Impact.

Country chapters of the Elders Council for Social Entrepreneurs can be formed. If you are interested in forming a chapter for your country then please contact info@elderscouncil.net

Supporting Partners.

Ashoka builds and cultivates a community of change leaders who see that the world now requires everyone to be a changemaker. Together, we collaborate to transform institutions and cultures worldwide so they support changemaking for the good of society.

For further information please contact: copy to follow www.ashoka.org

Catalyst 2030 is a fast-growing global movement of people and organisations committed to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) by 2030.

For further information please visit: catalyst2030.net

The Skoll Foundation catalyses transformational social change by investing in, connecting, and championing social entrepreneurs and other social innovators who together advance bold and equitable solutions to the world’s most pressing problems.

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, sister organisation of the World Economic Forum, is a leading global platform that accelerates outstanding models of social innovation. For further information please visit: www.schwabfound.org