Arthur Guinness Fund to be renewed in 2011

Up to €1m will again be made available to Irish social entrepreneurs by the Arthur Guinness Fund next year, it was announced today.

A new dimension has been added to the Arthur Guinness Fund in the form of a Challenge Grant, which invites applications from start up projects seeking both financial and practical support.

Projects that have been established in the last two years are invited to apply to receive up to €25,000 per annum for two years.

This grant is specifically targeted at projects that do not necessarily have a proven model, but can illustrate the high potential of their project. The initiatives must be capable of providing an innovative way of driving positive change and sustainable social impact in Ireland.

In order to encourage applications from as diverse a base as possible, another new addition to the process is the introduction of categories.

Applicants are asked to register their project under one of six specific categories.

These are Technology and Social Media for Social Good, Skills for Life, Enriching the Environment, Social and Community Regeneration, Culture and Arts and Community Wellbeing.

A final open category is also available to projects that do not fit within any of the specific categories, but are still working towards sustainable social change in Ireland.

The different categories will act as guidelines for people who are considering whether their project fits with The Arthur Guinness Fund.

“The Arthur Guinness Fund is designed as a springboard to enable Irish entrepreneurs to take their initiatives to the next level,” said Diageo Ireland managing director John Kennedy.

“It’s about backing people with a business head and a social heart. It is often very difficult for social entrepreneurs to attract funding at the initial stages and as such, Guinness would like to give them the opportunity to turn their innovative idea into a reality. This year we continue to work closely with our partners, Social Entrepreneurs Ireland, who are experts in this area.

“Arthur Guinness is widely regarded as the original social entrepreneur of his day and we are delighted to maintain his legacy by continuing to support social entrepreneurs across Ireland through the Arthur Guinness Fund.”

Applications to the Arthur Guinness Fund will remain open until Wednesday, November 10, 2010.

Those interested can download an application form from www.guinness.com/arthurguinnessfund