Yosef Ayele
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR
My name is Yoseph Ayele, I’m Ethiopian living in Wellington. My ancestors are mostly Ethiopian, some from the Middle East and Greeks snuck into my family tree at some point. I grew up in Ethiopia until the age of 14, then lived in Tanzania, Kenya, the US, an the UK before moving to Aotearoa 6 years ago.
I’m a social entrepreneur, and currently using all my creative energy to changing the predominant narrative we live in today.
I lead the Edmund Hillary Fellowship, a community of social entrepreneurs from Aotearoa and around the world, working on solutions from transforming education systems to space exploration and ethical clothing manufacturing. Our goal is to inspire new possibilities, advocate for more just economic models, to stop harming our environment and instead regenerate the planet. EHF is open to all creatives who are building organisations or solutions that can have large impact on many people
You can see more about it here: ehf.org/apply
There is a fee to apply but prices vary based on whether it's a Kiwi/Permanent resident or someone from overseas.
It's primarily for people who are in entrepreneurship, ie: people who are building initiatives/organizations in a way that is sustainable. You can see profiles of our Fellows on stories.ehf.org. If there is enough interest, I am happy to do a webinar call with a group and answer any questions
I’d like to bridge my community with black creatives in Aotearoa, to share knowledge, inspirations and visions between them. One way this can happen is to have black creatives in the bi-annual summit I organize called New Frontiers www.newfrontiers.nz. lots of space for creative expression here.
It will be amazing to have some black creatives also join our Fellowship programme!
I’d like to support the next generation of creatives pave a new path. How? I’m still not sure, but open to ideas. I’d also love to join events that members of this community organize. We have such expansive and community-focused world views from the cultures we come from. So much to share that will be medicine to the predominant cultures we live in.
Our gifts aren’t fully expressed. Maybe it’s resourcing, maybe it’s knocked confidence from history of oppression, or just it takes a long time. But I’m energised to embrace the unique gifts each of us bring and create ripples in the Kiwi community. A new narrative. Strong communities. Art projects. Have black creatives share their gifts at New Frontiers summit. Be a voice for the creative community here in the worlds I operate in.
In future summits, I’d love to bring in creative talent into the actual programme.
The Youth Programme I'm keen to invite black youth to is: https://www.newfrontiers.nz/youth