Minister Dawn Butler launches One Big Idea on Social Enterprise Day
“One Big Idea’ is a really great concept. There is a lot of untapped energy, enthusiasm and creativity out there and I am confident that there will not just be one, but several great ideas that come out of this competition, the challenge will be to pick the best one.
“Initiatives like this help to shine a spotlight on the young people who are full of bright ideas about how to make the world a better place; from tackling climate change to reducing crime and helping people living in developing countries. I am looking forward to meeting these young social entrepreneurs.”
Dawn Butler Minister for Young Citizens and Youth Engagement

Do you have an idea that could improve the lives of others? Winners of the Social Enterprise Award (Social Enterprises over £1m in England), One Water is being partnered by Make Your Mark, The Co-operative Group and Enterprise Network (Specialist Schools and Academies Trust) to find talented young social entrepreneurs in the UK through a fantastic competition called One Big Idea.

The One Big Idea was launched on Social Enterprise Day (19 November 2009), with an integrated campaign at www.onebigidea.org.uk . The competition aims to find the next social entrepreneur and engage people of all ages to create the next One branded ethical product to directly improve the lives of thousands of people in Malawi. The winning product will be launched in selected Co-operative food stores across the UK.
Open to young people  nationwide, the competition will be judged by Duncan Bannatyne and Doug Richard amongst others. Commenting on the competition, Duncan Bannatyne said:“The One Big Idea will not only inspire a new generation of social entrepreneurs, but will also show them how they can directly make a difference to communities in Malawi.” The judging panel also includes award-winning Entrepreneur of the Year Duncan Goose, Managing Director of Global Ethics, the company behind the One product range which funds humanitarian projects in Africa, and Peter Marks, Group Chief Executive The Co-operative, the UK’s largest mutual retailer.
The Co-operative is a huge supporter of Global Ethics. As well as selling One products, the consumer-owned retailer has so far donated more than £1.3 million to support One Water projects in Africa through sales of The Co-operative’s Fairbourne Springs Mineral Water. Group Chief Executive Peter Marks said: “As a co-operative, we’re committed to supporting the positive contribution that children and young people can make to their communities and the wider world, and to tackling global poverty. The One Big Idea is a perfect vehicle for this, encouraging innovation and social enterprise among young people in an engaging and creative way.”
Scott Cain, Deputy chief executive of Enterprise UK, the organisation behind the Make Your Mark campaign said: “One Big Idea is what social enterprise is all about – turning innovative ideas into reality whilst making a tangible difference to people’s lives.
“It combines The Co-operative retail expertise, Global Ethics’ innovative product development and Enterprise UK’s network of young people with their brilliant entrepreneurial ideas.”
The One Big Idea competition has launched with an on-pack promotion on One Water bottles, featuring a communications programme to engage schools, colleges and those in the workplace. By taking part and creating the next One product participants will gain practical hands on experience of social enterprise, while learning how they can personally make a difference and help tackle development issues in Malawi.
The One Big Idea competition also includes an online people’s vote for the best idea, which will automatically be added to the shortlist for the judges.
An amazing and unique opportunity for an individual to really change lives around the world, the winner will work closely with the Global Ethics team to source their product, put their winning idea into production and produce the media campaign to support it. 
To date Global Ethics, the brainchild of social entrepreneur Duncan Goose, has already raised over 3millionGBP and funded over 420 PlayPump water systems; these are children’s roundabout, which pump clear water from deep underground into storage tanks while kids have fun spinning on the Playpump merry-go-round, and over 84 HIV projects and 12 vegetable gardens.
To find out more about how to enter the competition, visit www.onebigidea.org.uk.