Staff Reporter, Dhaka : In collaboration with BRAC University’s student-led platform Social Impact Lab, BRAC Business School premiered the short documentary “Entrepreneurs and Intrapreneurs of Bangladesh” recently at the university auditorium.

The film asks “how can people who see the opportunity to change systems around them for the better development of an idea and test its validity in the real world?” A Bangladesh-based video case study, created by BRAC University students, Nazia Zafrin, Tanzil Talat Anonto, Bayazid Hossain, Afnan Chowdhury, Farhan and overseen by Professor Dina Hossain highlights projects borne out of the university’s unique Social Entrepreneurship and Social Intrapreneurship classes. Both courses that are part of the global Open Society University Network  (OSUN) Certificate in Social Enterprise and Leading Change, are taught by Dr. Sebastian Groh, Associate Professor, BRAC Business School. The short documentary points out how student projects address social problems that affect both the early and later stages of life in the country.

BRAC University is the only university in South Asia chosen to join the OSUN, a global group of institutions assembled by the Open Society Foundations to integrate learning across boundaries. Meanwhile, Social impact lab is a platform by the students of BRAC University to convene student leaders and change-makers to co-create and create a positive impact in the community. It champions the creative thinkers and works to shape their ideas into action.

The event was moderated by Sreya Sanyal Puja, Founding Member of the Social Impact Lab, and attended by Professor Sang Lee, Dean, BRAC Business School, Professor  Samia Haq, Dean, General Education, Dr. Dave Dowland, Registrar, Tahsina Rahman, Joint Director, Student Life, and Srijan Banik, Founder & Director at Social Impact Lab.

The first half of the video features Safety Net, a social enterprise project developed by students Shanila Mehjabin, Shezami Khalil that provides accessible retirement funds for aging Bangladeshis. Shanila and Shezami explain why, as Bangladesh evolves into a country with middle-income status and increased life expectancy, it is more important than ever to equip Bangladeshis with the knowledge and skills they need to invest in reliable retirement plans.

The video also profiles Roots, a student-led initiative supporting community-based independent daycare hubs that provide education and nourishment to marginalized children in Dhaka and Narayanganj. Sakib Ahmed, a BRACU alumni who developed the Roots initiative with fellow alumni Abu Sifat Mahmud, says “We wanted to do something from the roots so that children in the future can contribute more to education, more to society.”