Hope Is A Verb - Eden Tadesse – Can the internet help ease the global refugee crisis?

Episode Date: January 12, 2024

Meet Eden Tadesse, a social entrepreneur and digital innovator from Ethiopia who created Invicta, a social impact platform that connects refugees and internally displaced youth with courses, skills training, and job opportunities online. FIND OUT MORE: https://invictaorg-2.web.app/ This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain" composed and performed by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠El Rey Miel ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠from their album "Sea the Sky." Audio Sweetening by Anthony Badolato- ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ai3 Audio and Voice⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can contact us at: [e-mail]

Welcome to Season 2 of Hope is a Verb, a podcast that explores what it takes to change the world through conversations with the people that are making it happen. I'm Amy. I'm Gus, and these are the unknown heroes who are mending our planet, stitching together a better future, and showing us the best of what it means to be human. The gig economy is for everyone, and it's really, really empowering. It's just such a powerful tool, not just to get a job, but also to connect with the rest of the world,

to share your story, and to learn new skills. The opportunities are endless. That's what I was exploring when I was a teenager on the internet. And now more and more, I see startups leveraging digital inclusion to empower people, whether that be hard to imagine life without the internet. From answering the big questions to going down those rabbit holes on the most niche of topics, the World Wide Web is part of our daily life

and one that has integrated at increasing speed over the past two decades. However, for digital innovator Eden Tedessa, the internet is much more than a collection of search engines. It's a tool for social empowerment. And she is using it to tackle one of the biggest problems facing humanity, the global refugee crisis. In 2019, Eden co-founded Invicta, a digital platform for refugees that connects them to education, counseling, and jobs, three things that empower them to become independent and create a better life in their host countries. This conversation with Eden speaks to the power of the internet

in a way that you might not have thought about before. But with over 100 million refugees worldwide, digital access is more than logging into a verbal server. It's a portal of inclusion and possibility that can help displaced people rebuild their lives in countries far away from home. Eden, welcome to the podcast. It's really lovely to have you here. Thank you so much for having me. I'm delighted to be here with you guys. So we would like to kick off today's conversation with what news story is giving you hope right now? So recently I read an article. It was really cute, actually. It's about a sheep called Fiona, who was recently rescued after two years alone on an island. She was dubbed Britain's

loneliest sheep. And there was a petition to rescue her from the island that got 50,000 signatures. And it was just started by two people. I think there were a couple who really, who saw her two years ago while they were kayaking around the island. And they started this petition to save her. And then very recently, a group of five people and a BBC presenter took it upon themselves to go and rescue her. And they found her, thankfully, and she's safe and sound. I think that's something that most of my close friends know about me, that I really, really love animals. Yeah, it really made me emotional to see that story. And I'm really, really happy that she was found. Yeah, another sheep.

Yeah. I want to hear a little bit about your childhood. You grew up experiencing two very different sides of the economic spectrum. Can you tell us a little bit about what life was like growing up and maybe how some of the seeds were planted for what you do today? So I grew up in the slums in Addis, which is a capital city of Ethiopia. And it was a very poor area, but it was actually right in the heart and the center of the city. So it was very close to the prime minister's palace. It was in a neighborhood which is dubbed like the political center of the city.

And I grew up there for the first 18 years of my life until I went off to college. And it was very transformational for me because I went to a very posh school. My dad was a finance manager at the school. And one of the benefits that he had was that we could go to the school. By we, I mean me and my siblings, we could go to the school tuition free. And, you know, if we didn't have this benefit, then we couldn't even afford to go there because you had to pay in dollars. So in school, I was around very rich kids who are very passionate about changing the world. And I was also taught by teachers from around the world, from Australia to the UK, to Europe,

to Latin America, who allowed me to be the person that I am. And then going to a really posh school where, you know, the kids' parents are millionaires and they're politicians. And you get to see really what life is like on both sides of the economic spectrum. Maybe not so much in school, but when you go to their house, then you really see the wealth inequality. You see that there's just a big gap. And this is a problem, especially in Ethiopia. So that really sparked my interest, I would say, in fighting these issues.

And then growing up in the slums, it taught you a lot about inequality because it's the first thing you see once you walk out your door. And it was also quite an immigrant community. So there were some refugees. There were people of very diverse backgrounds. I had the best time. I mean, you know, you're like playing foosball on the streets until it gets dark, until your parents are calling for you. And you just have experiences that students that went to my school would never have. down the road where there's a tap outside and then you have to wait in line with a bucket. But we never complained. We were grateful for all experiences that we had. And it really shaped us and molded us to be the people that we are today. And most importantly,

what our values are as human beings. Now, what I found interesting in doing the research, Eden, is when you say we, you were talking about 11 siblings? Yes. Yes, we're a happy dozen. And I'm the middle child. I'm the sixth. So I'm the rebel. When did you first realize that technology could be a tool for social empowerment? When I was in school, I was really passionate about technology. I was also known as the IT nerd. So if anybody had a computer problem, they would come to me. And, you know, you just pick your niche and then you get good at it and you really get to hone your skills, which is something that I really appreciated about the school. At the same time,

I was open to learning about all the different issues that existed in society and what role I could play, even at a very young age. The first thing I did in school, I created a club called Blogging Club. I'm really passionate about writing. And I've had a journal since I was a kid. And that has really helped me become like expressive and confident, even though I consider myself very introverted. So I started Blogging Club because I wanted to give back to other students and help them find their voice. And basically I was just helping them find what they're passionate about. It could be fashion, it could be technology,

it could be anything. And I was so passionate about the opportunities that technology presented, starting my blog, starting a website, doing web development, meeting with clients and doing all these things. And I said, if I can become financially independent at such a young age, if I can find and leverage these opportunities. And I said, if I can become financially independent at such a young age,

if I can find and leverage these opportunities to improve my life, then you can as well. I just wanted others to have agency over their lives and also make income and be happy. So this idea of giving people agency through technology has obviously become a golden thread that led you to the work that you do today. Can you tell us the story of how you ended up volunteering in a refugee camp in Africa?

After I graduated from high school, I got a full scholarship to study my undergraduate degree in India in cybersecurity, which was a topic that I really found interesting and I was very passionate about. And also I chose to study cybersecurity because I wanted to join Interpol at some stage and fight human trafficking through working in their cybercrime division. And so it just all lined up perfectly for me. You know, I was passionate about the refugee crisis and also, you know, tackling human trafficking as well. And I just wanted to say, like, what's the next step? A degree in cybersecurity. And then after freshman year, I saw on the news on YouTube through a press conference that Africa was experiencing the worst refugee crisis in its history. And this was due to the civil war in South Sudan, which erupted in 2016. There were some headlines, the Guardian

reported it, the BBC, Reuters, but it was also the same time that Donald Trump became president. And this dominated all headlines, including outlets, media outlets that don't even talk about politics. They don't cover politics, but they were all talking about him. I was just so frustrated that this was happening on the continent and nobody seemed to care. This is a civil war that was restarting. It's happened before and it's happening again. The UN was having a press conference to share the magnitude of this war and 300 people had died. I think it was like a week into the war. And that's when I said, you know, enough is enough. I can't continue with my studies. So I approached our school and I told them that there's a human crisis going on and I need to be a part of it. I need to be involved in some way. And then I went back to bordering region between Ethiopia and South Sudan. And I lived there for a year. Did you have any idea of what you were going to do once you arrived at the refugee camp or

how you were going to help? I just want to understand what the core problems that refugees are facing because they have given me so much growing up in an immigrant community. They have taught me so much and I really feel like I owe them the world. But I really got to experience their resilience and their courage once I lived there for a year. Initially, I went there passionate to teach because I love teaching. But as it turns out, they're incredibly educated and highly skilled as well. And you know, what they really need is access to labor markets. I love helping people find work online. The gig economy is for everyone. And it's really, really empowering. So me and a host community member, we set up a learning resource center for refugees

to help them polish their CVs and learn all these different professional development skills. And it really worked and it was successful. And we had trained and educated more than 300 or 400 refugees in the camp. But you know, once the year was up, I had to go back to college and I did. But I left with an urgency to support refugees globally. And I'm really grateful for the experience that I had. It was really wonderful. And I guess that's Invicta's origin story. So you decide with Invicta that you're going to take on an aspect of the global refugee crisis.

And the global refugee crisis, I mean, it's one of the most wicked problems facing humanity today. We've got tens of millions of people who've been uprooted, who have no home to return to. How do you even begin to tackle a problem like that? Especially one that feels so big, so overwhelming, it feels impossible to solve. I think that's the reason I went to the refugee camp because it is a big problem.

And what you hear in the media isn't the full picture. So what better way to immerse yourself in the problem than to actually immerse yourself in what's going on, to be surrounded by people who need your help. And that's really when I got to thinking, like, what could I provide? What tools or services can I provide to be helpful to refugees? what could I provide? What tools or services can I provide to be helpful to refugees? And once I was in the refugee camp, I really learned a lot because I was on the ground talking to them about their needs. I was seeing the support provided by NGOs, by civil society, by the public sector as well. I mean, back then, the Ethiopian government didn't have any policies for refugee integration, refugee employment. But Ethiopia is the second largest

refugee hosting nation in Africa. So they do have a really big responsibility. And I'm glad that I come from a country that has always historically had an open door policy for refugees. They are able to live safely and happily as well. I'm really interested in Invicta itself. What do you do? happily as well. I'm really interested in Invicta itself. What do you do? Invicta is essentially an impact platform. So it's a career development platform for refugees and internally displaced people. So we target young, skilled refugees in many parts of the world and we help them find meaningful jobs online. We take stock of their skills, their hard skills, their soft skills, and then we place them in jobs with companies worldwide. Employment has always been at the heart of Invicta. It's why we started the business. But ever since the pandemic, a lot of refugees wrote to us saying

that they were struggling emotionally and mentally. So we said, okay, maybe we can add a mental health component to the business. And we're not medical experts, nor are we health tech entrepreneurs. So we partnered up with a UK-based health tech startup called Parla. So we basically now connect refugees to psychologists in the UK at a very discounted rate, but we front the costs. So for refugees, everything on our platform is free, but we charge companies commission when they hire refugees and that's how we monetize. And then as of last year, we are also working on an entrepreneurship boot camp, which is kind of like a small incubator program for female refugees in camps. And we are now piloting the incubator program in Kenya, in Kakuma refugee camp, which is the second largest refugee camp, I think, in the country, and one of the largest in

the world. And Zatari refugee camp in Jordan, which is also, I think, the largest refugee camp, I think, in the country and one of the largest in the world. And Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan, which is also, I think, the largest refugee camp in the Middle East. Are there any individual stories that stand out that really bring home the impact of the work that you're doing? There's a lot of individual stories that come to mind, but one that I really love sharing is the story of Portia, who was a refugee that I met when I was living in the refugee camp. She's from Rwanda, and she was working as a hairstylist. And she was really popular. Everybody loved her. Everybody knew Portia. And, you know, one day I just got to talking to her and I said, Joao, you're really skilled at what you do. Could you tell me a bit about your background? And she's like, yeah, I'm a civil engineer. I got my bachelor's and my master's in civil

engineering. And I was like, oh, I was like, oh, okay, interesting. How did you transition from that to what you're doing now? And she said, well, me and my family were targeted in Rwanda. And because of that, we had to flee, me and my mom. And we left our dad behind. We left all of our belongings. We just had to go. And she said that she traveled to many countries

to reach Ethiopia. And her mom is very old and she's very ill. And she said that she traveled to many countries to reach Ethiopia. And her mom is very old and she's very ill. And it just broke my heart when I heard her story. And she was one of the people who we enrolled in our learning resource center. And then I started Invicta. And then once we started onboarding refugees, I sent her the link. And she was one of the first people to get a job as a programmer.

And her CV, which we helped to publish in the Learning Resource Center, was amazing. It's about her background and the talents and the skills that she brings. And she was working remotely from the refugee camp in Ethiopia. And then eventually, her resettlement case got approved. And now she's living in Australia with her mom. And I'm so happy also that we were able to support her to find a meaningful job online. That was always the promise of the program and the refugee camp. Learn how to have your documents like your CV and your profile and everything ready. And there's so many jobs online. There's so many opportunities. Yeah, she's a success story. So I'm really happy about that. I think what this conversation is reminding me about is that digital inclusion is about making sure everyone can benefit from the internet and technology regardless of their background and financial status this is a big idea that at best has the potential to shift the power of change into the hands

of millions of individuals. But as you're about to hear, if we want to achieve digital empowerment for all, we need to address the gaps both in access and especially in gender. Yeah, what comes up for me is this idea of home and to imagine what it would be like for the place that you grew up in to no longer be safe. And then the courage and the determination that it takes to start over in a new country. It reminds me of our very first conversation with Shabana Bashrashik and the grief that she felt leaving Afghanistan, even though it was the only way that she could continue her mission to educate the girls of her country. And it's almost impossible to wrap your head around

that there are millions of these stories happening right now and that they keep happening every single day. that they keep happening every single day. So this is really interesting, this idea of accessing remote work as a key to financial inclusion. I mean, the gig economy has been my life for as long as I can remember. This is something that I feel very strongly about. It's how I became financially independent. It's how I was able to leverage technology for social good. Digital inclusion is something that is very tough in African countries because governments are constantly

shutting down access to the internet. They're limiting access to the internet. You know, net neutrality is not really a thing on the continent yet. I hope there is one day, you know, wide scale adoption so that people are able to access the internet whenever they want to, as is their right. It's just such a powerful tool,

not just to get a job, but also to connect with the rest of the world, to share your story and to learn new skills. The opportunities are endless. That's what I was exploring when I was a teenager

on the internet. And now more and more, I see startups leveraging digital inclusion to empower people, whether that be refugees or other marginalized communities as well. Eden, how many people are on your platform and how many have you helped? Do you have some numbers? So with our recruitment platform, we have helped more than 2000 refugees to find meaningful jobs online. And through our e-learning academy, Nakwish, we have helped to train and educate more than 9,000 refugees. And in our global community, where we enroll refugees and IDPs from around the world, we have about 36,000 refugees.

And these are refugees from about 90 countries around the world. And about 54% of them are women. Yeah, wow. Something that's come through pretty strongly in a lot of what you've been talking about here is your belief in the power of advocating for financial empowerment of women, especially refugees. Why is this so important? Women represent almost half of the global refugee population. And they also account for more than half of the users that we have on our platform. They're female refugees who are extremely empowered, ready to work, ready to learn.

And they're not always in specific situations or contexts that allow them to open a bank account, to start a digital business. There isn't that infrastructure. There isn't that infrastructure. There isn't that enablement for women to do that. That's why I think it's so important for us as an organization to lean on women and for women to lean on us and say, like, we're in this together. We believe in you.

We believe in your strengths. And we will help you find the opportunities that you need to build a successful business, to find a job that corresponds with what you learned at school. Or even if, you know, if it's like a 15-year-old refugee, then we can help her continue her education. Also, I'm very passionate about digital financial inclusion,

helping women access payment systems, helping them become more banked in countries where, you know, you have to get like your father's approval. This is ridiculous in the 21st century. You know, women should have more agency, have more control, have more control and should be afforded the same opportunities as men.

And that's what I'm fighting for and indirectly through my business. I'm giving them these opportunities. You know, with the incubator program that I mentioned, it's only for women because they are left behind in the digital movement and digital revolution.

And I think that that shouldn't be the case. And that's what I'm fighting for. And I hope that others will hear my story, will learn from me and do the same thing. How can we do better for refugees and migrants? What are we getting wrong? Yeah, that's a great question. I think the first thing is just ask yourself, what does a refugee mean to you? And try to not be swayed by what you learned or what you saw in the media. But what does it mean to you? Like genuinely ask yourself that question

and then do research about the rights that they have in their host countries. And also the fact that they are incredibly talented and highly skilled. And they're there not by choice, but by force. They've been through many traumatic experiences and they're there to rebuild their lives with dignity, with hope, with courage.

And there's so much that not just government, but citizens of host countries can do to make that process easier for them. And you hear about it every once in a while in the media that someone is opening their door to a Ukrainian refugee. Someone is teaching a refugee a specific skill that might help them get a job in a country. Going out of your way to help them, even just helping one refugee is something really big. And I hope that in the future,

these stories will not be like, oh, wow, what a big news. Like someone is helping to enroll a refugee in school or something like this should be the norm. This should be something that we're doing every single day. A lot of businesses come to us and they ask us, how can we support in the capacity that we have? And everybody has a capacity to support refugees. And I believe also has a moral obligation to support them as well. I love this idea of just starting by building our human connection with each other. What is the biggest lesson that you've learned from doing this work? The biggest lesson would probably be that grit is everything.

Grit is what's really helped me get from point A to point Z all the time. It's defined as the raw passion, endurance, and perseverance that keeps you going despite obstacles and challenges. It's really not something to be underestimated. If you have it, then cultivate it because it's a very important skill. People hear my story on LinkedIn or from an article or a podcast and they say, wow, it sounds like you have a really great life and your parents must be so proud. And it's not all sunshines and rainbows. And I've experienced lots and lots of horrible things. The thing that helped me get through all of them is not the internet. It's not my parents. It's not my friends. It's grit. And it's a skill that I've honed throughout the years. You need grit to survive, to thrive. Otherwise, every time you hit a slump,

then you're just going to stay there. It's a great answer. Thank you. Eden, I wonder if we could ask you a bit more about that. Can you tell us some of the more difficult moments? Was there a particular moment that stands out as maybe when the whole thing could have come crashing down or when it just became too much?

What were some of the challenges that maybe don't appear on the glossy brochure? So I think during the pandemic, which was a year after we started, that was a very difficult time for us because, first of all, the Ethiopian government shut down the internet for about six weeks. And this is not just in a city or something. It was a nationwide shutdown. And you couldn't even use a VPN.

You were just disconnected from the rest of the world. And this was a nationwide shutdown and you couldn't even use a VPN. You were just like disconnected from the rest of the world. And this was a time that we were building Nakush, the e-learning academy. And we were enrolling lots of young refugees and putting courses on the platforms,

getting trainers onboarded. And it was just a very busy time for me. And to be disconnected from the rest of the world without like any notice, it was very, very hard on me emotionally. And I just did not like that moment. It was very, very difficult. And of course, there are worse things in life. I also knew that I couldn't change the situation at that point.

But every week that we didn't have internet was every week that the business was really suffering because there was just a pause on this huge program that we were building. Imagine you're starting a business and it's going very well, you're scaling, you're scaling, you're getting lots of traction and then suddenly you're just like no communication for six weeks. It's very hard. It's like you're at the very bottom but then you rise back up as well. What's next? What are the plans for the future? What are you hoping to achieve moving forward? So I am currently studying my master's degree in public policy because I believe that there are real, tangible policy solutions to the problems that we're seeing every single day.

You called it a wicked problem, it is. But there are many intersectional challenges that exist today. And policymakers are not doing enough. They're not moving at the pace that we need them to. Also, climate change is a good example of this. And instead of pointing the finger at so-and-so politician, it's better now to just step in and say, now I want the education.

I want to put myself in their shoes. I'm hoping to move more towards the policy space and try to enact policies that are more inclusive, more inclusive, more robust, more sustainable for people and planets and just continuing to be visible and be more of an activist. I think that's where I'm headed. Great, and where can people who are listening to this podcast

go to help Invicta and lend a hand? They can access our website. You can also volunteer. Or if you're a business owner who wants to hire refugees, then there's also a form that you can access through our website as well.

It's invicta.org-2.web.app. So we have one final question. What does the word hope mean to you? Hope is the belief or the guiding force that helps me innovate without fear, helps me transform setbacks into stepping stones and helps me push through any obstacle that I may face. That's what hope means to me. A lot of people talk about changing the world and then there are people like Eden who are actually trying to go out there and do it.

As she says, the story of any refugee is one of rebuilding their life from the ground up. Creating new stories and possibilities requires resilience and the grit to just keep on rolling up your sleeves and showing up to face the greatest of odds. and showing up to face the greatest of odds. If you'd like to find out more about Eden and the work she does with Invicta, check out our show notes for details. Conversations like this are so important

and we'd like to thank our paying subscribers for making this podcast possible. If you'd like to find out more about becoming a paid subscriber, go to futurecrunch.com. This podcast is recorded in Australia on the lands of the Gadigal, Wurundjeri and Woiwurrung people. There are a lot of podcasts out there. It means a lot to us that you chose this one. are a lot of podcasts out there. It means a lot to us that you chose this one. If you enjoyed this episode and you would like to support Hope as a Verb,

please subscribe and leave a review. And if you want to reach out directly, email us at hope at futurecrunch.com.au. Thanks for listening.