FAQs

You could say that this competition is a bit of a treasure hunt for us! We’re trying to find some bright sparks in the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Singapore and Japan who are keen to build and develop their cool new sustainable business! (It’s something close to our hearts, so why not help others on the same wavelength!)

How do you enter? It’s not even techy – nice and simple, in fact. You just need to fill out this online application form (in English please except for residents of Japan who can apply in Japanese) 

What do we want?...ENTRIES! When do we want ‘em? …Now! The question is, who do we want to hear from? Well, YOU…if you’re from (& currently living in) the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Singapore or Japan. You need to be between 18 and 34 years old when you’re submitting your entry.

We’re keeping small-print to a minimum (it’s always so darn hard to read!) 

As far as criteria goes, you’ve just got to incorporate social, environmental and financial sustainability into your business model, and think about awareness across different cultures – that’s important too!

Oh, and, although entrants must live in these 11 countries, the business itself can have impact in ANY country in the world…(yep, anywhere!)

Last thing…entries are accepted in English only, except for residents of Japan who can apply in Japanese!

Whaaat? No, no, no! You’re idea might be worth a million bucks, but all entries are free…!

Why are people from only 11 countries – UK, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Singapore or Japan – able to compete?

Well, this is the third year that Ben & Jerry’s and Ashoka have run this kind of competition, and we have continued to expand - from 9 to 11 this year! With your help though, we’re hoping this could grow into something really big so we can include more countries!

We believe young people now are the leaders of the future (especially when it comes to sustainable business!), so we want young people to dive right in and help make a difference…and it’s no secret that jobs aren’t really easy to come by right now for youngsters, so this is our way of lending a helping hand.

Ashoka and Ben & Jerry’s will be sifting through all your entries from the Ben & Jerry’s European HQ…and that’s based in the UK so I'm afraid we can only accept English entries, unless you're based in Japan.

It’s not just down to us, oh no - Ben & Jerry’s is working with social enterprise experts Ashoka who will help us check out the entries and pick finalists (2 per European country and 5 per Asian country) – we’ll then crack open the ice cream and get our expert panel of judges to sit down and hand-pick the best 11 over a scoop or two. Those lucky people will be our winners and will be sent to Vermont, USA as part of the competition prize!

They’ll need to get their entry forms in by 15th October 2014 to be in with a chance of getting through to the pitching events in London, Singapore and Tokyo.

Ashoka lives for all things social entrepreneur-ish…& they love to invest in individuals with innovative and practical ideas for solving the world's biggest social problems! Since ’81 they’ve provided over 3,000 leading social entrepreneurs (known as Ashoka Fellows) with support & access to a Global network of peers over 80 countries. It’s pretty cool…

What’s super about Ashoka Fellows is that they inspire others to adopt and spread their innovations, showing others that that they can be powerful Changemakers & make a positive difference in their communities too

Well, let me tell you…the winners scoop themselves tailored mentoring from Ashoka to look at any challenges facing them in their business, and get super super advice to help their business grow and develop.  They are experts in helping social businesses scale, so brace yourself for the big-guns. 

Money, money, money! We feel an unrestricted cash prize of €10,000 will be a great boost to pretty much any socially minded start–up business…along with having your idea promoted on a Ben & Jerry’s flavour; a “money can’t buy” prize!

You keen beans (that’s the first 100 people to enter by 19th September 2014) will scoop a year’s supply of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream…and the 11 overall winners will also have their idea promoted on a Ben & Jerry’s flavour in 2015 – neat, huh?! 

We did a lot of thinking on this one, and we've rounded up a whole herd of experts in the world of innovative social & environmental change…(we think they’ll be brilliant when reviewing all the sustainable business ideas that come in). 

Entries for the competition open on 1st September 2014

The early bird deadline for the first 100 applicants to scoop a year’s supply (that’s 24 tubs or the equivalent in vouchers!) of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is 19th September 2014, so get your noodle in gear!

The final deadline for submitting competition entries is 17:00 (GMT) on 15th October 2014…tick tock! Any entries received after that won’t be included I’m afraid.

So…our announcement dates will be posted on joinourcore.com but here they are again - get your diary out. So…our announcement dates will be posted on joinourcore.com but here they are again - get your diary out. Final events where the fantabulous finalists will pitch to our panel of judges will take place in London on 19th November, Singapore on 24th November and Tokyo on 27th November, where our winners will be crowned! Get those dates in your diary!

Have you not heard? We’re so much more than an ice cream company! When Ben & Jerry first started the business (back in ’78) it was all about creating a new business model, where social, economic and environmental values would all be equal…(better for everyone that way!) 

36 years on, these lovely core values are still guiding the business. We’ve always felt businesses and organisations have a responsibility to give something back to the communities in which they operate.

We could talk about it until the cows come home, but why don’t you check out our nifty video of our Social Mission.