Ewa Wojkowska, Co-Founder of Kopernik, has been chosen as an Ashoka Fellow

Ewa Wojkowska, Co-Founder & COO of Kopernik, has been chosen as an Ashoka Fellow, the world’s most prestigious social entrepreneurship fellowship.She joins an elite group of leading social entrepreneurs who are recognised for their innovative solutions to social problems and potential to transform society.Ewa co-founded Kopernik with Toshi Nakamura to connect simple, life-changing technology with the people who need it the most. Kopernik’s hybrid approach deploys philanthropic funds to cover the start-up costs of introducing affordable technology requested by communities in remote parts of the developing world. As technologies like solar lights, water filters and clean cookstoves are sold, the revenue is reinvested in connecting more technology with last mile communities.Since launching in 2010, Kopernik has reached more than 150,000 people with technologies that are saving families time and money, improving health and safety, easing pressure on the environment, and opening up new economic opportunities. In Indonesia alone, Kopernik has reached 70,000 people from Papua to Aceh and many provinces in-between.Ashoka conducts a rigorous search and selection process to identify social innovators who “demonstrate unrivaled commitment to bold new ideas and prove that compassion, creativity, and collaboration are tremendous forces for change.”“It’s an honour to be named alongside such an influential and inspiring group of leaders,” says Ewa. “I see it as a stamp of approval, that the four years of hard work we have put into Kopernik so far is not only changing lives, but also changing the way people think about combating poverty.”Ewa was selected as an Ashoka Fellow Indonesia, where Kopernik’s head office is located. She is one of the first foreigners to be recognised by Ashoka Indonesia for her changemaking work in Indonesia.“I’m really looking forward to meeting, learning from and sharing insights with other Ashoka Fellows, particularly in Indonesia,” says Ewa.Ewa has previously been recognised as an Asia21 Young Leader in 2013, as Rutgers University Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2012, and as one of Advance’s 50 emerging women leaders in 2011. Prior to Kopernik, Ewa worked for the United Nations and the World Bank in Asia and Africa, focusing on the empowerment of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.Read more about why Ewa was chosen as an Ashoka Fellow in her Ashoka Fellow profile on the Ashoka website.