ENACTUS (formerly SIFE) is an international social enterprise society, using enterprising projects to benefit communities both locally and globally through both social and commercial projects. ENACTUS aims to harness students' entrepreneurial and volunteering spirit to make a difference in the Sheffield community and around the world.
In 2011 ENACTUS Sheffield set up a triple bottom line project in La Paz, Bolivia. The project aims to break the cycle of poverty for many disadvantaged families in La Paz and El Alto as well as tackling the problem of hypothermia amongst the homeless community. We have been working with women from a local welfare charity CEPROSI and have empowered them to set up their own business manufacturing thermal blankets made from recycled crisp packets. A mechanical engineer from ENACTUS Sheffield has researched the thermo-dynamic properties of crisp packets and discovered that they are more effective at retaining heat than existing thermal blankets. They are also approximately 5 times stronger and therefore last much longer. Local manufacturers donate any material that would otherwise be thrown away to Blankets for Bolivia who then turn them into blankets by sealing segments together. These blankets are then distributed to the homeless community and victims of natural disasters who are at risk of contracting hypothermia during the cold Andean nights. If you want to get involved and collaborate with the project or find out more about what we do you can message this page and we will tell you about the different opportunities.
