“The programme provided us with everything we needed to take on the challenge we were facing” - Bruno Tachinardi, co-founder of Fofuuu together with Tricia Araujo

Bruno Tachinardi and Tricia Araujo are co-founders of Fofuuu, a company whose mission is to use technology recreationally to make healthcare more accessible and boost psychomotor development in an inclusive and adaptive way for children aged 2 to 6.

The significant social impact of this initiative is the reason why, in 2020, Fofuuu was one of 20 projects to win the Santander X Tomorrow Challenge, an entrepreneurship challenge developed by the Santander Bank to come up with innovative solutions to the new paradigm posed by the COVID-19 health crisis.  

Specifically, Fofuuu was one of 5 winning projects out of over 800 in the Re-Invent category, aimed at finding solutions that help society to evolve, particularly those population brackets most affected by the pandemic.  

Her own personal experience enabled her to grab the chance when it presented itself and to make the most of entrepreneurship scholarships to kick-start her business concept. This young Brazilian woman was born with a harelip, but rather than letting it hold her back, her entrepreneurial spirit led her to turn her own experiences into a source of inspiration to help other children with developmental difficulties.

Although she studied Fashion Design in São Paulo (Brazil), the lack of jobs in her chosen field drove her to accept an invitation from Bruno, now her workmate, to take on the design and artistic and creative management of some projects which Bruno, licensed in Game Design, was working on.  

This mix of serendipity, resilience and entrepreneurial vision was the source of Fofuuu's goal: to provide kids with more appealing, simpler tools to perform their speech therapy exercises at home, school and professional centres.

It was their participation in the Santander X Tomorrow Challenge that pushed them to consolidate their business.

Currently, Tricia and Bruno have two apps available: 

• Fofuuu Fono, to turn speech therapy exercises into missions and games through which children learn to speak while having fun.

• Fofuuu Edu, a complementary solution to accelerate children’s learning process as well as children's motor, phonological and cognitive development;  The app is suitable for all children (with or without special needs). It can be used by neurotypical children, as well as children with autism or Down syndrome, among many other conditions. In fact, this is the key to what we believe inclusive technology should look like: not just for children with special needs, not just for neurotypical children, but for everyone.

Two tools and a mission that gives them much satisfaction, especially through the feedback they receive from users. Harnessing their experience, they invite other entrepreneurs to be proactive and turn their ideas into reality, soliciting all the scholarships necessary.

That's exactly what Banco Santander defends. In the wake of the success of the 2020 Santander X Tomorrow Challenge, with over 2,250 registered projects participating, Banco Santander - together with Oxentia Foundation - is now launching Santander X Environmental Challenge, a global challenge targeted at entrepreneurs with innovative ideas to build a more sustainable future. 

This new call will be sharing 120,000 € between 6 winning companies, as well as providing expert mentoring from Oxentia Foundation and publicity on channels and networks. 

The challenge is divided in two categories: 

• Be sustainable: for projects that promote green financing and investment
• Be mindful: aimed at entrepreneurship proposals that create awareness around the importance of reducing our environmental footprint. 

Thus, on the one hand, Banco Santander is encouraging investors and, ultimately, society itself, to select these businesses and, on the other, the global challenge brings visibility, resources and tools to business ideas that our immediate future depends on. 

Do you have a solution that promotes green financing and investment, or that encourages businesses and industries to reinvent themselves in order to reduce their environmental impact? Register for the global Santander X Environmental Challenge and give your initiative a boost. Best of luck!