Refugee Restart: When Inclusion Becomes an Engine for Innovation

di Refugee Restart

/ NEWS

Published on: 24 September 2025

Ten startups on stage, five trained by their method, and a clean sweep of the podium: the Refugee Restart model demonstrates that investing in the talents of refugees is not just an ethical choice, but a multiplier of tangible innovation for the country.

“An open world where everyone can make choices for their future, irrespective of their socio-economic background.” This is not just a vision, but the driving force behind the daily work of Refugee Restart, a partner organisation of Torino Social Impact dedicated to building pathways to autonomy through entrepreneurship.

Confirmation of the value of this approach comes from facts. On 17th September, in Milan, the 2nd Conecta Migrants & Refugees Italia Demo Day was held at the Avanzi Co-Working space, an initiative where Refugee Restart is the Italian partner alongside Programma Integra and INHUSE – Innovation Hub South Europe. An event that turned a principle into tangible evidence of success.

A Podium that Speaks Volumes about Method

The stage featured ten startups, each brimming with stories, courage, and disruptive ideas. However, what made this edition “special,” as emphasised by Antonio Di Marco, CEO and President of Refugee Restart, was a significant statistic: a full five of the ten finalists were alumni of “Rise&Restart”, the specialised entrepreneurial education programme designed by the organisation.

And that’s not all. The podium was a triumph for talents nurtured in the Refugee Restart incubator, demonstrating how targeted support can break down the barriers faced by entrepreneurs with a migration background when building a business in a new country.

The winners were:

  • Is FinTech (Rabah Djennadi): A project for the financial inclusion of Arabic-speaking communities.

  • Spice Cosmos (Sayed Faisal): Trade in fair and sustainable premium saffron cultivated by Afghan women.

  • ArteLingua (Kalua Rodríguez): A platform for innovation and change in the Italian education system.

This result did not happen by chance. “It confirms the soundness of our method: a specialist entrepreneurial education, specifically designed to overcome the main barriers one faces when starting a business in a new country,” as stated in the post celebrating the event.

Diversity as an Engine for Innovation

Beyond the winners, credit is due to all the other finalists, whose ideas range from sustainable fashion to technology, and from cultural services to logistics. They are the names and faces of an entrepreneurial spirit that turns diversity into a strength—a flywheel for innovation that enriches the entire ecosystem.

“Your courage is the most vivid example of how diversity is the most powerful engine for innovation,” was the team’s comment.

An Ecosystem to Build Together: A Call to Businesses

The success of the Demo Day is also the result of fruitful collaboration, bringing together actors from the third sector and social innovation. Refugee Restart thanks all the project partners for their teamwork.

But, as they stress, this is only the beginning. The event concluded with an open and compelling invitation: “The invitation is open to all companies and organisations that believe in a more open, inclusive, and highly innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

The call to action is clear: to continue collaborating to create economic opportunities for everyone, together. With its concrete model and measurable results, Refugee Restart confirms its role as a crucial player in the Italian landscape of impact investing and social innovation, laying the groundwork for a future where inclusive entrepreneurship is no longer the exception, but the norm.