By Sara Gilgore

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Key story highlights:

D.C.-based Halcyon has launched a new program to introduce international startup founders to Washington’s business ecosystem, one piece of the organization’s push to expand globally in the next couple of years.

The spinout from S&R Foundation — established last February as the nonprofit engine behind its programming for social entrepreneurs — has wrapped up its first two-week residency for a group of 14 fellows from Korea, and is hosting 16 entrepreneurs from Saudi Arabia in a second cohort that starts this week.

Halcyon’s modeling the new intensive program after its own bread and butter: its 4-year-old incubator fellowship. It’s a way to use the Halcyon House space that’s otherwise empty in the summer months, according to Josh Mandell, Halcyon’s director of policy and international programs. That, and “the fact that demand is just so off the charts from startups and social enterprises from abroad to get access to this type of specialized program,” one that isn’t really available in a lot of countries, made it attractive for Halcyon to put into practice, he said.

The Halcyon team provides a similar structure to its five-month incubator, packed into a much shorter period. It encompasses strategic pairings with advisors, a pool that includes investors, CEOs, government officials, academics and other experts; a series on negotiating, relationship building and business planning; and training on pitching and storytelling.

“We really teach these startups how to have a short, coherent pitch for what it is their business is going to do — what problem are they trying to solve?” Mandell said.

The ventures are diverse, ranging from a speech recognition technology for individuals with impaired hearing to a low-cost hemodialysis device to a platform that connects artists with manufacturers. The nonprofit partners with a sponsor in the country to identify the social enterprises that would benefit the most from the program. Halcyon doesn’t take equity or provide investments in these companies.

The Korea Innovation Center in Vienna and both Taibah University in Medinah and the Consulate General of Saudi Arabia’s New York Office have been working with Halcyon. The Saudi cohort comprises all female entrepreneurs, as efforts in the Persian Gulf region to both improve rights for women and to scale up new businesses ramp up — which made this “the right timing” for the program, Mandell said. Halcyon plans to host up to three two-week cohorts every summer, and is already receiving interest for 2019.

The main goal? Give them a knowledge base that will help them scale their ventures.

But there’s more to it. These are companies that ultimately want to access the U.S. market, and several are looking to build their businesses here, Mandell said. “We want to paint a very positive picture for what Washington, D.C., has to offer for these startups, and expose them to the fact that Washington, D.C., isn’t just a government town. It really is a hub for startups coming from all over the place.”

And the longer-term play for Halcyon? To help other countries develop social enterprise ecosystems abroad, Mandell told me. He’s now exploring options, meeting with partners and scoping out a strategy, he said, eyeing the buildout of a first location within the next couple of years.

“We’ve learned a lot here on the specific nature of social enterprises and what makes them unique, the kinds of services that they need, the importance of building out these companies as a broader economic development strategy,” he said. “I see a lot of countries looking to do something like this, and we want to share our knowledge on how it works, practically, from an execution standpoint.”