Business School Alumna Receives National Award for Social Impact Leadership

A Leeds University Business School alumna has received a prestigious national award for her research supporting sustainable development and community empowerment in Indonesia.

Eva Andriani, who graduated from the MSc Accounting and Finance in 2020, was recently awarded the Social Impact Leadership Award at the Finance for the Future Awards 2026. The awards are a leading UK recognition programme celebrating sustainability and responsible finance, supported by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), Accounting for Sustainability (A4S), and Deloitte.

The award recognises Eva's participatory research with street vendor communities in Banyuwangi, Indonesia. Her work focuses on integrating financial literacy and sustainability practices to support community empowerment and contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Following her studies at Leeds, Eva is now pursuing a PhD at the University of Sheffield, where she has continued to develop this research in close collaboration with street vendors and micro-entrepreneurs. Through a community-led approach, she works alongside local stakeholders to design practical tools that help strengthen financial resilience and encourage sustainable business practices.

The judges praised Eva's work for its tangible impact and potential for wider application. They highlighted her "personal and pragmatic approach to co-designing financial literacy and sustainability tools for street vendors and micro-entrepreneurs, driving meaningful community-level behavioural change." They also commended her ability to collaborate across local governments, NGOs and village councils, noting that her community-led model has the potential to drive systemic change across emerging markets on a much broader scale.

We are delighted to celebrate Eva's achievement and look forward to following the continued impact of her research.