Social enterprise ABALOBI on collaborating with Oxford students on the Making a Difference programme
In Michaelmas term 2025, social enterprise ABALOBI collaborated with Oxford University students on a project through the Making a Difference programme. The Director of Growth at ABALOBI explains how the collaboration worked, what the students did, and how both the students and the organisation benefited.
About ABALOBI
My name is Chris Kastern from Cape Town. I am the Director of Growth at ABALOBI, a hybrid social enterprise. I built my career in responsible seafood sourcing and small-scale fisheries over 20 years across three sectors. Starting as a fish trader in South Africa in 2002, I focused on small-scale catches for ten years. In 2013, I joined WWF South Africa as the Seafood Market Transformation Manager, leading efforts to create value-chain incentives for marine conservation. Since 2018, I have been Director of Growth at ABALOBI, working with small-scale fisheries through tech and social enterprise.
ABALOBI ICT4FISHERIES is a registered non-profit and public benefit organisation, including ABALOBI LABS. Our goal is to create thriving, equitable, resilient, sustainable small-scale fishing communities worldwide through inclusion, social entrepreneurship, and a knowledge-based approach to rebuilding fisheries, supported by community-led data and Technology For Good. Our tech helps small-scale fishers access Community-Supported Fisheries for fair markets, transparent supply chains, and food security. In South Africa, this is branded as Fish With A Story.
How Oxford students supported the project
ABALOBI aims to give fishers more agency and visibility, especially through restaurants, which are key interfaces between fishers and consumers. Chef buyers and front-of-house (FoH) teams are crucial links. ABALOBI explores effective collaborations with restaurants, focusing on having chefs feature ABALOBI products and enabling FoH staff to share fisher stories with patrons.
In the Making A Difference programme, students collaborated with ABALOBI to find ways to inspire FoH teams to communicate ABALOBI's values and facilitate direct engagement between restaurants, patrons, and fisher communities.
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Inspiring restaurant FoH teams to confidently share stories about ABALOBI fishers and their catch.
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Designing an accessible, digitised training concept that equips FoH teams with the knowledge, confidence, and motivation to share these stories with diners.
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Identifying opportunities to embed ABALOBI’s storytelling into the dining experience.
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Strengthening restaurant teams’ buy-in by showing the commercial and ethical value of collaborating with ABALOBI.
Highlights of working with Oxford students
Working with the students in the Making A Difference programme was a pleasure - they were enthusiastic, curious, organised, and diligent throughout our collaboration. ABALOBI typically uses #Slack for project communication and coordination; although some students were new to the platform, they adapted quickly, providing regular updates and seeking input at key moments to keep the project relevant and practical. It was also clear that the students were personally committed to the programme and well-prepared for the engagement, which helped ensure the participation was not burdensome for the ABALOBI team.
Advice to other organisations considering offering projects through the programme
The preparation sessions and project set-up support offered by the Making A Difference team are key. The more you invest in them, the more likely you are to attract the right students for your project and enable them to hit the ground running.
Chris Kastern - Director of Growth at ABALOBI
About the Making a Difference programme
Professional skills for purpose-led careers – with hands-on projects in charities and social enterprises.
Many Oxford students are keen to secure jobs that give them a sense of purpose and where they can make a real difference in the world and to people’s lives. This programme aims to provide the key skills, relevant experiences, a network of stimulating people working in the field, and insight into the career paths possible that together can provide that sense of purpose and impact. Here is how Oxford University students and organisations can take part:
