Global Water Challenge and Ashoka's Changemakers Announce Finalists
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON (Apr. 29, 2008)—Global Water Challenge (GWC) and Ashoka’s Changemakers announced nine finalists in their collaborative competition “Tapping Local Innovation: Unclogging the Water and Sanitation Crisis,” an online search to discover and support entrepreneurs with groundbreaking approaches to the world's water and sanitation challenges. From the 265 entries submitted from 54 countries, these nine finalists were selected:
"The range of finalists shows that the water and sanitation sector is not short on social innovation,” says Tanvi Nagpal, director of Water and Sanitation Initiatives at the Global Water Challenge. “We are looking forward to seeing who the community picks as the winners. Global Water Challenge is committed to investing in new ideas and solutions that are sustainable and scaleable." The four esteemed judges designated to review all the submissions and select the finalists were Ed Cain, Vice-President of Grant Programs at the Hilton Foundation; Ian Callaghan, Director of the Microfinance Group at Morgan Stanley; Sanjay Gupta, M.D., Chief Medical Correspondent at CNN; and Tanvi Nagpal, Director of Water and Sanitation Initiatives at Global Water Challenge. Now the online community at Ashoka’s Changemakers Website will vote for the three winners from these finalists starting April 29, 2008. The three finalists that receive the most votes will be announced on May 11, 2008, and each winner will receive a cash prize of US $5,000. “It’s always amazing to see so many entrepreneurs from all over the world rise to the challenge of creating innovative solutions to the social problems that need them most,” says Charlie Brown, the executive director of Changemakers. “And our online community also rises to the challenge as well by questioning, discussing and drawing out the most effective ideas." Upon the close of the competition, selected entries will be invited to submit proposals for future funding consideration. With a gift from The Coca-Cola Company, US$1 million in grants will be available from GWC to implement innovative entrepreneurial approaches that further its mission of universal access to water and sanitation. About Global Water Challenge About Ashoka’s Changemakers CONTACT: Delyse Sylvester |