$20,000 D-Prize Fosters Social Entrepreneurship Focused On Distribution
On June 12, 2014 we visited here with Nicholas Fusso about the $20,000 D-Prize, a cash award for social entrepreneurs with a plan to effectively distribute proven poverty solutions. Nicholas is back to report.
"During our first [interview], we talked about an upcoming D-Prize competition. We have since finished that, and found some extraordinary new entrepreneurs," Nicholas said. "We continue to see great proposals from US-based entrepreneurs. We are also excited to see a growing number of good proposals from candidates already living in developing countries," Nicholas continued. "For instance, this last competition included an entrepreneur from Nigeria." Nicholas went on to explain, "Our earlier winners are also making huge strides. Collectively they have raised over $1m after receiving a D-Prize award. They have also gone on to help tens of thousands of people already." "We have already launched a new prize competition to find the next wave of social entrepreneurs. The deadline to apply is December 30, and you only need to submit a 2 page concept note and a resume. Come tell us how you will provide real poverty solutions to those in need," Nicholas concluded.
On Thursday, November 20, 2014 at 5:00 Eastern, Nicholas will join me for a live discussion about the success of the first cohort and the application process for the second.
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More about D-Prize:
Our world has already invented many effective poverty solutions, but sadly most fail to reach actual people in need. Millions of lives would improve if people had access to proven energy, education, health, and other interventions. D-Prize is a call to the world’s boldest entrepreneurs. Can you design a new social enterprise and solve one of our distribution challenges? If selected, we will award you up to $20,000 to launch a pilot in Africa, India, or another other developing region. If your pilot is successful, we will help you find future funding and grow to impact millions.
Nicholas's bio:
I am the Program Director and run operations for D-Prize. We give seed funding to new ventures in emerging markets. Ventures are selected using a prize competition model. We specifically look for ventures that will develop distribution models for already proven poverty solutions solutions, scale quickly, and impact enormous numbers of people. Prior to D-Prize, I developed an innovation inducement prize at the Aspen Institute, was a strategist for start ups and incubators, and ran a venture named "Sustainability Is Sexy". I began my career in corporate strategy. My background in strategy and complexity theory has helped me to identify and execute on game-changing opportunities.
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Devin D. Thorpe
