The Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Department of State of the United States, in partnership with the World Environment Center (WEC for its acronym in English), is pleased to announce that as of today, February 12, 2014, Registration is open for the first Innovation Competition «Pathways to Prosperity».
Recognizing that the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) create the majority of new jobs in the Western Hemisphere, but often find it difficult to progress and be competitive in the world market, Competition Innovation Pathways to Prosperity State Department of the United States, identify, challenge and reward local high-impact solutions that have successfully passed labor and environmental barriers to business. The Pathways to Prosperity Contest is open to all individuals and organizations – nonprofit organizations, businesses, public institutions – whose efforts have at least one operating partner in one of the member countries Pathways (Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas).
Those interested in participating in the Innovation Competition «Pathways to Prosperity» can register on www.challenge.wec.org before April 16, 2014. Applicants who meet the eligibility requirements and qualifications will be invited to apply between March 12 and April 30, 2014. Up to four winners will each receive up to $ 500,000 and technical support to help scale and replicate their solutions.
«The initiative» Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas «has proven that collaboration is key to the development of sustainable and inclusive solutions shared regional challenges,» said Roberta S. Jacobson, Deputy Secretary for the Office for the Western Hemisphere State Department of the United States. «Through this contest we seek to promote new partnerships and collaborations in order to implement innovative solutions that will bring them to our people an extension of shared prosperity.»
Dr. Terry F. Yosie, President and CEO of the WEC, acknowledges that «The Roads to Prosperity Contest is a bold initiative to mobilize through an innovative platform to develop large-scale solutions, that respond to the needs of society in a sustainable manner. Integrating innovative opportunities with sustainable economic development, Pathways to Prosperity seeks to encourage small and medium enterprises and communities to create new avenues of prosperity in order to improve the standards of quality of life through the exchange of knowledge, goods and services . »
To find additional information about the Innovation Contest Pathways to Prosperity, visit www.challenge.wec.org , and to learn more about WEC please contact www.wec.org .
About Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas
Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas is a policy-level dialogue that unites 16 governments and societies of the Western Hemisphere that collectively seek to empower small businesses, facilitate trade and regional competitiveness, build a modern and inclusive workforce, and promote practices green and sustainable business. Currently countries are Belize, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and the United States. Brazil has observer status. The Inter-American Development Bank, the Organization of American States, and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean are strategic partners of Pathways to Prosperity.
For more information, visit www.pathways-caminos.org
