The 2011 Edition
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The 2011 Laureates have been announced…
The 2011 Laureates were announced on October 14 at the Annual Global Meeting of the Women’s Forum in Deauville, France. The first to receive her Cartier trophy was Carolina Guerra, a young engineer from Colombia working to recycle highly toxic waste; followed by Benita Singh and Summer Rayne Oakes, two enterprising sustainable fashion advocates from North America; then Kresse Wesling, who recycles industrial waste into luxury accessories in Bournemouth, Europe; Lorna Rutto, who
recycles plastic waste into durable fencing posts in Kenya; Rana El Chemaitelly, who runs a series of edutainment centres teaching children engineering skills in Lebanon; and finally Chunhong Chen, from China, whose company makes a breakthrough water-saving toilet.
Each of these enterprising ladies received US$20,000 in funding, access to networking and visibility and a full year of coaching support to help them take their businesses even further.
The Awards Week
Alongside the presentation itself, finalists enjoy five eventful days of workshops and activities that run throughout the Awards Week. From meeting the press to tips on how to successfully pitch your business, interviews on camera, discussions, conferences, debates and a host of fascinating events at the Women’s Forum in Deauville among 1,300 leading women and participants, the week flies by until the main event: the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards ceremony, always a high point of excitement and emotion.
Follow the week's events
What’s special this year?
Last year, a strong theme was the bid to make good use of waste, a reflection perhaps of evolving values in a world that has had to take stock of its actions; the Internet asserts its effectiveness in bridging all continents; projects in business, employment and health remind us that the foundations of human existence are always in need of ideas and innovation. Concerns for the children’s education and adult’s continued training are also a growing theme in many applications made.
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The Jury
The current Jury is composed of 30 high-profile individuals. Four members have joined our panels, heightening the contribution of experts to represent our newest region, the Middle East & North Africa. Hailing from Ethiopia, Nigeria, Lebanon and the United States, our new panelists bring with them business expertise and acumen in fields as varied as entrepreneurial development, agroecology, pharmaceuticals and angel investment. We welcome their valuable contribution to the six international Juries.
All About the Jury