PROJECT: Chicurela, United Kingdom
Luxury leather accessories made with eco-friendly salmon skin leather.

Laura Chicurel: "Combining environmental sustainability and high fashion"

Fashion and fishing don't seem the most likely partners, especially when it comes to eco-friendly initiatives. But that's exactly what happened when Laura Chicurel came up with a novel approach to addressing the problem of waste fish skins, by turning them into luxury leather accessories.

Laura was raised in Chile, which is the world's second largest exporter of salmon. The fish is sheared before it goes to market, leaving tens of thousands of skins to be discarded each year. A few local artisans make leather goods with the fish skin, but broad exposure to the world market has eluded them.

Chicurela, which Laura founded in 2006 with her partner Patrick Mork, has branded its own high-end line of salmon skin leather products for distribution in Europe and beyond. "We really wanted to create a brand that conveys the mysterious, other-worldly landscapes of Chile," says Laura. "But most of all, we wanted to make an excellent eco-friendly product for a wider audience."

Green is the new black

Natural, elegant and durable, leather is one of the world's most versatile materials, used for everything from footwear to furniture. However, the leather manufacturing process sometimes uses harmful chemicals that pollute groundwater and expose employees to unsafe conditions.

Salmon skin leather is environmentally friendly for several reasons. Firstly, as Laura explains, it's made from a by-product that would otherwise be wasted. Secondly, Chicurela's tannery in Santiago uses an innovative water recycling process which vastly reduces water consumption. "What's more, salmon skin, like the skins of snakes, alligators and crocodiles - also used to make high-end leather products - is hairless. Far fewer chemicals are needed to treat the skin during the tanning process. As a result, there's no polluting residue left in the water once leather manufacturing is complete."

"Climate change is one of the most critical global challenges of our time," says Laura, "Responsible companies need to prioritise the environment in their strategy and day-to-day activities. Through Chicurela, I want to raise awareness of the harmful effects of unsustainable manufacturing processes and demonstrate that it's possible to be economically successful and environmentally friendly."

Fishing for fashion

Laura is planning to sell salmon skin leather in its raw form to manufacturers of goods ranging from cars to aircraft and shoes. Last year, her company designed a salmon skin leather interior for Toyota's IQ concept car, which was displayed at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany. Other businesses have commissioned Chicurela to make eco-friendly corporate gifts such as key chains, portfolios and cardholders. To meet increased production demands and gain greater control over the supply chain, Laura is considering purchasing 50% of the tannery in Chile.

Although it can be challenging to build a business at the same time as raising a family, Laura is confident that she can reconcile the demands of personal and professional life. She's excited about the future of her business and thrilled to have been selected as a finalist for the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards. It gives me the confidence to say, "We're doing something right here. Let's keep it up!"

PROJECT: Anoigma, United Kingdom
A mobile health records service for travellers.

Barbara Ngouyombo: "Making vital medical records accessible to globetrotters"

Barbara Ngouyombo has long believed that information communications technology (ICT) can be a powerful force in healthcare. This sparked her idea for Anoigma, an online service that will provide instant access to medical records from anywhere in the world and keep track of any medical care received while travelling. "I see the world as one country," she says. "Anoigma - which means "openness" in Greek - can make that vision a reality for travellers, by giving them security, convenience and peace of mind."

Barbara is no stranger to international travel. Born and raised on Réunion Island, she began to explore how ICT could be used to improve medical care during her studies at the French engineering school, Telecom Bretagne. Later, her work as a systems engineer at the French Embassy in Japan enabled her to increase her knowledge of ICT medical solutions.

"I studied how the Japanese manage the healthcare of ageing populations using electronic data exchange. My research, along with the proven successes of ICT medical solutions in the US, suggests that there is potential for similar technologies in Europe."

A sign of the timeliness of Barbara's idea is that two technology giants, Google and Microsoft, are also entering the online medical records market. Barbara's service will set itself apart from the pack with its user-driven approach. In creating Anoigma, Barbara has consulted major healthcare providers in Asia that cater to foreign patients. The service is designed to be fully integrated into their healthcare systems. Anoigma aims to receive the full endorsement of the medical professional community and to ensure a greater reliability of data, as the information will be entered by healthcare professionals, not patients.

Healthcare on the move

Barbara is developing the Anoigma project while studying for an MSc in Technology Entrepreneurship at University College London. The subscription-based system will eliminate the need for paper based medical records when travelling. Medical information will be available both through a portable device and a secure web server. The service, which will enable people to share their records with health professionals and hospitals worldwide, is designed to be convenient to use in an emergency and easy to update.

Having conducted in-depth market research, Barbara has identified two distinct target customers for Anoigma: "In the UK there is a clear need for this service, not only among business travellers but also for the growing number of health tourists - people who travel abroad seeking cheaper healthcare. Recent figures put their number as high as 50,000 people last year and it is expected to reach 200,000 by 2010" she says. "The care of these patients is often undermined by the lack of access to accurate, up-to-date records. Anoigma is a great safety net that will be accessible to rich and poor alike."

A healthy outlook

While providing an independent and confidential service to the users, Barbara hopes to form partnerships with corporate travel agencies and collaborate with insurance companies.

She is currently working on the pilot version of her service and studying legal issues such as intellectual property. She says, "I'm seeking as much independent advice as possible to further refine my strategy and learn more about the legal aspects of running a business."

Barbara is delighted to have been chosen as a Cartier Women's Initiative Awards finalist. "I'm sure this experience will give me a fresh perspective, and the insight I need to turn my vision into a reality and make a real difference to healthcare for people on the move."

PROJECT: Meetmyplanet.com, France
An online application that brings together travellers and local communities across the globe.

Lucila Takjerad: "Giving travellers the opportunity to experience different cultures from within"

More and more international travellers are looking for unique experiences that break the monotony of sterile, overpriced hotels and impersonal guided tours. Lucila Takjerad, a French citizen of Algerian descent who recently graduated from business school, hopes that her website, MeetmyPlanet.com, will open a window onto other cultures.

Lucila founded MeetmyPlanet.com in 2007 with her partners Mehdi Tahri and Sylvain Utard. The website helps travellers meet up with locals to discover a culture, have fun and obtain real-time advice. "MeetmyPlanet.com is about freedom, generosity, open-mindedness and cultural discovery," says Lucila. "It's a useful tool for everyone who loves to travel and meet people."

Connecting people and cultures

The idea for MeetmyPlanet.com came to Lucila after a disappointing trip to Morocco in 2006, when she found herself tied to a French tour group and isolated from local culture. "I really regretted not having an -authentic- Moroccan experience," she recalls. "Even though I'm very outgoing, I found it almost impossible to meet local people. That's when I had my vision for MeetmyPlanet.com. Travel guidebooks are a great source of historical information, but I wanted to create a website that would allow travellers to meet locals and experience present day culture."

Through the site, members can search for contacts in different countries, share their international network with their friends and meet up with people who belong to their extended network. With a user-friendly design, travel tips and interactive forums, MeetmyPlanet.com stands out from the crowd of social networking sites. One of its most popular features is the Great Wall of China notice board where members can post requests for accommodation and advice.

Branching out

Launched a few months ago, the first version of the website, called hostmedudes.com, was an instant success. In the first three months, hostmedudes.com built up a community of 10,000 users in over 165 countries, by word of mouth alone.

In April 2008 the team decided to revise its marketing strategy and change the website's name to MeetmyPlanet.com. "We realised that by including the American slang term "dude" in the company name, we were restricting ourselves to the youth market," explains Lucila. "In fact, we want to appeal to users of all ages, from students to business travellers."

Lucila and her partners are preparing to launch a new version of Meetmyplanet.com this July. The updated website will have an even more attractive, ergonomic design and make full use of new technologies such as SMS, API and semantic web. To achieve their objective of eight million active members within the next three years, the team has recruited 30 "ambassadors" to promote MeetmyPlanet.com in different countries. They are also planning to create international student networks sponsored by universities. Once the website has built up a solid membership base, Lucila hopes to form partnerships with online travel agents to offer MeetmyPlanet.com members discounted travel deals.

"We have been on a steep learning curve since launching MeetmyPlanet.com," Lucila says. "We're only beginning to understand the enormous potential of the website."