Awards initiative, now in its third year, supports entrepreneurs under 35 who are offering better solutions to ‘business as usual’. 

Given the chance and the right support, young people around the world can create positive movements for change

Mike Peirce

The University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) is collaborating with the consumer goods company Unilever to deliver the Sustainable Living Young Entrepreneurs Awards. Now in its third year, the awards initiative is designed to support inspiring initiatives from around the world, developed by young people aged 35 and under, that offer a better solution to ‘business as usual’.

This year’s awards are centred around the United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development, which set out to end extreme poverty, tackle climate change, empower women, secure universal water access, and reduce hunger by 2030. If the goals are met, they will ensure the health, safety and future of the planet for everyone on it.

The awards are one way of contributing towards the global goals – by increasing awareness of the goals and inspiring and supporting the action of young innovators that have already begun to address them.

“Over the last three years, we have worked closely with Unilever to support young people and create life-changing impact on the ground of diverse communities around the world,” said Mike Peirce, Programme Director at CISL. “Given the chance and the right support, young people around the world can create positive movements for change– we’re looking for those individuals whose initiatives are already helping people to live more sustainably.”

The winner of last year’s awards was Daniel Yu, founder of Reliefwatch, a simple software solution that helps medical clinics in the developing world to digitise and manage inventory records for better patient outcomes. Six other finalists shared the €200,000 prize fund which includes customised support and mentoring from CISL.

The prize package for winners this year includes funding, mentoring, access to an online business development programme, a two-day accelerator workshop at the University of Cambridge, and networking with senior executives and sustainability leaders at Unilever’s headquarters.

The competition is open to young entrepreneurs worldwide, aged 35 years or under -  it opens on 23 September and closes on 18 November. 


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