Calling all young innovators! Spread the word. -- Melody Clark Communications Specialist Technology & Social Change (TASCHA) melclark@uw.edu<mailto:melclark@uw.edu> | 206.303.7910 Twitter: @taschagroup<https://twitter.com/taschagroup> | @melodyrclark<https://twitter.com/#!/melodyrclark> tascha.uw.edu<http://tascha.uw.edu/> From: Telecom Young Innovator, ITU [mailto:young.innovators@itu.int] Sent: Friday, May 23, 2014 9:05 AM To: tascha@uw.edu Subject: Young Innovators Competition Dear Sir or Madam, We are writing you from the ITU Telecom World Young Innovators Competition. We are contacting you in hopes that Technology & Social Change Group at the University of Washington Information School might be able to help us reach out to young entrepreneurs and students. We are a global competition looking for gifted young entrepreneurs with ideas for innovative social enterprises. The winners receive up to USD 10, 000 in seed funding, as well as business workshops, networking, showcasing and pitching opportunities with potential investors at ITU Telecom World in Doha<http://telecomworld.itu.int/> followed by a mentorship programme throughout the development year to help their businesses to thrive. In one week we will reach the close of our first challenge, which is focused on Local Digital Content and Sponsored by Ooredoo, we are hoping that a last push will contribute significantly to the success of this challenge and the competition overall. Open to 18-30 year-old start-up founders from across ITU's 193 member states, the competition is looking for the most promising tech start-ups that are inspiring the creation, aggregation or digitization of dynamic local content, particularly in non-Latin scripts. Entries can be submitted by start-ups that are involved in script content, resolving the technical challenges of digitizing non-Latin scripts through innovative technologies, or pinpointing fresh uses for older technologies, such as optical character recognition, voice recognition or translation software. Two start-ups will be selected as winners of this challenge by a Selection Committee of experts and invited to attend ITU Telecom World 2014. The deadline for initial submissions to the first challenge is 30 May 2014, 24:00 GMT +2. You can find the full press release here<http://www.itu.int/net/pressoffice/press_releases/2014/17.aspx#.U0Ua6qiSw1J>, and we are attaching a flyer for the event. Potential participants should go to https://ideas.itu.int to get more information and apply. Thank you, The Young Innovators Competition Team