The Cartier Women's Initiative, created in 2006, are a

joint partnership A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

project initiated by

Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australia' ...

, the

Women's Forum A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

and INSEAD

business school A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, school of business administration, o ...

to encourage women entrepreneurs.

Process

Seven laureates (formerly six), one from each continental region ( East Asia, South Asia & Oceania, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and North Africa,

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

Sub-saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...

) are honoured annually for the creativity, financial sustainability and

social impact Social impact may refer to: * Social impact assessment * Social impact theory * Social influence Social influence comprises the ways in which individuals adjust their behavior to meet the demands of a social environment. It takes many forms and c ...

of their start-up businesses. The prize includes a place on an INSEAD executive programme, a US$100,000 grant (before 2017, $20,000), international media exposure and

networking Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...

and coaching opportunities.

History of the awards

In 2006, Cartier supported the very first edition of the

Women's Forum for the Economy and Society The Women's Forum for the Economy & Society is a leading platform that highlights women's voices and perspectives on pressing global issues ranging from sustainable development and economy to culture and media. Headquartered in Paris, France with ...

, an international gathering designed to promote women's vision on issues of global relevance. In 2006, Cartier and the Women's Forum joined forces with McKinsey & Company and INSEAD business school to create the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards that aim to support female entrepreneurs through mentoring, funding, networking opportunities and media visibility. The very first Laureates were awarded in 2007. Since the creation of the Award, 32 entrepreneurs have received the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards.

Competition

Phase I - Three finalists from each of the seven regions (Latin America, North America, Europe, sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and South Asia & Oceania) are selected in the first round of the competition. These 21 finalists receive coaching to move to the next phase where they submit a detailed business plan and defend their projects verbally in front of the jury. Phase II - The 21 finalists are invited to attend the Awards Week and the seven laureates are nominated during the Awards Ceremony which up until 2015, was traditionally held at the Annual Global Meeting of the Women's Forum in Deauville. The finalists and laureates are selected by regional juries composed of entrepreneurs, economists, business men and women, entrepreneurship advocates etc. They are chosen on the basis of their entrepreneurial experience, their business achievements and their commitment to the support of women entrepreneurs. The jury's involvement is long-term and voluntary. The coaching of the finalists and laureates is conducted by Cartier managers, McKinsey & Company consultants, INSEAD alumni and INSEAD MBA students. Women of any nationality, sector of industry and country may apply.

Past laureates

2019

* Latin America,

Liza Velarde Liza may refer to * Liza (name), including a list of people named Liza * ''Liza'' (fish), a genus of mullets * ''Liza'' (1972 film), a 1972 Italian film * ''Liza'' (1978 film), a 1978 Malayalam horror film * Hurricane Liza (disambiguation), the ...

, Mexico. Delee - A blood test that detects the presence of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) in cancer patients, enabling physicians to better monitor progress of the disease. * North America,

Ran Ma Ran, RaN and ran may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Ran'' (film), a 1985 film directed by Akira Kurosawa * "Ran" (song), a 2013 Japanese song by Luna Sea * '' Ran Online'', a 2004 MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game) * ...

, United States. Siren - Smart socks for diabetics made of Neurofabric, a proprietary technology fitted with micro-sensors to monitor foot temperature and guard against foot ulcers. * Europe,

Zineb Agoumi Zineb is the chemical compound with the formula n. Structurally, it is classified as a coordination polymer and a dithiocarbamate complex. This pale yellow solid is used as fungicide. Production and applications It is produced by treating eth ...

, France. EzyGain - An affordable space-saving and connected gait rehabilitation device that secures patients at the pelvis and monitors their progress. * Sub-Saharan Africa,

Manka Angwafo The Manka is a famous stone that lies on an old tomb in the city of Multan, Punjab, Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most pop ...

, Cameroon. Grassland Cameroon Ltd. - Services to enhance African food supply chains through affordable asset-based financing to smallholder farmers. * Middle-East and North Africa, Hibah Shata, UAE. Maharat Learning Center - A learning centre offering behavioural therapy and educational support to children and young adults with special needs. * East Asia, Yeon Jeong Cho, South Korea. SAY Global – An online language service that trains retired seniors in Korea and connects them to Korean language learners worldwide. * South Asia & Oceania, Carmina Bayombong, Philippines. InvestEd – An investment platform providing student loans to underserved youth using a proprietary credit rating algorithm.

2018

* Latin America,

Paula Gomez Paula or PAULA may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Paula, in video game ''EarthBound'' * Paula, in ''The Larry Sanders Show'' * Paula Campbell (''EastEnders''), in 2003 Film and television * ''Paula'' (1915 film), a si ...

, Brazil. Epistimic - device giving warning of epileptic seizure. * North America, Yiding Yu, United States. Twiage - digital platform that enables the transmission of real-time data from ambulance to hospital. * Europe, Kristina Tsvetanova, Austria. Blitab Technology - tactile tablet for the visually impaired. * Sub-Saharan Africa, Siroun Shamigan, Lebanon. Kamkalima - online AI system that teaches Arabic. * Middle-East and North Africa, Melissa Bime, Cameroon. Infiuss - online blood bank that intermediates between hospitals. * Aisia-Pacific, Swati Pandey, India.
Arboreal
Agro Innovations – industrial scale, vertically-integrated

stevia Stevia () is a natural sweetener and sugar substitute derived from the leaves of the plant species ''Stevia rebaudiana'', native to Paraguay and Brazil. The active compounds are steviol glycosides (mainly stevioside and rebaudioside), which h ...

producer.

2017

* Latin America, Candice Pascoal, Brazil. Kikante, crowdfunding platform. * North America, Katie Anderson, US. Save Water & Co, data analytics to reduce water consumption. * Europe, Ciara Donlon, Ireland. Theya Healthcare post surgery bamboo undergarments. * Sub-Saharan Africa, Salma Abdulai, Ghana. Unique Quality Product enabling fonio farming and processing. * Middle-East and North Africa, Sara-Kristina Hannig Nour, Egypt. Sara and Lara's Baskets delivers weekly baskets of organic products in Egyprian cities. * Aisia-Pacific, Trupti Jain, India. Naireeta Services water management solutions for small farmers.

2016

2015

* Asia & Pacific
Hannah Chou and Momo Huang
, OurCityLove Social Entreprise, Taiwan * Europe
Ciara Clancy
Beats Medical, Ireland * Latin America
Komal Dadlani
Lab4U, Chile * Middle East and North Africa
Mouna Abbassy
Izil Beauty, UAE * North America
Alexandra Greenhill
myBestHelper, Canada * Sub-Saharan Africa: Chinwe Ohajuruka, Comprehensive Design Services, Nigeria

2014

* Asia & Pacific: Diana Jue and Jackie Stenson, Essmart Global, India * Europe: Carla Delfino, Imperial Europe, Italy * Latin America: Bel Pesce, FazINOVA, Brazil * Middle East and North Africa: Mariam Hazem, Reform Studio, Egypt * North America: Eleni Antoniadou, Transplants Without Donors, United States * Sub-Saharan Africa:

Achenyo Idachaba Achenyo Idachaba (born c. 1970) is an American-born entrepreneur working in Nigeria. She won the Cartier Initiative Award for women in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2014. Her TED talk had over 1.8 million views as of 2020. Life Idachaba came to notice ...

, MitiMeth, Nigeria

2013

* Asia & Pacific: Namita Banka, Banka Bioloo, India * Europe:

Leonora O'Brien Leonora O'Brien is an Irish pharmacist and entrepreneur. Having worked in pharmacy regulation, she was the founder and chief executive officer of Pharmapod, a cloud-platform for pharmacists and physicians to monitor safety of dispensing processe ...

, Pharmapod, Ireland * Latin America: Gabriela Maldonado, Jugando Aprendo,

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

* Middle East and North Africa: Sima Najjar, Ekeif.com, Jordan * North America: Priyanka Bakaya, PK Clean, United States * Sub-Saharan Africa: Bilikiss Adebiyi, Wecyclers, Nigeria

2012

* Asia & Pacific: Lianna Gunawan, La Spina Collections, Indonesia * Europe:

Cécile Réal Cécile Réal (; born 29 November 1973) is a French biomedical engineering, biomedical engineer and business executive. In 2012, as president of Endodiag, she won the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards, Cartier Women's Initiative Award for developin ...

, Endodiag, France * Latin America:

Gabriela Flores Gabriela Flores is an Argentine film actress. She has made some 20 film appearances since her debut in 1984 in the film ''Pasajeros de una pesadilla'' alongside Federico Luppi Federico Luppi (; February 23, 1936 – October 20, 2017) was ...

, Kirah Design,

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

* Middle East and North Africa: Iba Masood, Gradberry.com, United Arab Emirates * North America: Ting Shih, ClickMedix, United States * Sub-Saharan Africa: Julienne Ingabire & Elizabeth Scharpf, Sustainable Health Enterprises,

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

2011

* Asia & Pacific: Chunhong Chen, Yiyuan Environmental Group,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

* Europe: Kresse Wesling, Elvis & Kresse, United Kingdom * Latin America: Carolina Guerra, Ingerecuperar,

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

* Middle East and North Africa: Rana El Chemaitelly, The Little Engineer, Lebanon * North America: Benita Singh and Summer Rayne Oakes, Source4Style, United States * Sub-Saharan Africa: Lorna Rutto, EcoPost, Kenya

2010

* Africa: Ann Kihengu, Prian, Tanzania * Asia: Gouthami, Travel Another India, India * Europe: Wendy McMillan, Who to Ask?, United Kingdom * Latin America: Valentina Peroni, Nutribaby, Argentina * North America: Birame Sock, Third Solutions, United States

2009

* Africa: Jife Williams and Adeola Asabia, MN Environmental Services, Nigeria * Asia: Kimberley Ong, AlgaVentures, Philippines * Europe: Kristin Pétursdóttir and Halla Tómasdóttir,

Audur Capital Auður Capital was a financial service company, founded in 2007 by two Icelandic businesswomen, with the aim of incorporating feminine values into finance. Halla Tómasdóttir Halla Tómasdóttir (born 11 October 1968) is an Icelandic business pe ...

, Iceland * Latin America: Rosario Monteverde and Magdalena Rodríguez, PRO Internacional, Uruguay * North America:

Una Ryan Una Ryan (born December 18, 1941) is a British-American biologist who has conducted research on vascular biology, publishing over 300 papers. After an extended research and academic career she began a career in the Biotechnology, biotech industry ...

, Waltham Technologies, United States

2008

* Africa: Mame Diene, Karistal, Senegal * Asia: Renee King, Tamang Timpla Food Inc., Philippines * Europe: Laura Chicurel, Chicurela, United Kingdom * Latin America: Cynthia Guy, Instituto de Implantes Cocleares, Panama * North America: Mona S. Jhaveri, Foligo Therapeutics, United States

2007

* Africa: Lucie Avoaka, Santa Maria Medical Center,

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

* Asia: Nandini Pandhi and Yasmina McCarty, GreenMango, India * Europe: Bettina Götzenberger, Lomaslegal, Spain * Latin America: Antonia Sanin, The Globe, Colombia * North America:

Angel Chang Angel Chang is an American fashion designer and early pioneer in the cross-over between fashion and technology. She received the Ecco Domani, Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award and Cartier Women's Initiative Awards, Cartier Women's Initiative ...

, Angel Chang LLC, United States

References

External links

Cartier Women's Initiative Awards
* Article on aufeminin.co

{{Use dmy dates, date=November 2018 Business and industry awards Cartier Awards established in 2006