Gearing up for Global Entrepreneurship Week 2014

Starting on the 17th until the 23rd of November,  Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) is the world’s largest celebration of the innovators and job creators who launch startups that bring ideas to life, drive economic growth, and expand human welfare. It aims at inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs and to unleash ideas that will address society’s biggest issues. During one week each November, GEW inspires people everywhere through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as self-starters and innovators. These activities, from large-scale competitions and events to intimate networking gatherings, connect participants to potential collaborators, mentors and even investors—introducing them to new possibilities and exciting opportunities. Powered  by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, GEW  started in 2008 with 88 countries and 3 million participants. Now in its sixth year, Global Entrepreneurship Week has expanded to more than 150 countries– —building and strengthening entrepreneurial ecosystems around the world. It has already empowered roughly 25 million people through 115,000 entrepreneurial activities, and is supported by dozens of world leaders and a network of 10,000 partner organizations.

Global Entrepreneurship Week has announced its annual “GEW 50”, a list of 50 innovative new companies from around the world selected as finalists of its Startup Open competition. The GEW 50 recognizes startups from 19 countries representing an even more diverse range of industries—including biotechnology, communications, education, energy, finance, health and more. This year, founders from 38 countries submitted more than 600 startups for consideration. Sixty-four percent of the startups on the list originated outside of the United States. The winner of the Startup Open Competition will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Milan, Italy, for the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Congress.