Global Entrepreneurship Week 2011 Kicks Off in 123 Countries Engaging More Than 10 Million Current and Aspiring Entrepreneurs Worldwide

KANSAS CITY, Mo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Starting today, in 123 countries around the world, millions of current and aspiring entrepreneurs will kick off the third-annual Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2011, Nov. 14-20. More than 25,000 partner organizations will host 40,000 events in a week-long celebration that will drive awareness and adoption for the world’s key economic driver – entrepreneurship.

“It’s during this time that we celebrate the innovators who bring ideas to life, drive economic growth and expand human welfare.”

“For one week each November, students, educators, entrepreneurs, business leaders and government officials come together to pursue one cause – to spread the power of entrepreneurship,” said Carl Schramm, president and CEO of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. “It’s during this time that we celebrate the innovators who bring ideas to life, drive economic growth and expand human welfare.”

An initiative of the Kauffman Foundation, the world’s largest foundation dedicated to entrepreneurship, GEW connects people through activities that create a platform to foster an entrepreneurial ecosystem. There are no requirements to take part. Anyone, anywhere can participate in wide-ranging activities that include virtual and face-to-face events, competitions and intimate networking gatherings.

A list of activities can be found on the interactive activities calendar at http://gewusa.org/events-list, where visitors can search by keyword or location.

GEW in the U.S. and Abroad

One of the largest pockets of activity will take place in the United States. In 2010, 1,313 U.S. partners hosted 3,286 activities with nearly a half-million participants. All 50 states are represented again this year as local activities begin to unfold in colleges, high schools, government agencies, entrepreneurial support organizations and communities everywhere.

Some of the activities and competitions taking place stateside include:

Startup Weekend: Twenty U.S. cities—and more than 40 others around the world—play host to events that move entrepreneurs from idea to launch in 54 hours.
Collegiate Inventors Competition: Twenty-six students from nine universities present new ideas and innovations to a panel of expert judges in Washington, D.C., to vie for mentorship and cash prizes.
World Series of Innovation: A national competition organized by the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship allows middle or high school students to think creatively and invent new products.
Movers & Changers Forum: Finalists in this mtvU / NYSE Euronext competition will ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange today and compete for $25,000 in seed money to help start their companies.
Unleashing IdEA: A celebratory, knowledge-sharing, and partnership-forming event at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Washington, D.C., highlights diaspora and transnational entrepreneurship.
Cleantech Open Global Ideas Competition: Entrepreneurs pitch the best clean technology ideas from around the world to investors and other entrepreneurs with a chance to win $100,000 in support and services to help turn their ideas into a business.

The global reach of GEW will be experienced in thousands of events, some include:

Global Student Entrepreneur Awards: Students across the globe convene at the New York Stock Exchange to compete for $150,000 in cash and business services as well as one year of mentorship with RedBox founder Mike DeLazzer.
Global Women’s Summit: Hosted by the Kauffman Foundation, the summit attendees discuss the role and impact of women entrepreneurs in today’s economy.
Global Innovation Game: A global challenge on Facebook encourages an international community of players to buy, sell and create solutions to problems facing the world.
Kairos Discussion Challenge: Kairos Society Fellows—representing students from top universities around the world—face the open challenge to develop solutions to the persistent global hunger crisis through venture creation.

Support from Across the Country

Global Entrepreneurship Week continues to inspire world leaders, large organizations and everyday individuals alike.

Supporters include well-known entrepreneurs like Richard Branson, the Virgin Group; Michael Dell, Dell Inc.; Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks; Russell Simmons, Def Jam Records; Blake Mycoskie, TOMS Shoes; and Steve Case, America Online (AOL). Dozens of national leaders also have backed the initiative, such as President Barack Obama; Hillary Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State; Gary Locke, U.S. Secretary of Commerce; and dozens of governors and local elected officials who have delivered proclamations and participated in events.

Organizations supporting GEW/USA include NYSE Euronext, Dell Inc., Startup Weekend, DECA, Entrepreneurs’ Organization, Junior Achievement, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, Startup Digest, Kairos Society, Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization, National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

To view a complete list of partner organizations in each state, or to learn more about what is happening around the country during the week, visit www.gewusa.org.

For a global view of the initiative, including world leaders who support it, visit www.unleashingideas.org.

Global Entrepreneurship Week

During one week each November, thousands of activities around the world inspire millions to engage in entrepreneurial action while connecting them to potential mentors, collaborators and investors. In three short years, Global Entrepreneurship Week has expanded to more than 120 countries—empowering nearly 20 million people through 95,000 activities. Powered by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the initiative is supported by dozens of world leaders and a growing network of 25,000 partner organizations. For more information on the US campaign, visit www.gewusa.org, and follow @gewusa on Twitter.

Kauffman Foundation

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private nonpartisan foundation that works to harness the power of entrepreneurship and innovation to grow economies and improve human welfare. Through its research and other initiatives, the Kauffman Foundation aims to open young people's eyes to the possibility of entrepreneurship, promote entrepreneurship education, raise awareness of entrepreneurship-friendly policies, and find alternative pathways for the commercialization of new knowledge and technologies. In addition, the Foundation focuses on initiatives in the Kansas City region to advance students’ math and science skills, and improve the educational achievement of urban students, including the Ewing Marion Kauffman School, a college preparatory charter school for middle and high school students set to open in 2011. Founded by late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman, the Foundation is based in Kansas City, Mo. and has approximately $2 billion in assets. For more information, visit www.kauffman.org, and follow the Foundation on Twitter at @kauffmanfdn and Facebook.