World's Leading Young Social Entrepreneurs Meet at the 2014 Enactus World Cup
University Students from Around the World to Showcase Entrepreneurial Action in Beijing
October 22, 2014 /3BL Media/ - Enactus, an international nonprofit that brings together more than 66,000 student members from 1,650 universities to empower people in need, today kicked off the 2014 Enactus World Cup. The World Cup will see national champions from 34 countries compete by showcasing innovative projects that use entrepreneurial action to create real community impact.
The event will take place in Beijing, China, October 22-24, 2014, where student teams will present their projects to a judging panel of leading business executives, including J.P. Bilbrey, president and CEO of The Hershey Company, Andrew Cranston, global chief operating officer of KPMG International and Kees Kruythoff, president of Unilever North America. The event connects the leaders of today and tomorrow throughout both the competition and a host of seminars and networking events, giving budding entreprenuers the opportunity to learn form some of the world's leading business executives and each other.
Each team will be evaluated on how successfully they have used business concepts to improve the quality of life and standard of living for people in need. The World Cup recognizes both the previous achievements of the socially-minded young entrepreneurs that make up the Enactus community and, through the spirit of competition, acts as an incentive to all 1,650 Enactus teams as they plan projects for the coming year.
“Year after year, top business leaders come to the Enactus World Cup and are blown away by how these groups of young people have seen opportunity where others have missed it, and how they have capitalized on that opportunity to make a positive difference in people’s lives,” said Alvin Rohrs, CEO of Enactus. “The World Cup is an extraordinarily powerful event, it inspires everybody who attends, it recognizes the achievements of some truly remarkable young people and it shows in no uncertain terms how we can enable progress through entrepreneurial action.”
Beyond the competition, the World Cup provides engagement opportunities such as the Culture Fair, where attendees can experience the diverse cultures within the Enactus network as the students from each participating country display their native traditions and customs. The “Top to Future-Top” sessions also provide networking opportunities through which the top leaders of today and tomorrow can engage in interactive breakout sessions and learn from one another.
This is the first time the event is being held in China, and the event will be the largest Enactus World Cup in history with nearly 5,000 registered participants. The event is hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship and sponsored by more than 30 well-known brands, including Walmart, The Coca-Cola Company and Campbell’s Soup Company.
A host of the key sessions from the World Cup can be watched live online and a full schedule is available at enactus.org/worldcup.
About Enactus
Enactus is an international organization dedicated to enabling progress through entrepreneurial action. The organization provides a platform for university students to collaborate with business and academic leaders in the development of entrepreneurial-based projects that empower people to transform opportunities into real, sustainable progress for themselves and their communities. The quality and impact of the students’ projects are evaluated by leading executives through a series of regional, national and global competitions. The Enactus experience not only transforms the lives of the people they serve, it also transforms the lives of the students as they develop into entrepreneurially-minded, socially-responsible leaders. For more information, visit www.enactus.org.
