The U.S. Department of State has recently announced the partners and steering committee for the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) to be hosted by President Obama June 22-24 at Stanford University. The Summit will be attended by more than 700 entrepreneurs from 170 countries around the world, including a large number of social entrepreneurs.
Attendees will participate in three days of interactive discussions and workshops with top Silicon Valley executives and investors from around the world. The State Department is working with selected partners through the SPARK Initiative, a consortium of organizations committed to supporting greater investment in global entrepreneurship.
The Department has assembled a group of partners who can help delegates transform ideas into reality. The partners share President Obama’s commitment to entrepreneurship and are committed to supporting the Summit, which is a unique event that can spur innovation across the globe.
Start-up communities around the world share common beliefs and concerns, but not all have the same opportunities or resources. Through the support of the State Department and its committed corporate partners, SPARK and the Global Entrepreneurship Summit are providing resources, networks and ideas to help entrepreneurs not only start, but scale as well.
GES Partners are contributing to the overall experience of the Summit including the creation of networking lounges, a “portals to” project to connect entrepreneurs around the world, opening and closing receptions to solidify investor and entrepreneur relationships, a Global Launch Lounge to encourage new commitments toward global entrepreneurship, the Dell PolicyHackTM, and the creation of the Innovation Marketplace – the main hub of activities, tools, and resources for attendees of the GES.
Partners will also provide direct services for the entrepreneurs including connections with top mentors and investors in Silicon Valley, funding and prizes for the winning youth and women entrepreneurs of the GES+ Spark the Fire pitch competition, travel sponsorship for need-based entrepreneurs to attend, global media coverage, and programs to help entrepreneurs continue to grow and scale even after the Summit.
The Global Partners of GES 2016 are the following:
- Al Jazeera Media Network
- Blackstone Charitable Foundation
- Bloomberg L.P.
- Dalberg Global Development Advisors
- Dell Inc.
- Deloitte
- Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation
- Ernst & Young
- GE
- Google for Entrepreneurs
- Kauffman Foundation
- Microsoft
- Omidyar Network
- PayPal
- Samsung
- Silicon Valley Bank
- Skoll Foundation
- Stanford University
- Stripe
- Walmart
- World Bank Group
In addition, the State Department announced the following members of the Steering Committee for the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit:
- Astri Kimball, Google
- Danny Navarro, Google for Entrepreneurs
- David Demarest, Stanford University
- Elizabeth Gore, Dell Inc.
- Jonathan Ortmans, SPARK
- Kate O’Sullivan, Microsoft Corporation
- Renee Kaplan, Skoll Foundation
- Suzana Grego, Skoll Foundation
- Tony Tolentino, Blackstone Charitable Foundation
- Victor Hwang, Kauffman Foundation
These individuals are providing program advice, support and guidance to the Global Entrepreneurship Summit. As leading professionals, their assistance ensures that the Summit will be an invaluable tool for entrepreneurs as they build their businesses.
