New Orleans, LA (March 17, 2014) – Today, the Greater New Orleans Foundation (GNOF) and The Idea Village unveil the lineup for the 4th annual Water Challenge Day, which will take place at Gallier Hall on Monday, March 24th during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW). The Water Challenge is a cutting-edge entrepreneurial competition and event that discovers and nurtures innovation while highlighting opportunities and trends in water.
With a theme of “opportunities in the rapidly growing water sector,” the morning session will examine the international trend of clustering regional water expertise, and share lessons from around the world. Featured speakers include: U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu as the morning keynote; Dean Amhaus, CEO of the Global Water Center in Milwaukee, a leading water innovation cluster in the Great Lakes; Dr. Barry Liner, of the Water Environment Federation; and Eron Bloomgarden of EKO Asset Management Partners.
With a theme of “opportunities in the rapidly growing water sector,” the morning session will examine the international trend of clustering regional water expertise, and share lessons from around the world. Featured speakers include: U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu as the morning keynote; Dean Amhaus, CEO of the Global Water Center in Milwaukee, a leading water innovation cluster in the Great Lakes; Dr. Barry Liner, of the Water Environment Federation; and Eron Bloomgarden of EKO Asset Management Partners.
The day culminates with a $50,000 business pitch competition emceed by Harry Shearer that will showcase four Louisiana entrepreneurs tackling flood protection, coastal restoration, rainwater management, and technology. This year’s Water Challenge finalists are: Demetria Christo of EcoUrban, Julia Kumari-Drapkin of iSeeChange, Tyler Ortego of ORA Estuaries, and Wayne Erdman of RiverView Construction.
“The Greater New Orleans Foundation supports innovation and ideas that help us thrive productively and harmoniously with our natural ecosystems,” said Marco F. Cocito-Monoc, Ph. D, GNOF’s Director for Regional Initiatives. “We believe this nexus of knowledge, investment, jobs, and the environment is critical to Louisiana’s quality of life – and the presenting entrepreneurs can help us build a more resilient and sustainable future.”
Last year’s Water Challenge winner, Webster Pierce of Pierce Industries, developed the sediment-capturing Wave Robber. Previous winners include Dr. Sarah Mack of Tierra Resources and David Culpepper of NanoFex.
The Water Challenge Day is free and open to the public, but registration is required via www.NOEW.org.
About New Orleans Entrepreneur Week
New Orleans Entrepreneur Week is the culmination of The Idea Village’s annual Entrepreneur Season. The weeklong festival of entrepreneurship lures nationally-renowned venture capitalists, regional investors and corporate volunteers, along with visiting MBA student teams from the nation’s leading business programs, who come together and support select early-stage New Orleans ventures and expose emerging opportunities. NOEW 2014 is expected to engage 5,000+ of the nation’s most innovative minds
through over 80 events. www.NOEW.org
About The Idea Village
Founded in 2000, The Idea Village is an independent, 501(c) 3 non-profit organization with a mission to identify, support, and retain entrepreneurial talent in New Orleans. The Idea Village is a globally recognized leader of entrepreneurship by catalyzing an entrepreneurial ecosystem that has provided direct support to over 3,000 New Orleans entrepreneurs by engaging over 2,400 professionals to allocate 72,295 consulting hours and $3.45 million in seed capital. Collectively, this portfolio generates over $100
million in annual revenue and has created over 2,000 jobs for our community. www.ideavillage.org
About the Greater New Orleans Foundation
The Greater New Orleans Foundation is one of the oldest and largest philanthropic organizations in the region. Every day, the Foundation joins other foundations, non-profit organizations, community leaders, and government officials to address the needs of the community and build consensus for solutions. Together with its family of donors, the Foundation has invested over $100 million in our region since it opened its doors over 25 years ago to respond to community needs. dev.gnof.org
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