The Financial Times and Citi are pleased to announce that Sanergy has been named the global winner of the 2013 FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards: Urban Ideas in Action programme. The Nairobi-based non-profit organisation was selected by a distinguished panel of judges, including last year's winner, for developing a sustainable and hygienic sanitation system that recycles human waste to generate electricity and fertiliser for local farmers.
Regional winners were also recognised for their work in fuelling urban progress:
* Africa and Middle East: Sanergy, Nairobi
* Asia-Pacific: Parinaam Foundation, Bangalore
* Europe: 3Space, London
* Latin America: Fundaci'on Calicanto, Panama City
* North America and Caribbean: SeeClickFix, New Haven, Connecticut
The global awards programme, sponsored by Citi and in collaboration with INSEAD, was created to recognise the most innovative and ground-breaking solutions to urban challenges. The awards were presented last night in New York by Financial Times' US managing editor, Martin Dickson, and Ed Skyler, executive vice-president, global public affairs, Citi.
"We are excited to be recognising organisations from around the world, both large and small, for their incredible work tackling some of society's greatest environmental, social and economic challenges," said Dickson. "Now in its second year, this important award continues to shed light on the tremendous issues cities face in their efforts to thrive and house an increasing number of people."
"We congratulate all the winners and finalists for developing solutions to urban challenges that are innovative and replicable," said Skyler. "In the face of rapid global urbanisation, their ingenuity and leadership is critical. They are true progress makers with whom we share a commitment to help cities thrive and grow."
Submissions were received from 44 countries, and judges selected the winners based on the most innovative solutions enabling urban progress across city administration, transport systems, energy and utilities, education and resource management, housing, health, social services, mobile technologies, and community engagement and collaboration platforms.
The judging panel included:
* Professor Abhijit Banerjee, Economist
* John Bowis, OBE, Honorary President, Health First Europe
* Sir Terry Farrell, CBE, International Architect and Design Champion and Director, Terry Farrell and Partners
* Edwin Heathcote, Architecture and Design Critic, Financial Times (co-chair)
* Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director, European Competitiveness Initiative, INSEAD (co-chair)
* Janice Muthui, Foundation Manager, Community Cooker Foundation, 2012 FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards global winner
* Professor Carlo Ratti, Italian Architect and Engineer
* Professor Anne-Marie Slaughter, President, New America Foundation
* Luanne Zurlo, Founder and President, Worldfund
For more details on the FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards, please visit www.ft.com/ingenuity or follow the conversation at #FTCitiAwards.
The winners of the 2013 FT/Citi Ingenuity Awards
AFRICA and MIDDLE EAST
Sanergy
Sanergy provides sustainable, hygienic sanitation in Nairobi's slums through an innovative toilet franchise system that generates additional income by recycling human waste to create electricity as well as organic fertiliser for farmers.
The initiative involves establishing networks of small-scale, high-quality, water-free toilets, manufactured using local materials and operated in the slums on a pay-per-use basis by resident micro-entrepreneurs.
Waste is safely collected into sealed 30-litre airtight containers and transported every day to a central processing facility. Sanergy converts the waste into safe and reusable by-products, including organic fertiliser sold to farms and electricity sold to the grid. The programme creates jobs and business opportunities, while tackling serious environmental, social and economic challenges.
ASIA-PACIFIC
Parinaam Foundation
The Urban Ultra Poor Programme, initiated by the Parinaam Foundation, aims to economically and socially empower women who live in extreme poverty in the slums of Bangalore.
The programme covers four critical components delivered over a period of 12 months to enable participants to establish a more stable lifestyle - livelihood development, healthcare support, childcare and education, and financial literacy and social services support.
The aim is that, upon completion, participants should be able to earn a stable income, have a form of identification, provide their children with education, access good healthcare, and manage finances.
EUROPE
3Space
3Space is a London-based charity that works with landlords and leaseholders to unlock the value of empty commercial properties - making them available for a limited period to other non-profit organisations free of charge for start-up projects benefiting the community.
3Space has managed the short-term use of property in 45 buildings across the UK since 2010, giving space to 140 charities, community groups and social enterprises. Landlords benefit from reduced insurance, maintenance, business rates and security costs, and can take their properties back at short notice.
3Space provides a scalable approach to the management of vacant commercial space, reducing waste while delivering tangible social and economic benefits and driving urban renewal.
LATIN AMERICA
Fundaci'on Calicanto
Fundaci'on Calicanto, a non-profit organisation dedicated to restoring the historic and human heritage of Panama City's Casco Antiguo (or old town), has created CAPTA, a programme that provides the area's many unemployed and underprivileged women with vocational training for entry-level jobs in the hotel and tourism industry, as well as entrepreneurial skills training for self-employment.
A five-week course in personal and psychological development is followed by a two-week hotel internship, assistance with resume preparation and job placement. The goal is not only to help women find jobs, but also to give them the inspiration and self-esteem they need to bring their families out of poverty.
Launched in 2006, CAPTA trains 120 women per year, with over 80% of graduates securing permanent employment, even in businesses outside the Casco Antiguo.
NORTH AMERICA and CARIBBEAN
SeeClickFix
SeeClickFix - launched in New Haven, Connecticut, four years ago and now used in more than 130 cities across the US - is a Web site and mobile app that empowers citizens to address everyday problems in their neighbourhoods by publicly documenting and routing them to their local government.
At the same time, it facilitates a more efficient and transparent response from governments to these requests through a customised dashboard.
In addition to hundreds of thousands of issues that have been resolved by local governments through the programme, SeeClickFix has led to citizens solving problems on their streets they would previously have left to the city.
SeeClickFix enables municipalities and citizens to interact in a collaborative and transparent way that builds trust and enhances civic spirit, while pragmatically improving their communities.
View this news release online at:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20131211005801/en
