PRESS RELEASE
Date: Friday 8 March 2024
The Search Begins for the
2024 Woman Inventor and Innovator of the Year
Recognise an innovative woman for their idea
To mark International Women’s Day 2024 (Friday, March 8), the Global Women Inventors & Innovators Network (GlobalWIIN) have launched this year’s search for the brightest, most ingenious women for its Global Inventor and innovator of the Year Awards.
The prize is designed to help bridge the gender gap in science and technology as well as increase the success of innovations that truly matter. The award organisers are calling for individuals, academia, workplaces, and businesses to nominate talented women who have a world-changing innovative idea. The winner will be announced at the GlobalWIIN Conference & Awards Ceremony on the 2nd – 3rd October in London.
GlobalWIIN has gained the support and sponsorship of SHIFT London, and this has provided the opportunity to be hosted at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in the heart of East London with access to invaluable capacity building opportunities for many of the ground breaking innovations.
Francesca Colloca, Head of Innovation at SHIFT said, “The biggest problems we face are complex and require solutions to come from all parts of all parts of society. SHIFT is passionate about supporting inclusive and responsible innovation so that we’re tackling issues like the climate emergency with equity and fairness. We’re thrilled to be collaborating with our colleagues at GlobalWIIN to support brilliant women inventors and innovators from east London and the world.”
Kate Pearman, COO, Plexal “Collaboration is at the heart of Plexal’s ethos, so we’re proud to support GlobalWIIN in their mission to unite, celebrate and champion those women who make such powerful contributions to society and the economy. We’ve welcomed some truly phenomenal female leaders into our community and I hope this campaign encourages more innovators to come forward to make their presence known across the science and technology ecosystem at large”
Bola Olabisi, who founded the awards, says: “Recognizing inclusivity and the support for more women with ingenious ideas that can benefit our lives is so important especially at a time when the world faces many critical issues that need to be solved. We want to highlight the best and freshest ideas by women from a local and international perspective while assisting many to become investment ready. We would like the world to recognise and appreciate the invaluable alternative perspective and state-of-the-art solutions women bring to the world particularly in areas that impact our wellbeing and planet, address food shortage, clarifies the growing concern for digital technology and embraces the importance of design and creativity to name a few.”
The main award is one of several innovation award categories from women around the world who are innovating in different sectors. Winners may have created a new device, machine, product, system, or process capable of impacting millions of people for the better. They may be a brilliant scientist or the inspired designer of a simple, low-cost technology.
The winner is also expected to have leadership qualities and attract loyalty and respect from the people who know them whether they are friends, family, colleagues, or employees. They may be a woman who builds powerful teams, capable of dramatically leveraging the impact of their innovative efforts or someone working on a personal project alone. One thing is sure, they are likely to be relentless in pursuing their goals.
The deadline for entering is 25 May 2024. More details are available at www.globalwiin.com.
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Notes for Editors
About Global Women Inventors & Innovators Network (GlobalWIIN)
GlobalWIIN is an independent network that collaborates and forms relevant partnerships that enhance global knowledge transfer & capacity building programmes. This covers the raising of awareness in areas of intellectual property, product development, equity and commercialisation, access to finance, innovation & growth with a special focus on gender diversity and inclusion. The awards programme is GlobalWIIN’s biggest platform dedicated to inventors and innovators that contribute to social and economic growth while maximising their impact. GlobalWIIN has been celebrating ingenious innovators and businesses for more than 25 years. The network founded in London works with women across the UK, Africa, Europe, Middle East, Asia, North America, and the Caribbean.
Aside from the awards, this year’s event includes a conference and showcase that will cover crucial topics such as climate, infrastructure development, water, healthcare & well-being, food, education, energy renewal, transportation, etc.
About the GlobalWIIN Supporters
About SHIFT
SHIFT accelerates innovation that transforms how we live in cities. Formed by a cross-sector network of private, public and academic organisations based at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, SHIFT works with innovators to find, test and demonstrate projects that can deliver global impact in the areas of climate emergency response, health and wellbeing, and mobility. The partnership provides a support platform for innovators that includes expertise, resources, and a real-world testbed. SHIFT also facilitates access to an ecosystem of businesses, universities, local communities, and policymakers committed to creating a better future for East London through inclusive innovation and inward investment.
About PLEXAL
Plexal is the innovation company solving society’s challenges through collaboration with government, start-ups, and industry. The business is closing the gap between organisations – small and large, local, and global, private and public – and working towards a common goal: using science and technology to deliver national security and prosperity. It was founded in 2017 as the innovation centre at Here East. Providing bespoke consultancy services and state-of-the-art workspaces for over 1,000 innovators, Plexal sources the right partners from their ecosystem of 15,000 connections. It supports entrepreneurs, start-ups and scaleups building emerging technologies and operates across multiple sectors including cyber, healthcare, intelligence and defence, government, public safety, financial services and telecoms.
Intellectual Property Awareness Network (IPAN)
IPAN brings together organisations and individuals drawn from business, commerce, education, and the IP professions in the UK, all committed to championing the importance and understanding of IP as a vital ingredient for innovation and success of businesses, large and small. IPAN events, publications, and research activities aim to stimulate and extend debate about the role and value of IP protection in all its forms. We are constituted as a not-for-profit, membership organisation, independent of any sector lobbying group, and committed to the principles of equality, diversity, and inclusion in all our activities.
For more information contact
Bola Olabisi, CEO, GlobalWIIN
contact@globalwiin.com or visit www.globalwiin.com
CEO’S MESSAGE
6 September 2023
It is always a pleasure to share our news with the world. This year, we celebrate 25 years of putting the spotlight on thousands of ingenious women right across the globe with our forthcoming GlobalWIIN Conference and Awards in the beautiful City of Reykjavik. Our appreciation goes out to the host country Iceland and all our sponsors all our It certainly is an occasion not to be missed. It is deeply humbling for me to have the privilege of meeting so many inspirational women and men. We are working towards securing a GlobalWIIN Hall of Fame Building where we can showcase all our winners with their formidable ground-breaking inventions and innovations. If you or your organisation would like to be a partner, provide a space or building to get us started, please do not hesitate to contact me. We have also launched our GlobalWIIN Tribe membership This quarter, we have had several exciting events that assist in propelling our message. To continue to bring innovation and gender diversity, inclusion, and equality to the forefront. Once again, join us as we delve into the worlfd of intellectual property, innovative foods, sustainable product development, equity, and commercialisation with the celebration of remarkable and dynamic women from across the globe.
– Dr Bola Olabisi FRSA
PROUD TO BE ME is latest
DIAMOND PLUS TRIBE MEMBER
Proud to be me is a social enterprise that exists to empower, educate and help young women between the ages of 13 – 25 from less privileged backgrounds by providing them with opportunities they may not have otherwise received. Proud to be me aims to make a positive difference to the lives of these young women and nurture them into adulthood by creating opportunities for them to increase their self-esteem levels and general well-being through coaching, mentoring and training; thereby empowering them to make better decisions and develop into confident and informed young women.
Proudtobeme exists to support and encourage young women to embrace themselves, their work, skills, abilities, leadership, decision making and influencing skills, both now and in the future.
GLOBALWIIN WELCOMES THE HIRAGA GROUP JAPAN
as DIAMOND PLUS MEMBER
HIRAGA Group specialises in factory drainage equipment RC water tank repairs with an amazing inventor – Yuko Hiraga who has invented cutting edge patented equipment and established construction methods with creative ideas and solutions for the industry. The organisation has a special nitch in the construction industry with a special focus on enabling long-term use of the drainage of water tanks.
KEITUS SYSTEMS SUPPORTS GLOBALWIIN and becomes
DIAMOND PLUS TRIBE MEMBER
Tempeus® aims to close safety gaps.
The aviation industry has created 2 flight recorders that are the black boxes onboard: the flight data recorder (FDR) and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR). But there is one problem, one black box is missing. It is the ground data black box®. Keitas Systems has created this ground data black box®: Tempeus®. Tempeus is the third black box that did not exist yet in aviation.
Tempeus® records the ground data, that is to say, the evolution of the aircraft’s configuration since the manufacture exit, in order to detect and correct the ground safety issues, to protect the crew, and the passengers. The ground data black box® is always available to be open first, while locating the other two.
GLOBALWIIN LAUNCHES DIAMOND TRIBE
MEMBERSHIP TO LOYAL SUPPORTERS
GlobalWIIN recognises that there are many individuals that are making positive impact within various sectors such as the healthcare, food & beverage, SMART cities, green energy, transport, environmental issues, sustainability, technology, research and development, education, …to name a few. There is an understanding that many with ingenious ideas, products or services need to be in the space of likeminded people. This is the service that GlobalWIIN so as part of its 25th year anniversary loyal supporters are being invited to join the GlobalWIIN Diamond Tribe.
With a call out for loyal supporting individuals and organisations to join the tribe, GlobalWIIN aims to continues its role in putting the spotlight on the ingenious minded, creative, academic, entrepreneurs or corporate organisations, civil societies from grassroot to senior leadership level with shared values for the advancement of women inventors and innovators.
GLOBALWIIN CELEBRATES 25 YEARS IN REYKJAVIK, ICELAND 6 & 7 SEPTEMBER
The network is set to celebrate the worlds ingenious women and male champions right on the coast of Iceland in the Viking historic and largest city of Reykjavik. Our gratitude goes to Mrs Elinora Inga Sigurdadottir and the people of Iceland for hosting this remarkable event. We are truly excited that we shall be showcasing over 50 incredible inventions and innovations from across the globe. We also look forward to the distinguished Speakers with their incredible knowledge exchange. Watch out for the feedback of our annual gathering.
IPAN 2023 World IP Day celebration: “Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity” Wednesday 26 April 2023,
GlobalWIIN took centre stage at the Intellectual Property Awareness Network (IPAN) 2023 World IP day celebration as many of our members were invited to join IPAN at their networking reception which took place at the Institute of Directors (IoD) in London, United Kingdom.
This special event was chaired by IPAN Chairman, John Ogier, as he welcomed speakers Penny Phillpotts from the Intellectual Property Office UK; Andrea Brewster OBE, Lead Executive Officer of IP Inclusive and former President of The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys Attorneys; Kristen Tapping, Entrepreneur and Product Design Engineer, currently developing GoRolloe, a startup that creates air filtration devices for vehicles to capture harmful particulate matter in urban areas; Sarah Talland, trade mark attorney with Potter Clarkson LLP; Winner Patience Nwodu, Inventor and creator of Chibu Reusable Carriers; and Associate Professor Dr Janice Denoncourt, Nottingham Law School, Nottingham Trent University and Author of ‘Intellectual Property, Finance and Corporate Governance’ (2018). Bola Olabisi, Founder & CEO of GlobalWIIN, also a director and member of the IPAN Board was also on the panel of experts where they discussed the successes of women in the creative industries and the challenges they face in accessing and protecting IP. The event was well-attended with guests representing IP law firms, academics and universities, practitioners, inventors, creators and entrepreneurs. During the event, IPAN Chair John Ogier presented a gift on behalf of IPAN’s Board, Members and Partners to Ruth Soetendorp for her decades of dedication to the IPAN mission as a valued member of the IPAN Board
Perez Ochieng, CEO & Director for Innovation. Sacoma Global Foods
GlobalWIIN has partnered with SACOMA GLOBAL to launch the Innovative Food & Packaging Award Category. SACOMA is a multifaceted UK business with operations in the UK, EU and Africa. With a great business story to tell SACOMA continues to inspire others with their experience, skills knowledge and with the most innovative and disruptive ideas, sharing powerful ideas, case studies, and innovative NPD initiatives, solutions and projects within Agriculture and Food Industry. Mrs Ochieng explained that a third of the fresh food we produce is thrown away, after requiring 70% of our water resources. More than 800 million people suffer from chronic hunger, while overweight and obesity go up in alarming rates. So, how can we expect to feed a population of 9.5 billion by 2050, when today the environmental and economic costs of food production are so high? How can we distribute food and nutrition more fairly.? Dr Bola Olabisi added, ”We are pleased to share in the values of SACOMA. Their ethical supply chain model has won a number of major international awards and recognition in the UK and EU and Globally. They work directly with small-scale producers to source their ingredients, so every purchase helps create sustainable incomes for farmers”
MEWIIN under the Al-Saad Foundation holds first Hybrid Conference & Awards Ceremony in Kuwait
The Middle East Women Inventors & Innovators Network (MEWIIN) Conference and Awards took place under the Al Saad Foundation in honour of the FounderSheikha Fadyah Saad Al Sabah. Formerly known as Ibtikar, the Sheikha Fadyah Saad Al Sabah scientific competition is an innovation technology driven competition that targets female students in the public education sector. The competition was established in 1999 in Kuwait, and in 2011 had branched out to the rest of the gulf countries. The competition focuses on likeminded female students from Elementary, Middle School, and High School giving them a platform to present and showcase their innovations. While also mentoring them by providing different workshops and seminars aiding in advancing their knowledge on their innovations.
The partnership between GlobalWIIN and Al Saad Foundation progressed into a remarkable day of celebration and encouragement the role of women in the fields of scientific and non-scientific inventions and innovations and in the field of entrepreneurship. Built for women entrepreneurs who have developed and brought to the market an outstanding innovation. Prizes were awarded in three categories.GOLDEN AWARD 5000$.. THE SILVER AWARD 3000$ and THE BRONZE AWARD 2000$
GlobalWIIN takes on Work Balance with Mind, Body and Soul Retreat
Asia Pacific Experience with Rejuvenation and Detox that could help transform health. Once a year, GlobalWIIN is planning an opportunity for its members to escape to a location where the improvement of our health and chaging our lifestyle to a better one becomes centre stage. Dr Bola Olabisi tested out a remarkable health and fitness centre where destressing was a major service provided. A good look at simply examining our daily habits, our food, our sleep and even our bowels,took centre stage. If you are interested in learning more, please contact GlobalWIIN for more information.
Closing the Digital Divide & Competitive Competency
Johannesburg, South Africa 16-18 November 2023
Working in collaboration with the Leading Women of Africa at the PARTNERSHIP FOR GROWTH SYMPOSIUM EXHIBITION & AWARDS coming event – , GlobalWIIN is set to join the dialogue
SPECIAL HONORARY RECOGNITION AWARDS FOR AMAZING WOMEN INVENTORS & INNOVATORS IN AFRICA.2023
– closing the digital divide
In the digital and technology space –Johannesburg 16 November
Leading Women of Africa hosts Pan African Women Inventors & Innovators Network (PAWIIN) – Johannesburg, South Africa 16 November 2023
It is a remarkable year as South Africa hosts the PAWIIN Honorary Awards. Join us in celebration as we put the spotlight on women in the driving seats of economic and social growth making impact.
Working in Collaboration with LWA
REGISTER & FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE FULL PROGRAM https://lu.ma/apg2023
Salma Medhat Shaaban Wefky
From Egypt for Matkhafeesh won the Overall Platinum GLOBALWIIN Award 2021 for a mobile application invented for women’s safety and to fight all forms of gender-based violence. It was designed to create a safe, judgement-free space for women to receive the social, mental and legal support they need.
The GlobalWIIN 2021 Overall Platinum Award Winner is…. – YouTube
Salma’s creation includes immediate help from chosen and trusted contacts. The app provides useful support to avoid becoming a victim and invaluable signposting support to those who have experienced incidents.
Ida Cham Njai
“Increasing numbers of inventors and innovators are women, who have demonstrated great determination to succeed in bringing their innovations to the global marketplace. Intellectual Property (IP) – the innovators’ intangible but very valuable assets – are an essential part of the 21st century enterprise. The IP value can be present whether the product is a physical good or a virtual service. Together, we can empower and enable a new generation of ingenious minded and commercially aware entrepreneurs” J. P. Ogier. Yabouy Home Cooking involves a visit to Gambia to experience the traditions of cooking organic locally sourced food and fashion wear for a lasting experience. It is unique in its proposition, preparation, and service delivery and attracts a significant national and international audience. Ida has extended her creativity by conducting training for institutions and communities for other cultures to emulate without compromise on quality and her ingenuity.
‘Kuwaiti Scientist Engineer, Khadeja S.H. Ebrahem Alrefaie becomes the 2020 overall Platinum Inventor of the year 2020-2021 Award Winner for her novel DNA Imaging technique’
Kuwaiti Scientist Engineer, Khadeja S.H. Ebrahem Alrefaie becomes the 2020 overall Platinum Inventor of the year 2020-2021 Award Winner for her novel DNA Imaging technique’
“My invention helps develop therapies that target the root of disease. My technique assists in better understanding the mechanism of action for nuclear changes by labelling, observing and imaging”. On Wednesday 9 December 2020, GlobalWIIN publicly announced on the global virtual stage the 2020 ‘GlobalWIIN Overall Platinum Award’ winner as Khadeja S.H Ebrahem Alrefaie from Kuwait for her novel DNA Imaging technique. Her invention is a steppingstone to the advancement of genetic research, modifies the human system to target DNA and nuclear elements with high precision, minimal noise, and off-target effects.
London entrepreneur Patience Nwodu takes special IP prize at Global Women Inventors and Innovators Network awards
London-based entrepreneur Patience Nwodu won the Special Award for Intellectual Property in this year’s Global Women Inventors and Innovators Network awards. IPAN sponsored the IP category with a prize towards the GlobalWIIN 2020 Awards. For the first time, the awards took place online. This is a high quality, reusable and versatile carrier, now bearing the registered trade mark Chibu®.
The carrier is made from sustainable, renewable and biodegradable cotton canvas. IPAN Director Ruth Soetendorp, who was a member of the independent GlobalWIIN judging panel, said that the judging process was an “exhausting but energising experience”, with nine judges from three continents judging almost 30 candidates – all via Zoom. “It was agreed unanimously to award Patience Nwodu the IPAN Prize – since she had, as a sole inventor and entrepreneur, sought to engage with the IP system, not only by registering the Chíbu trade mark, but also by applying to patent her invention.”
Congratulating the GlobalWIIN award winners, IPAN’s Chairman John Ogier said “You have already taken some of the most vital steps to realise your dreams and ambitions, in creating your business for your invention or innovation. “There are many challenges to launching a successful business. In the 21st century economy, it is not enough just to have a good idea or even a great new product or service. You need to be able to realise the value of your innovation in a globally competitive market. This means being able to protect the ownership of your innovation and create a recognised brand identity in the marketplace. Intellectual Property provides you with the tools to be able to do this.”
DR. MARGRET VILBORG BJARNADOTTIR from Iceland becomes Overall GlobalWIIN Platinum Award Winner 2019-2020 from Iceland
In 2016 she co-founded PayAnalytics to apply data analytics to eliminate the gender pay gap. PayAnalytics changes how organizations measure, and more importantly, close the gender pay gap by arming HR managers with quantitative decision-making tools. Her work on pay equity has been covered by outlets such as Harvard Business Review, Forbes, BBC, HR magazine and others.
She was awarded the GlobalWIIN – overall inventor innovator platinum award for her innovative approach to addressing pay equity, and last year she was named the University Woman of the Year in Iceland for the impact of her pay equity work. Over the past few years Margrét has focused in part on people analytics, and the pay gap in particular. For more information visit her website on www.payanalytics.com
GlobalWIIN renews MOU with Al-Saad Foundation for Knowledge & Scientific Research Kuwait
Dr Bola Olabisi, CEO of GlobalWIIN stated that she is absolutely delighted that there is a continuation of the successful collaboration with the Al-Saad Foundation. This will continue to assist with putting the invaluable recognition of the contribution that ingenious women from the Middle East bring to society and the world.
“We look forward to putting the spotlight on well deserving women from across the Middle-East while embracing the international participation of various other countries”. For more information visit globalwiin.com/middle-east
GlobalWIIN Launches Learning Courses – THE GEIT LEARNING PLATFORM – Bringing Ideas to life!
GlobalWIIN leading platform provides you with the opportunity to share your knowledge. It provides access to global outreach that thrive on developing sustainable ideologies. Join us in the nurturing of an effective and sustainable learning that creates impact for the masses across nations. LEARN FROM INGENIOUS MINDS FROM A VARIETY OF SECTORS
Real life experiences & specialist masterclasses. This is an independent learning platform targeted at Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and Continuous Personal Development. Simple and practical learning for everyone.
No qualifications needed.