Cartier announces the 24 fellows for the 2021 edition of the Cartier Women’s Initiative
With the announcement of the 2021 Cartier Women’s Initiative fellows, Cartier is reaffirming its commitments to women impact entrepreneurs leveraging business as a force for good.
Since 2006, the Cartier Women’s Initiative has helped these women reach their full potential by shining a light on their achievements and providing them with the necessary financial, social and human capital support to grow their businesses and build their leadership skills. The program is open to women-run and women-owned businesses from any country and sector that aim to have a strong and sustainable positive impact on society as defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Since its creation, the Cartier Women’s Initiative has accompanied over 260 promising women entrepreneurs hailing from 59 different countries and has awarded over US $4 million in prize money to support their businesses.
This year, to further increase its impact and relevance, the program has launched the Science & Technology Pioneer Award. In addition to the 7 existing Regional Awards, 3 more women impact entrepreneurs at the forefront of scientific and technological innovation will be recognized. Open to women entrepreneurs from any country and sector, this award will highlight disruptive solutions built around unique, protected or hard-to-reproduce technological or scientific advances.
24 fellows are selected amongst 876 applicants hailing from 142 countries. For the first time, theCartier Women’s Initiative has recognized women impact entrepreneurs from Mali, Iraq and Myanmar. These fellows represent the top 3 businesses for each of the 7 Regional Awards and for the Science & Technology Pioneer Award.
In these unprecedented times, Cartier considers it its duty to protect its teams, partners and program participants, this is why the 8 laureates will be announced on May 26th 2021, during a virtual ceremony, which will close a digital awards week on the theme of the Ripple Effect.
Prior to the ceremony, the Cartier Women’s Initiative will also be organizing a virtual gathering under the same theme on May 24th and 25th 2021 that will assemble a wide range of speakers including Cartier President and CEO, Cyrille Vigneron, thought leaders and friends of the Maison in order to discuss how each of us can drive change and uplift women impact entrepreneurs, thus paving the way for a better world for future generations.
“Women have always had a pivotal role at Cartier, both as a driving force and an endless source of inspiration. In these challenging times, they are more admirable than ever, proving their resilience in the face of adversity and their ability to create concrete and durable solutions not only for themselves but for their communities and the world at large. It is our honor and pride to support these women who keep pushing the boundaries in order to make the world a better and more equal place.”Cyrille Vigneron, President and CEO of Cartier International
The 8 laureates for each Award category will take home US $100,000 in prize money, whereas the second and third runner-ups for each Award category will receive US $30,000. Finally, the 8 laureates and 16 finalists will all benefit from tailored 1:1 training, collective workshops, media visibility and international networking opportunities, as well as the opportunity to join an INSEAD impact entrepreneurship program.
For more information on the programme and footage of the fellows, please visit: www.cartierwomensinitiative.com
