The Swarovski Foundation recently launched its ‘Swarovski Foundation Institute: Creatives for Our Future,’ a new global grant program designed with the United Nations Office. After a successful call for applications which resulted in over 400 applications from 72 countries, the Swarovski Foundation, U.N. Office for Partnerships, and program advocates voted to finalize the 9 creative cohorts.

The nine grantees include three Africans who were chosen for their groundbreaking ideas and innovative approaches to design, which offer new methods for addressing sustainability challenges, and for their commitment to driving progress towards the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the blueprint for a better world set out by the United Nations in 2015.

According to the foundation, each grantee will receive a $15,000 grant, paired with educational opportunities, industry networking access and tailored mentorship, provided by the program advocates.

The three Africans selected are Osasumwen Obasogie, Mechanical Engineer & entrepreneur (Nigeria), Yara Mohamed Evida, Architect (Egypt), and Ghislain Irakoze, Engineer (Rwanda).

Osasumwen Obasogie

Osasumwen Obasogie is a Mechanical Engineer and Entrepreneur from Nigeria, currently studying Mechanical Engineering at Landmark University. He’s experienced in hardware and software design, theories of operation, system integration, installation, and commissioning, with a passion for leading sustainable product design projects.

Yara Mohamed Evida

Yara is an Architect and studying a master’s degree in Bio-digital Architecture, which tackles the idea of Bio-learning and studying the integration of both design and function, applying this idea in different kind of architectural and urban projects. She’s working on a range of topics such as heritage revival, urban regeneration, sustainable design, and smart technology design solutions.

Ghislain Irakoze

Ghislain is a sustainability entrepreneur and activist based in Kigali, Rwanda. With a vision for a climate-resilient and waste-free world, he founded Wastezon, a cleantech company that leverages cutting-edge technology to provide e-waste traceability, sorting, and collection services. So far over 400 tons of e-waste have been transacted on the Wastezon app.

 

Click this link to see the full list of grantees.