Six Greek entrepreneurs have been selected to participate in the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) taking place from June 22-24 in Palo Alto, California. As part of President Obama’s commitment to expand support for entrepreneurship and economic opportunity around the world, the GES has brought together the best innovators, thinkers, social entrepreneurs, and investors since 2010. Each GES has taken place in a different region of the world, from the United States to Sub-Saharan Africa. This year’s GES will take place on the campus of Stanford University, in the heart of Silicon Valley (http://www.ges2016.org/).
The following Greek entrepreneurs will be participating in GES 2016:
Ioanna Fotopoulou, Project Manager, Social Impact Award
Zoi Giavri, CEO, Advantis Medical Imaging
Magy Kontou, Co-founder & Head of Innovation, SimpleApps / Tourismart
Anastasia Siapka, Co-Founder, Code it Like a Girl
Konstantinos Synodinos, Founder, Championsid.com
Xenia Vasiliadis, Founder, TripElina
The Greek delegation includes five women, signaling the important role of women in the Greek entrepreneurship ecosystem. The U.S. Department of State and GES are funding the participation of these select entrepreneurs, as well as one Greek media representative, Maria Akrivou of Fortune Greece. The Hellenic Initiative, a global Greek movement founded in 2012 by business leaders of the Hellenic Diaspora dedicated to the economic renewal of Greece (www.thehellenicinitiative.org,) is also providing part of the costs of the Greek delegation.
During the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, the Greek delegation will have the opportunity to network with hundreds of their peers from all over the world and identify opportunities for collaboration and funding.
The goal of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit is to connect entrepreneurs across the globe with the access and exchange needed to create and innovate, unleashing their power to change the world. The United States is hosting the seventh Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which was previously hosted by the United States and the governments of Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Morocco, and Kenya. In bringing the Summit back to the United States, President Obama highlights his commitment to building bridges that help us tackle global challenges together.
The 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit aims to:
- showcase inspiring entrepreneurs and investors from around the world, creating new opportunities for investment, partnership, and collaboration;
- connect American entrepreneurs and investors with their international counterparts to form lasting relationships;
- highlight entrepreneurship as means to address some of the most intractable global challenges.
Hosting the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Silicon Valley highlights America’s entrepreneurial spirit and allows American investors and entrepreneurs to see the talent, solutions, and opportunities that exist globally. The summit will include a wide range of workshops, panels, ignite talks, pitch competitions, mentoring and networking sessions. These will give participants tailored opportunities to gain skills and relationships that will help their ventures grow. Within the Summit, there will also be demonstration areas, experiential learning exhibitions, and opportunities to connect with industry experts.
The support for the Greek delegation is part of the efforts of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Athens to promote collaboration between Greek and American entrepreneurs and initiatives, especially among youth.
US Embassy Athens Economic Counsellor Steve Bitner and Cultural Attaché Mike Snyder together with members of the Greek GES 2016 delegation before they depart for Palo Alto