Global Innovation Exchange Co-Created by Horizon International, USAID, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Others

Global Innovation Exchanges Launch on 23 June 2016

During the Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2016, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID), Australian Aid, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), launched the Global Innovation Exchange (the Exchange) alongside partners from across government, business, academia, and civil society who believe they can find solutions to major global issues through collaboration.

The Exchange is an online marketplace for innovators, funders and subject matter experts to connect and share valuable insights and resources to accelerate global development innovation and better address major global issues.

Horizon International co-created the Exchange alongside USAID and organizations from across government, business, academia, and NGOs who believe that together we can tackle humanity’s greatest challenges.  The Exchange is providing over 300 summaries of resources from Horizon’s Solutions Site with links to the full articles and case studies and anticipates to soon have over 600 posts from the Solutions Site’s 1,500 plus resources.  Explore resources on the Exchange from Horizon International at http://www.globalinnovationexchange.org/resources/organization/3013.

Key ways to use the Exchange include:

 Find and share innovations, funding, resources, events, programs, and organizations.

• Access information that is directly relevant to your work
• Express your needs and connect with skilled experts
• Follow members and innovations, start a conversation, or share your ideas

Knowing that a breakthrough idea can come from anyone, anywhere, the Exchange aims to democratize development. It is an open, public-good platform that is available to everyone. Already home to nearly $173 million funding opportunities, more than 4,200 innovations, and more than 8,800 collaborators, the Exchange is rapidly expanding, reaching every corner of the world.

The Exchange allows us to save time and money that can go directly to aid, while catalyzing new tools and solutions that can help us save millions of lives. Thousands of people around the world are developing game-changing products and technologies that have the potential to end global poverty. But many are outside of the development community and do not have the connections, development expertise, or funding to quickly bring their ideas to the communities who need them most.

An article related to Horizon International's partnership with the Exchange is at http://www.solutions-site.org/node/1517

 Horizon InternationalAbout Horizon International:

 Horizon International works to find and advance solutions to vital concerns in the interconnected areas of health, the environment, population and economic well-being through its programs, lectures, conferences, and consultancies. The organization, based at Yale University, focuses on needs that it can most effectively address, prioritizing initiatives that are most pressing and that inform and inspire positive action with the help of its Scientific Review Board and Special Advisors.  Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are a major focus of the organization.