New Inclusive Innovation Center will benefit more than 750 youths in Santa Catarina

With the purpose of promoting a new generation of young entrepreneurs, between the ages of 16 and 30, so that they can be agents of change, CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, in alliance with the Organization of American States (OAS), Microsoft, Western Union, and The Trust for the Americas, supported the Universidad Tecnológica de Santa Catarina to launch the Inclusive Innovation Center this year, in the Municipality of Santa Catarina, in Nueva Leon, within the project "DIA-Democratizando Innovación en las Américas" (DIA Democratizing Innovation in the Americas).

Through this program, beneficiary youths are trained on the use of top of the line technology and subjects related to innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship, to strengthen their leadership skills and management of innovative projects that have a positive impact on their communities. 

Democratizing Innovation in the Americas was created under a framework of inclusive innovation laboratories that provide access to spaces, top of the line technology, support, and tools to exploit creative processes with financial resources to inspire a new generation of innovators, who will promote social and economic development in their communities, providing equitable prosperity for vulnerable populations. 

Participants, most of them youths in a vulnerable situation, strengthen their professional and personal skills to become agents of change in their families and communities. The project expects to provide training to 250 youths, and access to 500 more, and will grant seed funds to the 20 most innovative and disruptive ideas. 

The opening event will include the participation of the Corporate Citizenship Manager of Microsoft Mexico, Óscar Raúl Ortega; the President of the Universidad Tecnológica de Santa Catarina, Dr. José Cárdenas Cavazos; The Deputy Director of The Trust for the Americas, Darío Soto Abril; the Project Leader of The Trust for the Americas, Felipe Ramos Barajas; CAF's Director Representative in Mexico, Moira Paz Estensoro; and CAF's Director for Institutional Development, Christian Asinelli, among others.

In the future, the Center expects to continue training entrepreneurial youths and generating initiatives that promote development in the State of Nueva Leon and in the country. Thus, CAF continues to expand and deepen its institutional strengthening agenda under the strategic vision of generating knowledge, increasing the institution's visibility related to these subjects, and promoting innovation opportunities.