Chivas Regal® Unveils Finalists of $1M Global Social Enterprise Competition

In its Third Year, the World's First Luxury Whisky Will Highlight and Reward the Most Promising Social Entrepreneurs Around the Globe

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Chivas Regal

Mar 14, 2017, 09:02 ET

NEW YORK, March 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, at the Skoll Centre at the world-renowned University of Oxford, 30 of the brightest startups from across the globe were unveiled as finalists of Chivas Regal's The Venture – a global search to discover and reward the world's most promising social entrepreneurs. Each finalist, including DayOne Response from San Francisco, CA, will travel to Los Angeles, CA, in July to compete for a share of $1 million to make their dream of creating a better future for the world a reality.

30 of the world's brightest startups unveiled as finalists of the Chivas Venture - a global $1M search by leading Scotch whisky Chivas Regal to support the next generation of startups that are creating a better future for society. March 14, 2017 in Oxford, UK. (Getty Images for Chivas Regal).

Now in its third year, The Venture has received almost 6,000 applications across six continents from startups that are striving to use innovation and enterprise to make the world a better place. The vision of the future imagined by this year's finalists is a place where protein bars are made from crickets and shoes made from garbage; where moss walls clean city air and drinkable water solutions for disaster relief victims can be created in 30 minutes.

One finalist will represent each of the 30 participating countries at the hotly-anticipated The Venture Final in Los Angeles, CA in July. There, they will brush shoulders with some of the biggest names in business and entertainment, and have just five minutes to impress the expert judging panel with their world-changing ideas and deliver the pitch of their lives.

In preparation for The Venture Final, the 30 finalists have traveled to Oxford to take part in a transformational Accelerator Week program created by the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship embedded within the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. During an intensive five days of learning, the finalists have the opportunity to develop leadership skills, take part in practical workshops and be inspired by global experts on critical topics that affect social startups.

"In today's uncertain political and economic climate, social enterprise has never played a more important role in securing a better future for our society," said Andrea Warriner, Deputy Director of the Skoll Centre. "There's an incredible pool of entrepreneurs in the Final 30 of this year's The Venture competition, who we believe really have what it takes to make a difference. We have a great program lined up for this week, and we look forward to being inspired by our finalists, while giving them an unforgettable experience."

"We were blown away by the caliber of entries for this year's The Venture competition," said Richard Black, Chivas Regal Global Brand Director. "The businesses are a great example of the ingenuity and passion of entrepreneurs across the world who are committed to creating a better world for generations to come. The founders of Chivas Regal were entrepreneurs who gave back to their community, and by discovering and supporting startups who also give back to the wider global community, The Venture is continuing their legacy. At Chivas, we firmly believe that generosity and success go hand-in-hand – and when you share your success with others, business becomes truly rewarding."

From Monday, May 1^st to Sunday, June 4^th, the public will be able to show their support for their favorite finalist by casting a live vote. Over the course of five weeks, the public's vote will determine how the first $250,000 in funding is split among the finalists. The winner(s) of the remaining $750,000 in funding will be decided on Thursday, July 13^th at The Venture Final in Los Angeles, CA, after a high-stakes pitch in front of the judges and a live audience.

To learn more about DayOne Response and the other 30 global finalists of The Venture, visit www.chivas.com/the-venture.

The Venture Finalists

COUNTRY	BUSINESS NAME	FINALIST NAME	FINALIST ROLE	BUSINESS OVERVIEW
Argentina	Xinca	Alejandro Malgor	Co-Founder	Xinca is making the ugly beautiful again by upcycling waste materials into premium footwear. As well as helping the environment, they provide job opportunities to those who are marginalized from society. They collaborate with inmates from the San Felipe prison in Mendoza to assemble their sneakers, using old tires and textile waste rescued from landfill. Their shoes are garbage – and they're proud of it.
Australia	Words with Heart	Lauren Shuttleworth	CEO & Founder	Words with Heart cover their eco-friendly stationery with empowering words, and use proceeds from sales to fund education projects for women and girls in the developing world. In partnership with charities, the company supports primary and high school education, financial literacy and small business training. Words with Heart use 100% recycled paper, vegetable based ink and solar electricity.
Belgium	BeeOdiversity	Michael Van Cutsem	Founder	BeeOdiversity uses bees to protect bees, food diversity and the welfare of everyone. They analyze samples collected by bees from billions of flowers, enabling them to monitor biodiversity and pollution, and advise corporations and local authorities on environmental actions. Examples include replanting specific seeds and stopping pesticide use in the most affected areas.
Brazil	Livre	Júlio Oliveto Alves	Director of Innovation	The Kit Livre ("Kit Free") transforms any simple wheelchair into an electric tricycle. It enables users to ride in style through the obstacles of urban life and even rougher terrains. Created by twin brothers Júlio and Lúcio Oliveto, Livre aims to increase the mobility and self-confidence of wheelchair users.
Bulgaria	Sea Harmony	Kornelia Dimitrova	Partner	Sea Harmony has developed mussel farms in the shape of vertical reefs that can be placed in open sea areas. Their aim is to restore marine ecosystems in coastal areas affected by pollution and irresponsible fishing practices. Mussels have the unique ability to enhance water quality for other species to grow (shrimp, fish), and they are also a sustainable source of protein for human consumption.
China	First Respond	Robin Jun Lu	COO	First Respond's mission is to establish "mutual aid" as a new social norm in China. They provide high-quality first-aid training to individuals in office building, schools and residential areas, so that people know what to do, and are not afraid to act in an emergency. They have already saved lives in large sporting events, such as marathons.
Colombia	Bioestibas	Álvaro Vásquez	Manager and Owner	Bioestibas produces ecological stowage from flower waste that would otherwise be polluting the environment. Their pallets are created without cutting a single tree; instead they collect hydrangea stems from flower growers, and turn them into sustainable products that are optimized to also reduce storage and transportation costs.
Czech Republic	SENS Food	Daniel Vach	Co-Founder	SENS Food teamed up with top chef Peter Ocknecht to create protein bars made with cricket flour. By using crickets instead of beef, SENS has saved 2 tons of feed, 700,000 liters of water and greenhouse gasses equivalent to a road trip around the world. SENS is now planning to create a whole new range of sustainable, next-gen food products.
Dominican Republic	Clarke's Organics	Daniel Dalet	Co-Founder	Clarke's Organics processes coconuts to produce their 'SoloCoco' organic product range, which includes coconut oil, flour, water, soaps and lotions. Working with Fair Trade, they train and employ mostly single mothers, to help raise awareness of hiring this demographic, which is very large and under-privileged in Latin America.
Germany	Green City Solutions	Liang Wu	Co-Founder & CIO	Green City Solutions has created the "CityTree," which helps combat air pollution in urban areas. CityTree combines moss culture and Internet-of-Things technology to filter fine dust, nitrogen oxides and CO2 from the air –having the same effect as 275 urban trees, but using 99% less space.
Greece	Laddroller	Marios-Ermis Petrotos	CEO	Laddroller is an eco-friendly and affordable standing wheelchair, which allows people with disabilities to stand up and move around. The wheelchair elevates the user by the motion of the wheels, helping users to perform everyday tasks, improving their health and quality of life.
Gulf	NOW Money	Katharine Budd	Co-Founder & CEO	NOW Money is a mobile banking app for low-income migrant workers, who are currently excluded from the financial system. It provides them with a current account, as well as a remittance marketplace, where users can compare rates and send money back home directly from the app.
Hong Kong	B Y T	Michelle Bang	Founder & CEO	B Y T is an up-cycled fashion brand launching in September 2017. Their clothes & accessories are made from surplus luxury fabrics, ensuring a sustainable and socially responsible supply chain. The designer of B Y T apparel, Kévin Germanier, was the winner of The EcoChic Design Award.
Hungary	Now Technologies	Mark Istvan	CEO	Now Technologies aims to deliver affordable solutions to electric wheelchair users, enabling them to interact with computers, thus providing them with the potential to communicate, and even study or work. Their headset, for example, serves the needs of tetraplegic wheelchair users by capturing and processing head and eye movements, acting as a head mouse.
Israel	Intendu	Dr. Son Preminger	Founder & CEO	Intendu aids brain rehabilitation through the use of video games, involving body movements in real-life scenarios, and adapting in real time to the needs of its users. The technology can be used at home or by therapists, training people with cognitive impairments due to various brain conditions.
Japan	Factelier	Toshio Yamada	CEO & Founder	Factelier is an online fashion brand that sells clothes from Japanese factories direct to consumers. By cutting out the middleman, they are protecting healthy profit margins for the manufacturers, who set their own prices. Factelier's mission is to revive craftsmanship and economic activity in rural Japan, through world-class fashion.
Kenya	Sanivation	Dickson Ochieng	Director of Government Relations	Sanivation installs container-based toilets in people's homes for free, and then charges a monthly fee to service them. The Sanivation team treats waste as a resource, by transforming it into a clean, burning alternative to charcoal. Their sanitation services are improving health and dignity in urban communities of East Africa, as well as refugee camps.
Malaysia	FOLO Farms	Khi Sui (Will) Chua	Co-Founder	FOLO (Feed Our Loved Ones) is an urban farming community aiming to change the way people view waste and how food is grown. They recover 3 tons of daily food waste from hotels and restaurants, and turn it into compost to grow healthy organic vegetables for a community of 100 families.
Mexico	WeaRobot	Ernesto Rodriguez-Leal	Founder & CEO	WeaRobot is creating affordable exoskeleton technology to assist those who suffer from mobility loss. Aside from being 46 times cheaper than existing solutions on the market, they are also better tailored to individual needs, as they are created in parts. WeaRobot also uses VR technology to enable physical rehabilitation at home and connect patients to doctors remotely.
Nigeria	RecyclePoints	Chioma Ukonu	Co-Founder & COO	RecyclePoints helps consumers to create value from their everyday waste. RecyclePoints uses an incentive based model, collecting waste from registered members and rewards them with points, which they can use to redeem or shop for cash and household items at the iRecycle Store. RecyclePoints use Electric Cargo Tricycles to collect the waste, ridden by members of the team called 'WasteBusters.'
Netherlands	African Clean Energy	Judith Joan Walker	COO	African Clean Energy manufactures and distributes clean energy products for Sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. Their ACE 1 cookstove enables safe cooking without smoke emissions, preventing the associated health hazards that kill 4 million people annually around the world. The ACE cookstove also provides solar energy for lighting and phone charging, generating great savings for vulnerable households.
Poland	NexBio	Adam Kuzdraliński	CEO	NexBio uses biotechnology to detect crop diseases early, so that more food, of better quality, using fewer pesticides can be produced. Their DNA-based approach enables the rapid identification and diagnosis of plant diseases, in a faster and cheaper way than traditional methods. NexBio is also currently developing a mobile 'Lab in a box' solution that will enable farmers to conduct pathogen testing directly in the field.
Portugal	Sun Concept	Nuno Gaspar de Oliveira	Sustainability Director	Sun Concept develops affordable solar electric boats, which are sustainable for the environment and for communities who rely on them for their livelihood. With a fully eco-efficient design, the Sun Concept boats are silent, don't pollute, and enable fishermen to save on fuels, while preserving the marine ecosystem that sustains them.
Romania	SOWAT	Khaled Al Mezayen	Managing Partner	SoWat is a portable water purification system that turns any source of fresh water into clean drinking water, using a mechanical process with no chemicals. It filters particles, parasites and bacteria, while preserving all the minerals in the water. One SoWat system can produce enough daily water for 5,000 people, at a monthly cost of just €0.05 per person.
Slovakia	SmartHead	Veronika Osvaldová	Co-Founder & CEO	SmartHead is a user-friendly online tool that enables companies and individuals to create and promote their socially-responsible activities. Companies can create a CSR profile on the website. The platform showcases where environmental and community projects are taking place, and encourages people to sign up in their local area. SmartHead aims to inspire everyone to get involved and contribute towards a better society.
South Africa	iDrop Water	James Steere	Founder	iDrop Water aims to change the way water is consumed and sold in Africa, through vending units which purify and dispense water in store. The water is sold in refillable containers, reducing plastic waste, while being 80% cheaper than bottled water. iDrop splits profits equally with shop owners, so they are boosting economic activity in communities with every dollar they make.
Spain	Sea2see	François van den Abeele	CEO	Every pair of Sea2see eyewear contributes to 10m² of a plastic-free ocean. Sea2see works with fishing communities to collect 1 ton of plastic waste every 3 days, specifically fishing nets which are often abandoned and entangle animals. They transform this waste into designer glasses and sunglasses. Consumers can now save the ocean in style.
Thailand	Siam Organics	"Neil" Peetachai Dejkraisak	CEO	Siam Organics has developed the Jasberry brand with the aim of ending small-scale farmers' poverty, by giving them access to the global organic market. Jasberry rice is a purple variety of rice with three times the antioxidants of blueberry. By providing farmers with rice seeds and training them in organic farming methods, Siam Organics have already enabled farmers to earn 14 times more profit.
UK	Olio	Tessa Cook	Co-Founder & CEO	OLIO is a free app that connects neighbors with one other and with local shops, so that surplus food can be shared, not thrown away. This includes food nearing its use-by date from shops or groceries from household fridges when people go away. Users post a photo, add a description and provide pick up details so that their food items can be collected by those who need them.
US	DayOne Response	Tricia Compas-Markman	Founder & CEO	The DayOne Waterbag is a 10-liter water backpack enabling the collection, treatment, transportation and storage of water. The Waterbag purifies contaminated water into clean drinking water in only 30 minutes. DayOne Response deploys its solution to multiple international NGOs and government organizations. Its compact and lightweight format allows fast and cost-effective shipping, which is particularly useful for natural disaster relief victims.

About Pernod Ricard USA®
Pernod Ricard USA is the premium spirits and wine company in the U.S., and the largest subsidiary of Paris, France-based Pernod Ricard SA, which employs a workforce of nearly 19,000 people worldwide and is listed on the NYSE Euronext exchange (Ticker: RI).

The company's leading spirits and wines include such prestigious brands as Absolut® Vodka, Chivas Regal® Scotch Whisky, The Glenlivet® Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Jameson® Irish Whiskey, Malibu®, Kahlúa® Liqueur, Beefeater® Gin, Plymouth™ Gin, Seagram's Extra Dry Gin®, Martell® Cognac, Hiram Walker® Liqueurs, Pernod®, Ricard® and Avión™ Tequila; such superior wines as Jacob's Creek®, Kenwood® Vineyards and Brancott Estate®; and such exquisite champagnes and sparkling wines as Perrier-Jouët® Champagne, G.H. Mumm™ Champagne and Mumm Napa® sparkling wines.

Pernod Ricard USA is based in New York, New York, and has roughly 850 employees across the country. Pernod Ricard USA urges all adults to consume its products responsibly and has an active campaign to promote responsible drinking. For more information on this, please visit: www.acceptresponsibility.org.

About The Venture
The Venture is a global search to find and support the next generation of start-ups that want to succeed while creating a better future for society. Since The Venture first launched in 2014, almost 6,000 social enterprises have applied for the chance to receive a share of the annual $1 million fund. This year, over 30 countries across 6 continents are taking part in The Venture.

Last year in New York, global judge Eva Longoria and host Trevor Noah announced the winners of the $1m fund. Social start-up Conceptos Plasticos from Colombia was awarded the largest share of the fund, receiving $300,000.

About Chivas Regal
Launched in 1909, Chivas Regal is the world's first luxury whisky and is considered to be a timeless classic, renowned for its benchmark quality and taste, style, substance and exclusivity. A truly global brand, Chivas Regal has been integral to the growth of the Scotch whisky category worldwide and today sells 4.5 million 9L cases annually in more than 150 countries across the globe. With generosity, entrepreneurship and integrity at the heart of Chivas Regal, the brand launched its successful Win the Right Way campaign in 2014, which aims to inspire a new generation whilst making a positive impact on the lives of others. The Chivas Regal range includes: Chivas 12, Chivas Extra, Chivas 18, Chivas 25, ultra-prestige blend and pinnacle of the range Chivas Regal The Icon, and the Global Travel Retail exclusive Chivas Brothers Blend. Launched in October 2016, Chivas Regal Ultis is the first blended malt Scotch whisky from the House of Chivas and represents the true essence of Chivas Regal. www.chivas.com

About the Skoll Centre & Saïd Business School
Embedded within the world-renowned Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford, the Skoll Centre is dedicated to accelerating the impact of entrepreneurial activity that aims to transform unjust or unsatisfactory systems and practices. The Skoll Centre was launched in 2003 at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford to promote the advancement of social entrepreneurship worldwide. The first Skoll Skollars were welcomed in the fall of 2004, and the first Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship (an annual meeting of nearly 1,000 distinguished delegates from the social, finance, private and public sectors) quickly followed that same year.

The Saïd Business School is a world-class business school community, embedded within a world-class university, tackling world-scale problems. As the oldest university in the English-speaking world, The University of Oxford is a unique and historic institution. The University is formed of 38 colleges, some dating back to the 1200s. Each of these colleges attracts talented students from around the world.

SOURCE Chivas Regal