Ogilvy Public Relations Receives Grand Challenges Explorations Grant For Groundbreaking Research in Global Health and Development

SAN FRANCISCO, May 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Ogilvy Public Relations announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  Ogilvy PR will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled "Cause Generation: A Platform to Define a Generation's Cause."

Grand Challenges Explorations (GCE) funds individuals and organizations worldwide to explore ideas that can break the mold in how we solve persistent global health and development challenges. Ogilvy PR's project is one of over 50 Grand Challenges Explorations Round 10 grants announced today by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. 

To receive funding, Ogilvy PR and other Grand Challenges Explorations Round 10 winners demonstrated in a two-page online application a bold idea in one of four critical global heath and development topic areas that included agriculture development, neglected tropical diseases and communications. Applications for the next Round will be accepted starting September 2013. 

"We are honored to support the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's mission to help all people lead healthy, productive lives, and we welcome the challenge to inspire the support of others through 'Cause Generation,'" said Robert Mathias, Regional CEO of Ogilvy Public Relations in North America. "Ambitious and creative projects are at the core of what defines our agency and I look forward to seeing what the team will come up with to take cause generation to new heights of engagement."

Ogilvy PR's "Cause Generation" aims to channel the intelligence, curiosity, passion and energy of younger generations around a common cause. This will be achieved through the creation of a platform that empowers young people to define the cause of their generation. By connecting innovative development aid initiatives and vital communications resources, the project will motivate and enable younger generations to advance their cause in a way that highlights success.

About Grand Challenges Explorations
Grand Challenges Explorations is a US $100 million initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  Launched in 2008, over 800 people in more than 50 countries have received Grand Challenges Explorations grants.  The grant program is open to anyone from any discipline and from any organization.  The initiative uses an agile, accelerated grant-making process with short two-page online applications and no preliminary data required.  Initial grants of US$100,000 are awarded two times a year. Successful projects have the opportunity to receive a follow-on grant of up to US$1 million.

About Ogilvy Public Relations
Ogilvy Public Relations (Ogilvy PR) is a global, multi-disciplinary communications leader operating in more than 85 offices across six continents. In 2012, Ogilvy was named Cannes Lions Network of the Year and Most Effective Agency Network by the Effie Global Effectiveness Index, named Public Affairs Consultancy of the Year by the Holmes Report, won Consumer Consultancy of the Year in Asia Pacific (Holmes Report), and won the WPP global, top award (WPPed Cream, Creme de la Creme) for the fifth time in six years. Ogilvy PR integrates deeply with all Ogilvy & Mather disciplines (advertising, direct marketing, activation, promotional, digital and entertainment) through the proprietary Ogilvy Fusion™ approach to delivering comprehensive, business solutions through content creation, community building, and communications with measurable results. Ogilvy PR is a unit of Ogilvy & Mather, a WPP company (NASDAQ: WPPGY), and one of the largest marketing communications companies in the world. For more information, visit our website at www.ogilvypr.com or follow us on Twitter at @ogilvypr.

SOURCE Ogilvy Public Relations