During Jordan’s 2022 Gala Dinner, the distribution of the Youth Social Entrepreneurs Award was held in the presence of Her Majesty the Queen Silvia of Sweden, Her Majesty Quin Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, and His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Tala Bin Abdulaziz.
H.E Dr. Ruwaida Al Ma’aita, former minister of education in Jordan, along with Dr. Omar Al Jazzi, presented the award to the winner of the Jordanian Female Category, Shorouq Al Mazraawi, founder of a local artisan that could teach her about block printing techniques. This method avoids many wasteful pitfalls of the mass-produced fashion industry — block printing relies on handmade artisanship, and relies on neither artificial dyes nor water. Mazraawi established a production model for her new sustainable fashion label. After a diploma in pattern making, numerous online and offline workshops, and during lockdown, she decided to make her first collection “You Are Free”. This collection was made out of one of the most sustainable fabrics, linen, with a statement print and minimal cuts for the modern unique woman.
Mrs. Dima Bibi, CEO of INJAZ Jordan, handed the award to her daughter, the winner of the Jordanian Female Category, Lianne Manna, a social entrepreneur and environmentalist who is passionate about permaculture and sustainable development. She founded her own social start-up Ecope to tackle the growing waste problem in Jordan through organic waste prevention and management services. Additionally, her Impact Hub City is a catalyst to foster social innovation. It’s a global community, consultancy and a creative space. They work at the intersection of innovation and society to collaboratively create impact with an entrepreneurial mindset. She created a thriving innovation ecosystem where people collaborate across organizations, cultures and generations to solve the grand challenges of our time.
Mr. Maher Kaddoura, Founder of AlJude, and Dr. Tamam Mango, CEO of Crown Prince Foundation, presented the award to the winner of the Jordanian Male Category, Ahmad Al Safadi, an engineer, entrepreneur, content creator, and founder and creative manager at Munshi production, a non-profit organization that aims to raise child awareness around bullying, climate change, gender-based violence, and emerging topics such as Covid-19. Ahmad was inspired to launch Munshi because he believes children are the future and should be considered a key audience in our present efforts to raise awareness. He hopes in the next 5 years Munshi will be able to reach every child in Jordan and the MENA region through their songs and short stories that they publish on their social media platforms for free. They also hope to deliver live performances in schools and local areas to reach underprivileged children in the refugee camps and the small towns in Jordan.
Mr. Thomas Ellerbeck, TUI Care Foundation Chairman, presented the award to the winner of the Arab Female Category, Asrar Damdam, an accomplished researcher and scientist and the founder and CEO of Silicon Valley backed biotech startup, Uvera. By incorporating food preservation technology within hardware that can be placed on countertops or floors, Uvera’s goal is to increase the shelf life of food and cut waste. Now approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the biotech claims that its patent-pending light-based tech will be able to predict when fresh food will spoil and extend its shelf life by up to 63% on average within 30 seconds. Its ultimate goal is to help halve food waste by 2030 by reducing per capita waste at retail and consumer levels, and minimizing food losses along production and supply chains. It is now in the process of raising $3 million in funding.
Ms. Cecilia Bernard, Mentor International Secretary General, and Mr. Amr Mansi, CEO of IEvents, presented the award to the winner of the Arabe Male Category, Mostafa Elnaby, the Founder & CEO of Baramoda. His passion was the fuel to transform Baramoda from an idea into a working Agri-tech startup that focuses on sustainable agricultural innovations and maximizes the efficiency of agri-waste. Baramoda is specialized in sustainable agricultural innovations, develops biofertilizers from plant-based agricultural waste customized for different soil and crop types. It provides innovative solutions to minimize the cost of agricultural production, reduce excessive use of chemical fertilizers, and increase crops production, at minimal usage of water resources. The company produces compost that can reduce the water needed for soil by 30%. Founder and CEO, Mostafa Elnaby, is also the founder and CEO of Environeur, a waste management ecosystem.