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IDEAS
In 2009, the IDB partnered with the Korean Government, GVEP International, and Gesellschaft fuer Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), and together launched the IDEAS Energy Innovation Contest.
The IDEAS Program finances pioneering initiatives that promote projects in the fields of renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy access in Latin America and the Caribbean region. Additionally, the Program aims to encourage and stimulate effective approaches to the region’s most pressing energy challenges and contribute to improving people’s lives by fostering skills and finding sustainable solutions that directly impact the living standards of the region. In doing so, the IDEAS Program creates new opportunities for the IDB and its partners to actively engage with the public and private sectors, and contribute to the social and economical development of the region.
IDEAS Winners Workshop
November 22-24, 2010: The IDB, in conjunction with GVEP International and GTZ, hosted a very successful workshop for the 2009 IDEAS Winners in Cartagena, Colombia. Over 20 winners from over ten different countries from the region, met with each other and representatives from various private companies, organizations, and universities. The Economic Commisison for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Andean Center for Economics in the Environment, Empresas Públicas de Medellín, the Colombian National Biofuels Federation, Fundación Surtigas, and the Technological University of Bolivar were some of the entities that participated in the workshop.
During the course of the workshop, each winner was given the opportunity to present the advancements of the project, the challenges it encountered, and the lessons learned. The workshop offered a setting where participants could interact and share their experiences, as well as voice their doubts and questions. In turn, experts from the IDB, GVEP International, GTZ, and other organizations where there to offer advice and suggestions. The interesting presentations, combined with engaging dialogue and interaction among the participants proved to be helpful and productive. Many winners noted that the workshop in Cartagena allowed them to meet face to face and interact with colleagues experiencing similar (and at times different) challenges, which in turn helped them to find motivation and innovative solutions as they looked forward to taking the next steps to further develop and advance their projects.
The active sharing of information, knowledge, and experiences during the IDEAS Winners Workshop in Cartagena, Colombia would not have been successful without the innovative project ideas of each of the winners, and their belief in the importance of energy, climate change mitigations, and social development.
