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- UpLink aims to accelerate growth for early-stage entrepreneurs, enable diverse stakeholder ecosystems, and shift perceptions of innovation's role in achieving the SDGs.
- The platform has evolved into a community of 68,000+ members, hosting 47 Innovation Challenges and recognizing 450 'Top Innovators' for their solutions aligned with the SDGs.
- Key impacts include the protection of over 56 million hectares of natural habitats and the treatment of more than 350 million liters of wastewater.
The impact of supporting a new generation of entrepreneurs.
UpLink, launched in 2020 by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with Deloitte and Salesforce, is building an open innovation platform ecosystem fostering entrepreneurial solutions for global challenges aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Since its inception, it has grown into a vibrant community of purpose-driven entrepreneurs, investors, visionary organizations and experts. It has hosted 51 Innovation Challenges, bringing forth nearly 6,500 innovative solutions worldwide, recognizing 442 of these as 'Top Innovators' and 46 as 'Top Investors.' More than 250 ecosystem partners from across sectors have supported these innovators through catalytic funding, expertise, and other acceleration opportunities.
UpLink aims to accelerate the growth and impact of early-stage entrepreneurs, build innovation ecosystems of diverse stakeholders, and shift perceptions of innovation's role in achieving the SDGs. These innovators, carefully selected for their impactful and sustainable solutions, are integrated into a dynamic ecosystem for growth, collaboration, and increased global visibility.
Since early 2023, UpLink has started to implement a robust impact management and measurement strategy following industry best practices, to better support and showcase the positive transformation led by its Top Innovators. Here are the key impact highlights reported by UpLink Top Innovators in UpLink's 2023 Annual Impact Report:
In the realm of Nature-Based Solutions, UpLink Top Innovators have safeguarded over 56 million hectares of natural habitats and managed 458,464 hectares for restoration, making a substantial contribution to environmental conservation.
Through Ocean Action initiatives, UpLink Top Innovators protected more than 17 million hectares of marine areas, collected 23,910 metric tons of waste, and sustainably produced 2,272 metric tons of marine products, marking significant progress in ocean health.
Advancing the Circular Economy, UpLink Top Innovators have collected 10,458 metric tons of waste, facilitated the reuse/recycling of 2,920 metric tons of materials, conserved 17 million liters of water, and decreased food waste by 850 metric tons, driving effective waste management and resource conservation.
In the Water category, UpLink Top Innovators report the treatment of 350 million-plus liters of wastewater, conservation of 46 million-plus liters of water, and the capture/reuse of 7.3 million-plus liters of rainwater, underlining the initiative’s success in water sustainability and social upliftment.
Get involved to make a difference.
Join UpLink to help drive real change on pressing global issues. We are calling on committed individuals and organizations to contribute their vision and expertise in areas outlined by the SDGs and benefit from numerous growth opportunities facilitated by UpLink.
The following examples illustrate the diverse and significant achievements within the UpLink community. They represent just a fraction of the many stories of innovation and progress enabled by UpLink.
HCL - Strategic investment in water innovation
Aquacycl - Transforming wastewater into clean energy
Belterra Agroflorestas - Advancing regenerative agroforestry in the Amazon
WSense - Pioneering the internet of underwater things
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