We look forward to joining you all for our own NextLab event next week!

That’s why the GSMA developed the Mobile Innovation intiative. Building on the success of the annual GSMA Mobile World Congress and our renowned Mobile Innovation Awards, we have gone one step further in promoting innovation through this site.

This is THE online hub to showcase and promote the best in mobile innovation, providing mobile innovators, network operators, industry thought leaders and investors a virtual home to meet, share, and exchange ideas that will stimulate the eco-system more and faster than we’ve ever experienced.

We’ve built in virtual networking and matchmaking, plus searchable company and funding databases, discussion boards, awards, trend reports and more. Best of all, we’ll delivery this mix of communication and innovation nonstop, every day. We’ve even included the latest news from across the mobile spectrum so that with one stop on the web, you’ll be up to date and “in the know”.

http://www.mobileinnovation.org

The Legatum Center is pleased to announce two summer opportunities for MIT students:

Legatum Summer Seed Grants

The Legatum Summer Seed Grants program provides funding for MIT undergraduate and graduate students for work on innovative, sustainable projects in developing countries. To learn more and to apply for a summer grant, visit http://legatum.mit.edu/grant. Applications will be accepted through noon on May 11, 2009.

Microsoft is sponsoring a Challenge to encourage innovations for applying mobile technologies for development, specifically around one of the eight United Nations Millennium Development goals.  Submissions can be ideas or Projects under development. A panel of 5 judges, selected by Microsoft, will choose three winners, to be announced at the N2Y4 Mobile Conference. Winners will receive cash awards of $15,000 (first place), $10,000 (second place), and $5,000 (third
place) to further develop and implement their ideas. Winners will be announced at the N2Y4 Conference in May.  Please note: there is no Community Vote component to this Challenge.

There’s a lot of money on the table for this shot-term Challenge!  If a Project you have submitted to a previous NetSquared Challenge meets the eligibility for the Microsoft Challenge, you can submit it simply by editing your Project page and adding the “Microsoft” prize tag!

Submissions close: Wednesday, May 15, 2009 3:00pm PDT

For more information about participating and to submit your idea,
visit:  http://netsquared.org/microsoft

http://www.kiwanja.net/database/kiwanja_search.php

Let’s use it to research and market our projects!

If you have been in business for a while now, have managed to grow your company to be at least 15-50 employees strong, have bootstrapped all this while, or are ready for a next stage of funding, this workshop may be just the thing for you.

Date: Thursday, April 30, 2009
Time: 6:30pm to 9:30pm
Venue: Foley Hoag Emerging Enterprise Center, 1000 Winter Street, Waltham, MA 02451

Speakers:
Anand Daniel, Senior Associate, Flybridge Ventures
Roger Walton, General Partner, Castile Ventures

Date: Thursday, April 23, 2009
Time: 6:30pm to 9:30pm
Venue: Castile Ventures, 930 Winter Street, Waltham, MA 02451

Topic: “How to prepare to pitch to VCs?”
Speaker: Carl Stjernfeldt, General Partner, Castile Ventures

Topic:Term Sheet Analysis
Speaker: Shari Loessberg, Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management

You get only one chance to have a 30 minute one-on-one face time with a VC. Learn how to maximize your time and opportunity.

A program of the International Youth Foundation, YouthActionNet seeks to develop a new generation of socially conscious global citizens working to create positive change in their communities, their countries, and the world. Each year, twenty exceptional young social entrepreneurs are selected as YouthActionNet Global Fellows following a competitive application process.

Supported by Nokia, the yearlong Global Fellowship focuses on the fellows’ personal growth and leadership abilities as well as instruction in specific skills required to manage innovative, world-changing organizations, including communications planning, media outreach, message development, presentation skills, and innovative uses of new media technologies. The fellowship also provides access to global advocacy platforms, media coverage, volunteers, mentors, and grant opportunities; year-long networking with peers, international and national aid agencies, NGOs, and corporate partners; and a seven-day leadership retreat for twenty selected fellows.

The program is open to young people between the ages of 18 and 29 as of November 1, 2009. Applicants must be the founder/co-founder of an existing organization, or a project within an organization, with a demonstrated track record of leading societal change for at least one year. Applicants must be proficient in English, and applications must be submitted in English. Applicants also must attend the full retreat from November 1-8, 2009 (all expenses paid).

Complete program information and application materials are available at the YouthActionNet Web site.

2009 J.P. Morgan Good Venture Case Competition

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We are pleased to announce that the registration for the 2009 J.P. Morgan Good Venture Case Competition is now open! Please note that registration closes on January 30th and all materials are due by February 12th.

Please visit http://jpmorgan.com/goodventure for information about the case competition and our Give-It-Away program.

RIN Fellowships

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Rural India needs ideas that can deliver inclusive, eco-friendly and sustainable prosperity. A handful of individuals – better known as social entrepreneurs, are making a difference by blurring the boundaries between business and social good. These individuals stand out for their vision, purposefulness, passion, leadership, innovativeness, risk taking ability, and persistence.

Do you, as an individual aspiring to be one such pathfinder, need a space that’s a live laboratory to hone your instincts and sharpen your abilities? Do you need an opportunity that prepares you before you launch your dream venture? Do you simply want to break away from the routine and engage with the fascinating rural India?

Rural Innovations Network (RIN), supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, presents the first RIN Fellowship, an 10-month program designed to equip individuals who dare to follow their dreams and can help build a prosperous rural India. The RIN Fellowship offers the space you need to put your intent and talent into action. Through the Fellowships, you learn social entrepreneurship hands on.

Through the RIN Fellowship program, you will:

Know through experience the innovation and social enterprise sectors

Be skilled in successfully mentoring an innovator

Know how to enable innovations effectively

Understand rural markets

Develop your social entrepreneurship capabilities

For more information, visit http://www.rinovations.org