IYF Announces 2012 Laureate Global Fellows

They are big-picture thinkers who defy convention. They combine passionate concern over the state of our world with pragmatic idealism. They are the 2012 Laureate Global Fellows. These 20 young social entrepreneurs from 16 countries have each pioneered innovative solutions to a host of urgent societal challenges—using bicycles to empower low-income youth with livelihood skills, transforming ‘rice straw’ into renewable fuel, and putting technology to work to build sustainable, local economies.

The Laureate Global Fellows program, launched this year, is an extension of the seven-year partnership between the Sylvan/Laureate Foundation and the International Youth Foundation (IYF) through IYF’s YouthActionNet® initiative. Laureate has also played a critical role in the expansion of YouthActionNet®, with eight national-level youth leadership institutes created through Laureate International Universities.

The Laureate Global Fellows will benefit from leadership training, advocacy, networking, and funding opportunities—and join a thriving community of more than 600 young social entrepreneurs in 71 countries, who are collectively impacting the lives of more than a million people around the world. Together, they demonstrate Laureate Education Inc.’s commitment to developing a generation of global leaders who are Here for Good.