BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:unctad.org BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6a8de0cc63d61 DTSTART:20240419T140000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20240419T150000Z LOCATION:Online\, SUMMARY:Award ceremony - Global Supply Chain Forum Innovation Challenge CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION: The Innovation Challenge is also a call to action.  The wide range of creative and innovative ideas that were shared with us are a fur ther motivation to invest in sustainable and resilient supply chains for f uture generationsJan HoffmannHead of the Trade Logistics BranchUNCTAD  S upply Chains are the backbones of globalization and economic development. However\, they face disruptions such as climate change\, trade tensions\, geopolitical risks\, high shipping costs\, capacity shortages\, the global pandemic\, amongst many other challenges.To address this issue\, UNCTAD o rganized the Supply Chain Innovation Challenge as an integral part of the Global Supply Chain Forum.From 17 January to 17 March 2024\, participants were encouraged to suggest innovative solutions to global supply chain ope ration and how to make them greener\, more efficient\, and resilient.More than 75 proposals were sent from members of the private sector\, internati onal organizations\, and academia.The award ceremonyOn 19 April 2024\, UNC TAD will organize a virtual award ceremony to present the finalists and th eir work\, and to announce the winner of the Innovation Challenge.The winn er will be traveling to Barbados to present their innovative proposal duri ng the Global Supply Chain Forum (21-24 May 2024). The finalistsProposal 1: Smart Containers Supporting Supply Chain Sustainability EffortsGadi Ben mosheGadi Benmoshe is the Institutional Network Lead at AELER and is a lea der in advanced smart container technologies. He integrates modern solutio ns into traditional shipping frameworks\, influencing the future of contai ner technology.As the active vice chair of the International Association o f Ports and Harbors (IAPH) Data Collaboration Committee\, he spearheaded t he '\;The Mindset Shift to Innovation in Ports'\; whitepaper\, pro moting innovative practices in global ports.Additionally\, Gadi is involve d with key international organizations such as IMO\, UN/CEFACT\, WEF\, IPC SA\, and ISO. His work across these roles highlights his dedication to adv ancing global trade and logistics through innovation.Gadi holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science and an M.B.A.\, which underpin his expertise in technical and managerial capacities.Marianna LevtovMarianna Levtov is t he Head of Network and Advocacy at AELER\, where she leverages over 15 yea rs of experience in industrial diplomacy\, specialising in IoT technologie s for intermodal transportation and digital supply chains.She also serves as the convenor of the ISO TC 104/SC4/WG2 and CEN/CENELEC/ETSI Industrial Data Task Force\, establishing her as a leading authority in industry stan dardisation and data management. Marianna focuses on enhancing operations across transport and logistics by adopting digital processes\, Big Data A nalytics\, AI\, and blockchain technologies. Her efforts are foundational in fostering international collaboration and setting global standards in t he supply chain sector.An Oxford Said Business School alumna with a PhD Cd t. in Business\, Strategy\, and Enterprise from Gloucestershire University \, Marianna is an influential public speaker and moderator\, covering comp lex topics like IoT and blockchain in supply chain management\, bridging t he gap between technology and practical application.Proposal 2: Alternativ e fuels for the maritime sector and beyond\, based on desert-land farmed s eaweedJohannes BochdalofskyJohannes Bochdalofsky was born and raised in Ge rmany\, but moved to South Africa once he obtained his engineering degree. There he worked in port and coastal engineering and from there moved on t o Kuwait\, working as head of the marine department in Sabah al Ahmad Sea City.He returned to South Africa in 2015 after working in salvage and ship building in America and Europe as project manager.In 2021 Johannes and his life partner Gcobisa founded SeaH4 to counteract the downward trending ec onomic outlook of South Africa. He soon realised the global potential of S eaH4 and has since been working intensively in the African entrepreneurial space ad blue economy.Meanwhile he maintains his role as consultant to th e shipping industry\, combining the two as far as possible.The projects th roughout his career are characterised as industry firsts\, often greenfiel d and often exceeding 1B USD in budget.Proposal 3: LifeLines: Empowering l ocal communities through supply chain resilienceSophie PunteSophie Punte i s a sustainability innovator and network leader\, and LifeLines is her new idea for innovative partnerships for sustainable supply chains.Throughout her 30-year career she has focused on bringing industry\, government and other stakeholders together to address common sustainability and climate c hallenges. Sophie founded Smart Freight Centre and led a multistakeholder partnership to develop the ‘GLEC Framework’ – a global standard meth odology used by companies worldwide to calculate and report emissions from logistics supply chains.As Managing Director of Policy at We Mean Busines s Coalition she spearheaded climate policy advocacy campaigns at COP\, G20 and other fora backed by hundreds of businesses.Previously\, she headed C lean Air Asia\, and worked with the United Nations and KPMG\, in both deve loped and developing countries. Sophie is supervisory board member of the truck EV charging company Milence\, sits on DHL’s Sustainability Advisor y Council and the WEF Global Future Council on Clean Air.Proposal 4: Smart Ports 5G Technology and Renewal EnergyMillie OgdenMillie Ogden is a UN SD G Ambassador and Next Generation Leader Fellow. She is the founder and CEO of 3 Link\, an ISP licensee in Vanuatu\, and works closely with enterpris es\, clinics\, schools\, farmers\, and the government to provide broadband connectivity to the last mile. 3 Link will roll out disruptive 5G Fixed W ireless Access in 2025.Millie serves on the board of directors of the Vanu atu Rural Development Bank and Kacific (Vanuatu) Ltd.Millie is the Vanuatu Trade Commissioner to California. She is Digital Technology Advisor to th e Commonwealth Businesswomen’s Network (CBWN). Millie began her career i n Silicon Valley as a Data Financial Analyst at Barra Morgan Stanley MSCI and at the Boston Consulting Group’s ValueScience Center. She holds a B A in economics from UC Berkeley. She speaks five languages: English\, Fren ch\, Cantonese\, Mandarin\, and Bislama. Her curiosity drives her to disco ver innovative and sustainable solutions through technological advancement s.Proposal 5: USYNCRO\, a Blockchain and AI platform to impulse Digital Lo gistics Corridors worldwideCristina MartínCristina Martin is a chemical e ngineer with an executive MBA and a certified freight forwarder and air fr eight transport operator.She founded the freight forwarding company ATML 1 8 years ago and is CEO of Usyncro\, a multimodal solution recognized as th e Best Tradetech Platform 2023 by the international organization Trade Fin ance Global.Cristina is committed to the digital transformation of the log istics sector by using digital corridors from the board of key association s in freight forwarding (Ateia Madrid) and Air Freight (MadCargo).She is a member of the board of the ALASTRIA network and the Blockchain Cluster of the Community of Madrid\; and she is part of the Technology Commission of ALACAT\, the Latin American and Caribbean Freight Forwarders association\ , to promote digital collaboration between Europe and the American contine nt.Usyncro has just opened its new office in the United States and has mor e than 20 distributors network around the world.Proposal 6: Solar-powered locker-sized booths for small-scale cross-border tradersTadiwanashe Mutibu raTadiwanashe Mutibura is a treasury and structured finance trainee ·at I nnBucks MicroBank Limited\, Harare\, Zimbabwe.She graduated from Stellenbo sch University in South Africa with a BCom(Law)A super random fact about T adiwanashe is that she loves watching documentaries on whales and maritime vessels despite living in the teapot-shaped landlocked country in Souther n Africa.This curiosity stems from her love of reading and simply having t he opportunity to explore other lifestyles and cultures through the storie s of those who have experienced it firsthand.Curiosity aside\, she is pass ionate about African development and the potential for growth especially t hrough the lenses of trade and the impact that it can have not only on our economies but on the daily lives of all the people involved. The jury wa s composed of Jan Hoffmann\, Sabrina Ielmoli\, Hidenobu Tokuda\, Tomasz Ku laga\, Bismark Sitorus\, Pamela Ugaz and Maria Bolotnikov. Proposals were evaluated in accordance with the following criteria:Level of innovationFea sibilityScalabilitySustainabilityResiliencehttps://unctad.org/conference/g lobal-supply-chain-forum-2024"\; target="\;_blank\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/award-ceremony-global-supply-cha in-forum-innovation-challenge DTSTAMP:20260825T183700Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR