The Artisanal Mining Grand Challenge: Accelerating Breakthrough Innovation for Water, Biodiversity, and People

Join us for the launch of the Artisanal Mining Grand Challenge, a global innovation competition with $750,000 in prizes to support new and breakthrough solutions that will tackle the environmental and human security impacts of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) around the world.

Event Details

2:00PM | The seated launch program will begin promptly at 2:00 PM in the IMAX Theater at The Tech Interactive in downtown San Jose, CA.

Featuring:

Rhett Butler, Founder and CEO of Mongabay

Luis E. Fernandez, Executive Director, Center for Amazonian Scientific Innovation - CINCIA and Research Assistant Professor , Department of Biology, Wake Forest University

Aileen Lee, Chief Program Officer for the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s Environmental Conservation Program

Thane Kreiner, Executive Director of the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship at Santa Clara University

Bonnie Lei, AI For Earth Project Manager

Carrie George, Vice President and Head of Sustainability at Everledger

Enrique Ortiz, Program Director at Andes Amazon Fund

Ali Hartman, Board member for Conservation X Labs

Alex Dehgan, CEO and Co-Founder of Conservation X Labs

Paul Bunje, CSO/COO and Co-Founder of Conservation X Labs

4:30PM | Immediately following the seated program, you are invited to a networking reception (refreshments provided) with exclusive access to the Tech for Global Good exhibit for all registered attendees.

Background

Employing 40 million people, artisanal, informal, and small-scale mining (ASM) is a major source of the materials that power the global, digitized economy including 15-20% of diamonds and gold, 70-80% of colored gemstones, and about 20% of the global cobalt supply. However, ASM is also a powerful driver of environmental degradation, water contamination, and human security impacts –particularly on vulnerable populations.

With this growing threat comes an even greater opportunity: a chance for innovators around the world to create transformative solutions that drive large-scale changes in ASM: changes that will create a future where the materials that power our daily lives are sourced responsibly, justly, and equitably.

The Artisanal Mining Grand Challenge is built to tackle these growing problems by incentivizing and rewarding the creation and/or adoption of new hardware and/or software products, platforms, and digital solutions both on-site and downstream that will make artisanal, small-scale, and informal mining operations more environmentally responsible and socially equitable.

Visit our website to learn more.

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