1. business and industrial

2014
Creating Impact For
Startup Communities
From Marc Nager, Co-Founder & CEO
2014 was another year of tremendous
growth and change for our community
UP Global expanded again internationally, moved HQ into
It calls for an expansive perspective and attitude that
Startup Hall, renamed the Education Entrepreneurs program,
includes all groups who may be underserved, unrecognized,
and launched the UP Global visual identity. Amidst all these
or on the sideline of the global startup movement.
organizational enhancements—our mission and beliefs have
not changed.
It is through radical inclusion that communities, teams, and
One of our core beliefs is that everyone should be able to
of radical inclusion in the stories we’ve highlighted this year—
experience entrepreneurship.
stories of community leaders and entrepreneurs being
entrepreneurship will grow stronger. You will see examples
It is by all of us working together that we begin to make this
belief a reality. I describe these collective efforts as radical
inclusion,
a
term
borrowed
from
the
Burning
Man
supported by their local startup ecosystem regardless of
ethnicity, gender, age, politics, disability, religion, or socioeconomic standing.
Community.
Continued >
Entrepreneurship helps transcend divisions because it
Thank you for including UP Global in your 2014,
taps an essential human need to create. Our 2014 Impact
now let’s all set our sights even higher for 2015!
Report highlights people overcoming their differences to
organize and attend events in order to challenge the
status quo and solve real problems. This is why
participants write things like, “Don’t let the fire of the
weekend die.” The demand for experiential programming
continues to grow because it unlocks the creative potential
within all of us.
Marc Nager
Co-Founder & CEO, UP Global
UP Global welcomed
8,000 new community leaders
Into a worldwide family of 16,000
people working to build communities
This powerful family is also driven
by over 275,000 alumni and volunteers
from 600 cities, 120 countries,
and 6 continents.
In June, 530 community leaders
from 75 countries rallied at the UP Global
Summit in Las Vegas to share their stories
Additional regional summits occurred in Brasil, Spain, Colombia, and the United States.
Stories like this historic
Startup Weekend in Turkey/Armenia
Turkish Facilitators Ece Idil Kasap and Emin Okutan kicked off the Startup Weekend in Armenia’s capital
of Yerevan. 54 hours later teams pitched in Gyumri. This was the first shared Startup Weekend between
countries that have no diplomatic relations. The distance between these two cities is quite small
compared to the historic, political, and ethnic divides that mark the region. Yet, on Sunday night six
blended teams found themselves united in entrepreneurship and competing to win first prize.
Read More
Syrian entrepreneurship
thrives against all odds
Syria’s economy has shrunk between 15%-20% during the last three years of civil war, and is ranked
among the most difficult national economies in which to do business. This includes difficulties around
important ecosystem ingredients like permits, utilities, property, investment, and personal credit.
Additionally, Startup Weekend organizers faced fundamental challenges of safety, electricity, and internet
access. All of that did not stop 400 young entrepreneurs from attending the first ever Startup Weekend
Damascus. Startup Weekends like these have been a community rallying point across the Arab world for
several years. Prior to Damascus, Startup Weekends have been hosted in Ramallah, Amman, Jeddah and
Beirut, as well as Cairo, Dubai, and Casablanca, and the first startup weekend in Iran.
Read More
Entrepreneur Brook Martin
proves age is a state of mind
12 year old Brooke Martin attended a Startup Weekend in Spokane, WA. Her pet care concept
won top prize—much to the surprise and delight of the 39 adult participants. Brooke has since
been recognized as an entrepreneur in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Women 2.0
and recently appeared on the television show Shark Tank. Her product, iCPooch, is available on
Amazon and at Bed Bath & Beyond stores.
Read More
Solving grassroots
problems in a Brazilian slum
Entrepreneurs and community members gathered in Morro da Providencia, the first slum in Brasil to
make a difference in daily lives. “Make Your Own Luck” was the emerging theme of the weekend. The top
three teams developed ideas directed at health care, youth sports education, and support of local craftspeople through ecommerce. Pedacinho de Mim, an ecommerce bedding products website managed to
sell a thousand dollars of merchandise in their first five hours.
Read More
Jeff Martens seeks
to provide access to all
Startup Weekend Access proved that with a few small tweaks, any event-team can encourage a
welcoming and collaborative environment for people with disabilities. Some of the guidelines included:
venue selection access for people with mobility aids
flyers printed in braille
sign-language interpreters for Friday and Sunday nights
microphones with FM transmitting capacity
transcription and large print formatting of presentation decks
Learn More
Our Startup Women initiative
launched to increase startup diversity
With the help of the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, female participation at Startup Weekend
has increased from 17% to 26.5%. This initiative took a broad approach that highlighted successful
women entrepreneurs from across the world, facilitating connections within the community, and
hosting local Startup Weekend Women’s Edition events.
Read More
Programs continued to flourish in
unique communities around the world
Startup Weekend
now in more countries than Starbucks
*2014 statistics
80K
Attendees
905
Startup Weekends
Get Involved | Find an Event
501
Cities
135
Countries
Startup Digest
connecting people, events, and topics
*2014 statistics
588K
Subscriptions
Get Involved | Sign Up Today
503
Curators
321
Active Cities
28
Reading Lists
Education Entrepreneurs
empowered educators to be entrepreneurs
*2014 statistics
61
Events
22
Countries
Find an Event | Get Involved
700
Teams
1000
Educator participants
Startup Next
helping teams take the next big step
*2014 statistics
41 34
Programs
Teams in accelerators
$10.38M 85%
Alumni funding raised
Alumni still operating
Startup Week
uniting startup communities in celebration
*2014 statistics
14
Cities
600 18K 700
Events
Get Involved | Find an Event
Attendees
Volunteers
2014 was a year
of organizational growth
We opened new offices in Brasil,
Malaysia, and India
United States
Europe
Latam
India
Brasil
Malaysia
UP Global HQ becomes
founding partner of Startup Hall
Read More
We worked with government leaders
to support and inspire innovation
This year, United States Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith met with a group of
founders from Startup Weekend and Startup Next programs to discuss immigration.
Read More
White Paper: A roadmap
for building community
In partnership with Google, we put together everything the experts know on how best to foster a
thriving startup ecosystem. The resulting white paper served as a starting point for action in
communities everywhere.
Read More
All in our inclusive
efforts to change the world
Supported globally, regionally,
and locally by the world's finest partners
Thanks for being a part of the global family
supporting each other and entrepreneurs in 2014.
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