News

BELLA II's Innovation Hub, with support of RedCLARA, the European Union (EU) and Secretaría Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología from Panama (SENACYT), will host the first edition of InnovaInvest on 23 and 24 October in Panama City. The aim of the event is to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in Latin America and the Caribbean.

This first edition, called the "Copernicus Edition," will focus on funding proposals that improve the use of data from the EU's Earth observation programme, Copernicus. These proposals are based on the results of a series of innovation events organized last year by BELLA II, RedCLARA, and the EU.

More than 300 experts from the academia, government, and the private sector from 17 Latin American and Caribbean countries and two European countries participated in the "Copernicus Innovation Challenge Ideathon" and the "Copernicus Innovation Development Hackathon." These events resulted in the creation of eight innovative concepts and six products, all using Copernicus data and fostering collaboration within the region's digital ecosystem.

At the InnovaInvest Copernicus Edition, participants will present these proposals to a panel of potential investors to secure funding that could help turn them into high-impact projects. “Previous events have focused on development of ideas and products. Now, we’re taking it a step further by creating an environment where these results can be brought to life through funding and strategic connections, and reach their full potential in areas like climate change and agriculture,” said Laura Castellana, RedCLARA’s Academic Project Coordinator.

The event will bring together national research and education networks from the region, multilateral organizations, government agencies, seed capital funds, companies, and cooperation entities. “This is a unique opportunity to internationalize the products developed through our innovation initiatives and present them to key players like BIDLab, the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF), and EU delegations. The aim is to pave the way for incubation, acceleration, and development processes that will have a positive impact on the countries of the region,” adds Castellana.

The first InnovaInvest will take place in collaboration with the Copernicus Academy Latin America and the Caribbean (Copernicus Academy LAC), another initiative supported by RedCLARA under BELLA II, which aims to strengthen capacity building and knowledge management in the field of Earth observation.

For more information about InnovaInvest, please visit https://bella-programme.eu