The University of Pennsylvania and The Wharton School announce the three finalists for the 2015 Barry & Marie Lipman Family Prize.
Now in its fourth year, the Lipman Family Prize received applications from 75+ organizations dedicated to a range of global causes including economic development, education, environmental sustainability, gender equality, healthcare, human rights, food security, legal aid, safe water, poverty alleviation and workers rights.
The finalists below were chosen after rigorous evaluation by members of the practitioner community and a committee of faculty, students and staff spanning the University. We recognize these organizations for their ability to create sustainable solutions and for their potential to transfer their knowledge to others working to make a positive impact.
The winner of the Lipman Family Prize will be announced in the early spring and will receive an unrestricted cash award of $125,000. The other two finalists will each receive $12,500. All three finalists will be celebrated at an award ceremony at the University of Pennsylvania on April 30, 2015.
CareMessage is a social enterprise that empowers healthcare organizations with mobile technologies to improve health literacy and self-health management while fostering efficient care delivery. CareMessage focuses on serving free clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers, and is currently working with more than 80 partner organizations across the United States.
Innovation:Africa brings Israeli innovation to African villages. Their mission is to engage in top-quality, sustainable, scalable and renewable infrastructure projects in sub-Saharan Africa. Since their founding in 2008, Innovation:Africa has completed over 80 solar and agricultural projects in Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, South Africa, Senegal, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
Riders for Health is an international social enterprise that enables public health care services to reach rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa predictably, reliably and cost-effectively. Their aim is to ensure that the health care delivery chain is never broken by failing vehicles and to make the “last mile” the most important mile in healthcare delivery.
As finalists, all three organizations will enter into an ongoing relationship with the University of Pennsylvania and The Wharton School, including subsidized access to Wharton Executive Education programming, partnerships with faculty researchers, internships with graduate students, and connection to interested Penn alumni.
About the Lipman Family Prize:
Currently in its fourth year, the Lipman Family Prize has been made possible by an $8 million gift from Wharton alumnus Barry R. Lipman and his wife, Marie. Administered by the University of Pennsylvania through the Wharton School, the Lipman Family Prize is housed within the Wharton Leadership Program and is governed by an interdisciplinary Steering Committee comprised of faculty, and staff from across the University of Pennsylvania, with support, expertise and partnership from entities such as the Wharton Social Impact Initiative, the Center for High Impact Philanthropy, Wharton’s Center for Leadership and Change Management, the Netter Center for Community Partnerships, and the School of Social Policy and Practice. The selection of Prize finalists involves a group of student fellows that review initial submissions and conduct the due diligence process under staff guidance, and a Prize Committee that selects the finalists and the winner. Through this real- world work Lipman Prize Fellows receive leadership development opportunities through the Leadership Program and educational exposure to the social sector and philanthropy. For more information on the 2015 Lipman Finalists, visit our website.
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About the Wharton School:
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania—founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school—is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education. The most comprehensive source of business knowledge in the world, Wharton bridges research and practice through its broad engagement with the global business community. The School has almost 5,000 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 9,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and an alumni network of 93,000 graduates.