Together with the main exponents of the innovation ecosystem, academia and the public and private sector of the Valparaíso Region, the regional launch of the Avonni 2024 National Innovation Award was held in the V21 Innovation District.
In this new version, the call seeks to distinguish those innovations, companies and initiatives committed to communities and their environment, under the motto “Innovate with Attitude.”
This recognition, organized by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation, the Foroinnovación Foundation, El Mercurio and TVN, will once again place emphasis on promoting the participation of women, regional projects and scientific and technological-based ventures.
The launch ceremony also featured the presentations of two winners of the Avonni Award in its previous editions: Marcela Carvajal, USM academic and Avonni Agro winner of the FIA Future 2023, and Javier Cerda, founder of Environ-OncoMets and winner Avonni Salud 2023 .
Francisca Martin, executive director of the Foroinnovación Foundation, invited people to apply for the Avonni Awards and to be part of “our mentor network certified by Corfo and which has more than 700 volunteer professionals who support entrepreneurs throughout Chile.”
Furthermore, he indicated that “the skills needed to innovate and learn are a muscle that is exercised and innovation is found in each of the decisions we make.”
For his part, Javier Cerda, founder of Environ-OncoMets, highlighted that “this type of recognition motivates the team and confirms that we are indeed on the right path. It is also an opportunity that opens many doors, facilitates collaboration and allows you to enter an ecosystem that provides greater reach and visibility about what we are doing.”
While Marcela Carvajal, an academic at USM, mentioned that “this award is an accolade, it means that we are doing well. But the idea is that we pursue other new things, along with taking advantage of the visibility of an award with the Avonni category, which generates many opportunities from academia and innovation, placing us in other places, thanks to this important network.”
Finally, Jaime Arnaiz, executive director of the V21 Innovation District, noted that “we are very happy that the Avonni Prize has once again chosen the V21 Innovation District as the setting for the launch of its 2024 version. We hope that this year we will have many applicants and winners of our region in the different existing categories.”
Furthermore, Jaime Arnaiz indicated that “the Avonni Awards are a national institution and have become a benchmark in the ecosystem, therefore, we are proud that they are present in the region, that they are here in the District and we hope “Let it be a trigger for many applications and that will help consolidate the regional ecosystem.”
