Telenor Group, in cooperation with the Nobel Peace Centre, on Monday announced the 16 delegates who have been selected for the Telenor Youth Forum 2018-19.
This year’s delegation will be given the mission to address inequalities in health through the use of digital technology. Human health and related areas, such as access to health-care and information, and fighting hunger and thirst, have been a top priority in national and regional development agendas and dialogues.
“Reducing inequalities in health and in access to health services are integral to building a more promising, more peaceful future. Mobile networks and technology can play a vital role,” said Telenor Group President and CEO Sigve Brekke in a press release.
He added: “Whether it’s being better able to care for our elders or ensuring health-care access and information for low-income and rural citizens, we all have a lot to gain by bridging health with technology. And who better to contribute to this effort than the 16 youth selected for the Telenor Youth Forum this year?”
The 16 Telenor Youth Forum delegates for the 2018-2019 program are accomplished young leaders in the markets where Telenor operates.
This year’s delegation will be divided into four teams, each posed with a unique health-related challenge which will be announced after the Telenor Youth Forum begins in December.
Each team will get coaching and mentoring from Telenor Group officials for the extent of the six-month-long program.
The four mentors are Ieva Martinkenaite, VP of Telenor Research and member of AI-High Level Expert Group of EU, Alanna Solberg, head of Marketing for e-Health (Norway), Austin Menyasz, director of Public and Regulatory Affairs (Asia), and Bjørn Taale Sandberg, SVP and head of Telenor Research.
The four teams will be scored throughout the program based on concept proposals in Oslo in December, on progress between Oslo and the forum’s finale in Bangkok in May 2019, as well as on their final pitch at the finale.
The winning team will be awarded $12,000 to further develop their solutions. The four teams’ challenges, journey, and their final concepts will then be featured at a digital exhibition, sponsored by Telenor Youth Forum and the program’s partners at the Nobel Peace Centre.
“Every year, the Nobel Peace Centre is pleased to partner with Telenor on this program because we share a vision of a more peaceful future,” said Liv Tørres, Executive Director of the Nobel Peace Centre.
“The technology and connectivity available to the world today makes it possible for all to contribute, and we think youth have the most at stake in starting this change,” he added.