Accelerate

Second Chance’s Gretchen Marianne Steele & Lauren Voinovich 2022 Finalist Quality of Life category Presented in partnership with:   ORIGINAL PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Second Chance is a revolutionary start-up recycling tracking service developed using an expansive database of UPC and QR product codes that informs consumers of the recycling status of an item based on the…

IGNITE with Light Alysha Ellis & SIR Evans 2022 Presenter Economic Prosperity category Presented in partnership with:       ORIGINAL PROJECT DESCRIPTION: IGNITE with Light is a collaborative partnership to strengthen the Northeast Ohio entrepreneurial ecosystem by connecting business leaders and entrepreneurs with local organizations and collegiate groups that support and serve small businesses…

Grayter Cleveland Shane Winnyk & Courtney Smith 2022 Winner Presented in partnership with: ORIGINAL PITCH DESCRIPTION: Grayter Cleveland aims to increase the number of People of Color and women in STEM careers, particularly the tech field, by pairing a Black employee and a White employee together to give brief presentations in schools (remotely or in-person)…

Bee Brave Amalia Haas 2022 Health & Well-Being Finalist Presented in partnership with:       ORIGINAL PITCH DESCRIPTION: Bee Brave aims to help youth understand and deal with anxiety by engaging them in what is an anxiety provoking activity for most – beekeeping. The program teaches participants to remain centered in the presence of…

CLEVELAND – An initiative to encourage young women and people of color to pursue careers in technology was voted the winning pitch by an audience Thursday night (February 24) at the 8th annual Accelerate: Citizens Make Change civic pitch competition presented by the Cleveland Leadership Center in partnership with Citizens and other supporters. Accelerate returned…