Colour of Innovation UNDP

The Colour of Innovation is a podcast brought to you by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). In this show we cover stories of innovation from across the Arab States. In each episode we examine some of the most pressing development challenges in the region, through stories from people on the ground, social innovators, experts, and our colleagues exploring new solutions.
In this last episode of Season 2, we look at how a new generation of Palestinian professionals are making the most of opportunities in the digital economy. Recorded prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the topic of how remote, online work can alleviate the massive youth unemployment challenge facing the Arab region is more pertinent than ever. As the technical lead for the socio-economic response to Covid-19 in the UN system, UNDP and its country offices worldwide are mobilising to address the impacts of the pandemic on economies and communities. In Palestine, the UNDP Accelerator Lab has been busy supporting micro- and small- and medium-sized enterprises while exploring transformative pathways to inclusive economic development.
We talk to Musheera Jais, who is freelancing as a voice-over artist from the Gaza Strip, about her experiences and what new opportunities e-work has provided. We then discuss the digital landscape in Palestine with one of its pioneers, Laith Kassis, who tells us about some of the emerging technologies that hold most promise of dignified employment. Finally, we speak with the UNDP Deputy Special Representative in Palestine, Geoffrey Prewitt, about how UNDP can best support the tech sector and provide a way for regional economies to link to the Palestinian talent pool.
For more information follow the links below:
Gaza Sky Geeks: https://gazaskygeeks.com/
EnterVentures: http://www.enterventures.ps/
UNDP PAPP: https://www.ps.undp.org/
UNDP Arab States: http://www.arabstates.undp.org/
UNDP Accelerator Labs: https://acceleratorlabs.undp.org/
UNDP Innovation in the Arab States: http://inno4arabstates.com/
SAWTI:  https://www.facebook.com/SAWTIpalestine/
 
Credits:
Host: Ben Thompson Coon
Producers: Jennifer Colville and Ben Thompson Coon
Sound Engineer: Benjamin Lehti
Guests: Musheera Jaish, Laith Kassis, Geoffrey Prewitt

The Colour of Innovation is a podcast brought to you by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In this show we cover stories of innovation from across the Arab States. In each episode we examine some of the most pressing development challenges in the region, through stories from people on the ground, social innovators, experts and our colleagues exploring new solutions.
In this episode we discuss how new technologies including Artificial Intelligence tools can be harnessed to counter false or mis-information and how they can be applied in a development context.
We begin with the voice of a Sudanese activist about how young people in Sudan depend on social media for their daily news and how this combination allows for the spread of misinformation.
We speak with Dr. Preslav Nakov from the Qatar Computing Research Institute about how fake news spreads and how this can be countered with artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Finally we return to Sudan where we talk with Ali Muntasir from UNDP Sudan about how false narratives help extremist organizations recruit and how these narratives might be reversed in order to prevent violent extremism.
For more information follow the links below:
Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI): https://www.hbku.edu.qa/en/qcri
UNDP Sudan: http://www.sd.undp.org/
UNDP Arab States: http://www.arabstates.undp.org/
UNDP Innovation in the Arab States: http://inno4arabstates.com/  
 
Credits:
Host: Ben Thompson Coon
Producers: Jennifer Colville and Ben Thompson Coon
Sound Engineer: Benjamin Lehti
Guests: Preslav Nakov, Ali Muntasir
Sudan Correspondent: Ahmed Sandhori

The Colour of Innovation is a podcast brought to you by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In this show we cover stories of innovation from across the Arab States. In each episode we examine some of the most pressing development challenges in the region, through stories from people on the ground, social innovators, experts and our colleagues exploring new solutions.
Youth employment is a growing challenge in the Arab States, a region where over 60 percent of the population are currently under the age of 30 and of whom one third are currently without a job. In this episode we go to Iraq and take a look at UNDP’s work in fostering innovation and entrepreneurship among young people through the Innovation 4 Development programme (#Inno4Dev).
We begin with Ranya Bakr, a former participant of #Inno4Dev, who takes us through the Design Thinking process, one of the key methodologies used in the programme.
We then talk to Salih Mahmoud who, after participating in #Inno4Dev, decided to set up Mosul Space to share the lessons learned and support others in making their ideas a reality.
Finally together with Dhafer Hasan from UNDP Iraq, we take a closer look at the #Inno4Dev programme, how it works, and what the future of the programme holds.
For more information follow the links below:
Mosul Space: http://mosulspace.org/
UNDP Iraq: https://www.iq.undp.org/
UNDP Arab States: http://www.arabstates.undp.org/
UNDP Innovation in the Arab States: http://inno4arabstates.com/
Inno4Dev: https://web.facebook.com/IraqiYouthCafe/
 
Credits:
Host: Ben Thompson Coon
Producers: Jennifer Colville and Ben Thompson Coon
Sound Engineer: Benjamin Lehti
Guests: Rania Bakr, Salih Mahmoud, Dhafer Hasan

The Colour of Innovation is a podcast brought to you by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In this show we cover stories of innovation from across the Arab States. In each episode we examine some of the most pressing development challenges in the region, through stories from people on the ground, social innovators, experts and our colleagues exploring new solutions.
In this episode we take a look at how the civil society landscape in Tunisia has transformed since the 2011 Revolution and how participatory democracy is taking root on both the local and national levels as part of the transitional process and democratization of the country.
We begin with voices of the Tunisian youth who are increasingly taking a larger role in their communities and demanding for new avenues of participation for their fellow citizens.
We then speak with Kouraich Jauahdou, founder of Associative Action, about introducing participatory mechanisms to increase citizen participation in municipalities across the country.
Finally, Eduardo Lopez-Mancizidor from UNDP Tunisia talks about how UNDP has been supporting civil society to strengthen its foothold within the political landscape and their recent work to consolidate the new democracy.
For more information follow the links below:
Associative Action: https://www.actionassociative.org/en/
UNDP Tunisia: http://www.tn.undp.org/
UNDP Arab States: http://www.arabstates.undp.org/
UNDP Accelerator Labs: https://acceleratorlabs.undp.org/
UNDP Innovation in the Arab States: http://inno4arabstates.com/
 
Credits:
Host: Ben Thompson Coon
Producers: Jennifer Colville and Ben Thompson Coon
Sound Engineer: Benjamin Lehti
Guests: Kouraich Jauahdou, Eduardo Lopez-Mancisidor
Tunisia Correspondent: Youssef Habboul

The Colour of Innovation is a podcast brought to you by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In this show we cover stories of innovation from across the Arab States. In each episode we examine some of the most pressing development challenges in the region, through stories from people on the ground, social innovators, experts and our colleagues exploring new solutions.
This episode looks at challenges that persons with disabilities in Egypt face on a day-to-day basis and talks with some young entrepreneurs working with people with disabilities to create innovative solutions to these challenges.
We begin with a story by our Country Correspondent Wasim Abuzaid who interviews Mohammed Nasser about his experiences of being a blind student in Cairo.
We talk to two social entrepreneurs, Khaled Eyada and Anwar Aly, about how they have worked with people with disabilities to understand their needs and to design solutions that begin to address them.
And finally we talk with UNDP Egypt’s Innovation Lab Coordinator Farida Matta about how UNDP is creating a space for innovation and co-creation among entrepreneurs and end users.
For more information follow the links below:
Helpee: https://web.facebook.com/HelpeeOfficial/?ref=py_c&_rdc=1&_rdr
UNDP Egypt Innovation Lab: https://bit.ly/2lP18eA
UNDP Innovation in the Arab States: http://inno4arabstates.com/
UNDP Arab States: http://www.arabstates.undp.org/
 
Credits:
Host: Ben Thompson Coon
Producers: Jennifer Colville and Ben Thompson Coon
Sound Engineer: Benjamin Lehti
Guests: Farida Matta, Khaled Eyada, Anwar Aly, Mohamed Nasser
Egypt Correspondent: Wasim Abuzaid

This is a guest episode from Ecuador, in South America, where UNDP Ecuador, in their search for innovative solutions for economic inclusion problems, launched The Other Bar, a chocolate bar made with cocoa from the Amazon, that comes with a ‘digital passport’ (tracks cocoa from bean to a bar), and an impact token that acts as a supercharged brand marketing campaign and allows consumers to reinvest in farmers and communities who brought them the bar. This experiment tests the hypothesis that consumers will reward sustainable business practices and brands (over non-sustainable ones) and are likely to pay a premium price on a product.
The Other Bar was designed to have a blockchain-powered token that gives consumers a choice of reinvesting its value in a discount on their next purchase of the chocolate bar, or a cocoa tree to be planted in the community where the resource for the chocolate bar came from (with the ability to track when and where the tree actually gets planted).
This initial experiment built a solution targeting a supply chain around a single product, but its principles and platform apply to other sectors- it is ready to be deployed to empower consumers and investors to rethink various business practices and sectors, from water efficiency and energy conservation to fair labor practices and reduction of carbon emissions.
This episode, produced by UNDP Ecuador, the Fairchain Foundation and John Weich, tells the story of the inception of the project in the voices of their agents in the Zamora province, in the southern Amazonia of Ecuador.