The Trust for the Americas

Our Work

Programs

DIA

Innovation Lab for Peace

Colombia

Project completed

Description

Since 2018, the DIA Innovation Lab for Peace seeks to contribute to the process of social reconciliation and peace building in Colombia. The DIA Lab primarily targets youth between 16 and 35 years old who belong to communities in the post-conflict context in Bogotá, Manizales, Tumaco and Arauca. The DIA Laboratory seeks to activate the innovation, creativity and talent of youth in order to empower a new generation of innovators and entrepreneurs that can amplify development opportunities in their communities. The DIA Innovation Lab for Peace was funded in 2018 by CAF - Development Bank for Latin America - and implemented by The Trust for the Americas and the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNAL).

Project purpose

The DIA Lab in Colombia seeks to democratize access to innovation spaces through training in peace building, entrepreneurship, innovation and digital skills in order to foster creativity, promote innovation and activate the potential of Colombians to contribute to the solution of challenges in their communities in the post-conflict era.

Project goals

To train 250 people in the Innovation curricula based on the DIA Methodology. The beneficiaries will be people affected by the conflict, directly and indirectly, social groups and population at risk.

Through a Hackathon, gather 60 participants to work in teams and present possible contributions to social reconciliation and peace building.

Through a Pitch Tank, select 12 ideas to be awarded an in-kind incentive to start their projects.

Main achievements

254

254 participants were trained in the DIA Methodology in the DIA Labs of Arauca, Bogotá, Manizales and Tumaco. Of the 254 participants, more than half (147) were women.

A Social Hackathon for Peace was held at the DIA Lab in Bogotá, where more than seventy participants attended and six innovation proposals were presented in favor of reconciliation and collaboration b

A Pitch Tank was held at the DIA Lab in Bogotá, which included the presentation of 55 projects through the participation of more than 110 people. The regional sites celebrated their Pitch Tanks and pr

Structure

DREAM HUB

Young innovators develop their ideas of potential projects

SHAPE HUB

Participants develop their business model through the ICI accelerator

MAKE HUB

Participants use state-of-the-art tools to materialize projects: make prototypes

LINK HUB

Participants pitch their ideas, receive feedback from experts and are ready to go out, market and implement their ideas

VENTURE HUB

Financial and technological resources and mentorship for projects demonstrating potential to transform communities

Strategic partners

Main donor

Local implementing partner

Success Stories

Johnathan

An application to connect and support farmers:

Johnathan is a student of Physics at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNAL) who has suffered the ravages of the armed conflict in Colombia since his community, Neiva, was for many years one of the scenes of the conflict. His passion for working with local communities and his interest in entrepreneurship led him to approach the DIA Innovation Lab for Peace.

Thanks to the DIA Methodology and the support of DIA Lab facilitators, Jonathan, along with a multidisciplinary team of participants, was able to create an app to reduce intermediaries between farmers and peasants in Colombia and final buyers.

In the future, Johnathan wants to continue working with his team to develop more ideas based on some other skills and knowledge acquired at the DIA Lab, such as the use of Arduino and open codes to continue benefiting communities affected by the conflict in his country, Colombia.

Daniel

Young student creates ecological solutions through technology

Daniel, originally from Bogotá, Colombia, arrived at the DIA Innovation Lab for Peace thanks to the invitation of some friends. At the DIA Lab, Daniel participated in the DIA Methodology training that would give him the skills to start the design of his innovation project: Llant Soluciones Ecológicas. Llant Soluciones Ecológicas is a company which transforms used tires as supplies for the elaboration of different products through industrial – ecological processes.

Daniel shares the DIA Innovation Lab for Peace provided him with Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) knowledge, giving him the skills to design and start projects. Daniel believes it is important for him to share the knowledge he acquired at the DIA Lab with this coworkers so that his colleagues can also learn to use their potential to create and innovate.

            Which of the following SDGS (Sustainable Development Goals) this project support?
        

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