President Bill Clinton Awards USD1M Hult Prize at United Nations Headquarters to Four College Students from the UK for Innovative Rice Farming Startup & Issues 10th Anniversary Youth Challenge

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Sep 18, 2018, 13:28 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hult Prize Foundation has announced the recipient of the 9th annual Hult Prize, the world's largest startup program for student impact entrepreneurs. A four-person team of college students from University College London (UCL) received the prestigious award by creating a farming startup that radically improves rice yields, land turnover and ultimately farmer income with the goal of improving the livelihood of millions of people across Southeast Asia and beyond.

In partnership with the United Nations Office of Partnerships, more than 100,000 college and university students from 121 countries competed for this year's edition of the Hult Prize. The year long program kicks off the UNGA each fall as college students around the world compete to answer the annual social impact startup challenge.

This year's winning team, known as SunRice, was one of six finalists who presented their startup at the United Nations Headquarters after winning the semi-final summer stage of the Hult Prize, where they lived, worked, learned and played amongst 200 other student entrepreneurs in the former residence of Henry the VIII — a castle sprawling over 190 acres just north of London.

The difficult decision was made by a heavyweight lineup of judges which included a mix of celebrities, entrepreneurs, UN officials and corporate executives including Verizon CEO, Hans Vestberg, Arianna Huffington and Earthday President, Kathleen Rogers. Hult Prize Founder and CEO, Ahmad Ashkar said, "This business is going to radically change everything we think know about rice trade and I am excited about the potential impact their company will have on society and the prospect of building out the world's first socially responsible rice brand."

At the event, President Bill Clinton also announced the 10^th Year Anniversary Hult Prize Challenge which will focus on youth unemployment and ask students around the world to create startups that can collectively create meaningful work opportunities for one-million young people. The best idea will receive one million dollars in startup capital.

Since inception the Hult Prize has engaged a global community of more 2.1 million college and university students world-wide and created more than 200,000 social enterprises. For more information about SunRice or The Hult Prize Foundation please visit hultprize.org

Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Hult Prize Foundation