International Youth Foundation Honors 20 Youth Leaders as YouthActionNet(R) Global Fellows

    Fellows demonstrate the vast global power and promise of youth,

positively changing the lives of others



    BALTIMORE, Aug. 18 /EMWNews/ -- The 2008

YouthActionNet(R) Global Fellows are a group of outstanding young social

entrepreneurs who are distinguished by their innovative approaches to

addressing urgent social and environmental needs. This year's recipients

include a 20-year-old in Pakistan who is working to put an end to the

practice of honor killing in her community and a 29-year-old in Brazil who

creates jobs through transforming non-recyclable waste into works of art.



    Launched in 2001 by the International Youth Foundation (IYF) and Nokia,

YouthActionNet(R) seeks to develop a new generation of socially conscious

global citizens who create positive change in their communities, their

countries, and the world.



    "From harnessing the power of technology to combat drug counterfeiting

to using bicycles as a potent rural development tool, this year's

YouthActionNet(R) Fellows are true social entrepreneurs - developing

creative solutions to foster lasting social change," said IYF President and

CEO William S. Reese.



    Martin Sandelin, Vice-President - CSR and Community Involvement at

Nokia, said, "We offer our hearty congratulations to each of this year's

Fellows who are working tirelessly to improve their local and global

communities. Each took action to address a critical social challenge. Each

successfully mobilized the public will and support needed to make a real

difference in the lives of others."



    A sample of other 2008 YouthActionNet(R) Fellows include:



    Luis Octavio Ortigoza Ayala, 26, Mexico: Through Artificial Vision,

Ayala develops technologies aimed at enabling visually impaired individuals

to perceive images and access greater opportunities. In 2007, he received

the Premio UVM por el Desarrollo Social Award through the national

YouthActionNet(R) program in Mexico, created with support from the

Sylvan/Laureate Foundation.



    Sarah Koch, 26, United States: Koch co-founded Development In Gardening

to empower HIV-affected and other at-risk individuals in developing nations

to meet their basic nutritional needs by teaching them to create

self-sustaining community gardens.



    Bright Simons, 27, Ghana: Simons co-founded mPedigree to combat

alarming rates of pharmaceutical fraud in Africa. Through the initiative,

consumers verify the authenticity of the drugs they purchase through

sending a simple text message.



    Ankai Xu, 24, China: Through the Phoenix Program, Xu engages university

students in efforts to increase the educational opportunities of girls

growing up in rural China.



    The 2008 Global YouthActionNet(R) Fellows will travel to Washington,

D.C., USA in November to participate in a weeklong leadership retreat, to

be recognized for their efforts at the Annual YouthActionNet(R) Global

Awards Ceremony, and network with leading international organizations.



    Since the Fellowship program was launched in January 2002, 140 young

social entrepreneurs have been selected, with applications received from

nearly 4,000 young people in over 60 countries. Fellows are chosen annually

following a peer review process in which previous Fellows select the next

round of winners.



    To learn more about YouthActionNet(R) and this year's Fellows, visit:

http://www.youthactionnet.org.

    About YouthActionNet(R)



    Launched in 2001, YouthActionNet(R) seeks to develop a new generation

of socially conscious global citizens who create positive change in their

communities, their countries, and the world. Through its Fellowship

Programs, national institutes, dynamic website, and peer-to-peer learning

opportunities, YouthActionNet(R) offers young change makers ideas,

resources, and connections to like minds around the world. To date,

YouthActionNet(R) has launched national institutes in Brazil, Mexico, and

Spain, with additional institutes planned for Australia, Chile, Haiti, and

Israel in 2008-2009. For further information, visit:

http://www.youthactionnet.org.



    About the International Youth Foundation (IYF)



    The International Youth Foundation (IYF) invests in the extraordinary

potential of young people. Founded in 1990, IYF builds and maintains a

worldwide community of businesses, governments, and civil-society

organizations committed to empowering youth to be healthy, productive, and

engaged citizens. IYF programs are catalysts of change that help young

people obtain a quality education, gain employability skills, make healthy

choices, and improve their communities. To learn more, visit:

http://www.iyfnet.org.



    About Nokia



    Nokia is the world leader in mobility, driving the transformation and

growth of the converging Internet and communications industries. We make a

wide range of mobile devices with services and software that enable people

to experience music, navigation, video, television, imaging, games,

business mobility and more. Developing and growing our offering of consumer

Internet services, as well as our enterprise solutions and software, is a

key area of focus. We also provide equipment, solutions and services for

communications networks through Nokia Siemens Networks. More information

about Nokia is available at: http://www.nokia.com.



    About Nokia - Community involvement



    Nokia is committed to having a positive impact on society that extends

beyond the advanced technology, products, and services it creates. It has

invested in community projects supporting young people and education in

over 30 countries, benefiting more than one million young people. The

company has an active employee volunteering program which last year saw its

employees give almost 32,100 hours to local community projects. Nokia is

also supporting innovative technology projects designed to bridge the

digital divide and bring the benefits of mobile technology to communities

around the world.