DHL YES Awards 2007

DHL Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainability (YES) Awards

2007 marks the half-way point in the bid to realise the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education by 2015 - a good time to re-energise efforts towards realising the UN MDGs and to celebrate the many successes that have already been achieved.

DHL is proud to support the work of the United Nations and the realisation of the MDGs. We are a signatory to the UN Global Compact and have global humanitarian partnerships with UNICEF, UNDP and UN OCHA.

In Asia Pacific, DHL is launching the DHL Young Entrepreneurs for Sustainability Awards (DHL YES Awards) in 2007, in order to identify and recognise the contributions of young people who are implementing new and innovative methods and practices to bring about positive social change in their communities. We call these young individuals 'social entrepreneurs'.

'Social' because their fundamental purpose is to bring about positive social impacts and 'entrepreneurs' as they embody the 'can-do' spirit and implement business models and principles to reach their goals. Social entrepreneurs do more to realise social change than either philanthropic donations or a country's social services alone could achieve.

Today, 85% of the world's young people live in developing countries with approximately 60% of all young people living in Asia. The challenge that young people face in sustaining their organisations, particularly in developing economies, is evident. This is why the DHL YES Awards focus on unleashing the potential of young social entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 and 40 who are working to realise the UN Millennium Development Goals.

The inaugural DHL YES Awards take place in 2007 in five countries: Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. The plan is to expand the programme to other countries in the future.

The DHL YES Awards are guided by the DHL YES Awards International Council (IC) which consists of respected leaders from the development, social, business and social enterprise sectors. In addition, each participating country has a National Jury (NJ) of prominent national leaders which select the national winners.

The DHL YES Awards have been developed with the support of Partners in Change - an advisory partner to DHL for the inaugural year, 2007. Partners in Change is an India-based not-for-profit organisation working in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

The DHL YES Awards are presented in association with CNN.

In order to apply or to nominate someone for the DHL YES Awards, please download the application kit.

Applications open: 1 February 2007
Applications close: 30 April 2007 (extended from 31 March)

To find out more about the DHL YES Awards, download the brochure and read our frequently asked questions.

To contact the DHL YES Awards team, please see contact information.

For more information on DHL's global Sustainability programme, please visit our Corporate Website.

To find out more about the Millennium Campaign, visit: http://www.millenniumcampaign.org/