Estefanía Salazar

Checking Google for Startups AI Agents Challenge 2026 🏆 The initiative aims to help participants level up AI agents from prototype to production, using Google´s latest development kit and platforms. Three competition tracks are available: creation, optimization, and enterprise readiness. Every eligible startup receives $500 in credits plus the chance to win a share of a $90,000 prize pool. 💰 Registration will close on June 5th, here: goo.gle/4cpi2pB If you are working in this area, what makes you choose a funding challenge above others?

A young circularity entrepreneur just inspired her home country. And she is still in high school! Sofía Ramírez, from Margarita Island in Venezuela, won the National Geographic´s 2026 Slingshot Challenge Significant Achievement Award with her creation Ciclo Verde (Green Cycle), a circularity-based nutrient-based compost. Sofía´s Ciclo Verde turns an invasive plant found across the Caribbean known as Beach Naupaka (Scaevola Taccata), into "upcycled" compost. If left alone, this plant can erode beaches and suffocate sea turtles´ nesting grounds. The community is an integral part of the project. The locals learn how to make the compost early - "we turn an ecological burden into a source of income and healthy soil", Sofía says. Her vision will now shape a new future. The Slingshot Challenge invited 13-18-year-olds from across the world to create a one-minute video that features solutions to current environmental issues. Meet Sofía and other young awardees from the 2026 Slingshot Challenge here: www.slingshotchallenge.org

Something is going on about the circular economy in Latin America. Something so good... that it even won a runway show focused on circular fashion by Spain´s Agatha Prada de la Ruiz. Do you know why? The city of Ibagué, Colombia, hosted the Cumbre Glocal de Economia Circular (Circular Economy Glocal Summit - cumbreeconomiacircular.com) last April, with more than 1,400 guests from 30 countries, including experts and best practices. This is not casual. Ibagué, a mid-size city in western Colombia with a population of 550,000, is in the midst of becoming the continent's first Ecocircular Free Trade Zone. “Circular economy means leaving behind a disposal logic and embracing care”, said the Ibagué Mayor, Johana Aranda, in her inaugural speech at the Summit. Re-live the Summit (and Agatha´s show), here: