SHaReD. Social Hazards Resilience in Disaster

November 12, 2018

Prevent, Predict, Plan: a prize for startups researching major risks.

Fondazione Pesenti and Speed Mi Up support new companies engaged in emergency management.

Milan, November 12, 2018 – Floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, fires, and droughts are increasingly frequent and catastrophic events. They threaten lives and impose heavy economic and social costs on affected communities. Fondazione Pesenti has launched a call dedicated to innovative startups and new companies working in the field of major risk management. The top three projects will be awarded six months of free incubation at Speed MI Up.

The project is named SHaReD, which stands for Social Hazards Resilience in Disaster. It is the result of a joint effort by Fondazione Pesenti, Bocconi University, and Politecnico di Milano. Its goal is to support the creation and growth of innovative startups in the field of natural disaster management, including seismic, volcanic, wind-related (hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons), hydraulic (floods), hydrogeological (landslides), drought, and fire events. Startups will be invited to propose new ideas for prediction, prevention, emergency management, and post-emergency assistance.

The term “resilience” (the “R” in the project name) refers to a system’s ability to adapt to change. In the context of major risks, it translates into creative collaboration methods aimed at prevention and disaster management, alongside the introduction of new technologies for prediction, communication, management, and big data interpretation according to the three P’s formula: prevent, predict, plan.

The call offers up to three spots at Speed MI Up and covers six months of incubation costs. Applications must be submitted via the website fondazionepesenti.speedmiup.it from November 12, 2018, to January 7, 2019. The call targets aspiring entrepreneurs and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises with a legal and/or operational headquarters in Milan or its province, or those willing to relocate to Milan within three months from the start of the incubation process scheduled for February 2019.

Speed MI Up is the incubator of Bocconi University and the Chamber of Commerce of Milan Monza Brianza Lodi, with participation from the City of Milan. It offers more than just a workspace, aiming to accelerate business development and entrepreneurial skills through training and personalized mentorship specifically designed for startups.

Fondazione Pesenti aims to promote and spread a culture of innovation understood as the development of ideas, projects, and actions capable of creating a positive impact socially, environmentally, and culturally. The Foundation fosters modern forms of interaction among the public sector, for-profit private sector, and the non-profit world, by designing sustainable solutions that address major social challenges. Its new focus areas—alongside its traditional commitment to preserving national historic and artistic heritage, educational and scientific programs, public conferences and publications, humanitarian and social solidarity projects—are designed to support initiatives with a positive impact in creating socially valuable new businesses, especially developed by younger generations.