Riga, November 6, 2015 – The U.S. Embassy will celebrate the power of entrepreneurship and innovation as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2015. Under the theme of “Entrepreneurship: Cultivating the Habits of Success,” the Embassy is organizing a range of events scheduled November 2-20. GEW is the world’s largest celebration of entrepreneurs and small business owners — the dynamic risk-takers who launch startups that bring ideas to life, drive economic growth, and expand human welfare. During November, GEW inspires people around the world to explore their potential as self-starters and innovators, and complements the U.S. government’s larger effort to deepen business and trade ties with Latvia and the EU, both bilaterally and through the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
As an anchor to the U.S. Embassy’s GEW activities, entrepreneur Lawrence Wright will visit Latvia for five days to deliver a series of lectures, seminars and workshops in Riga, Daugavpils, and Rezekne. Mr. Wright is a serial entrepreneur, occasional business angel investor, mentor, with deep experience in Eastern Europe. With five startups under his belt, Mr. Wright is passionate about innovating new ways to help startups and investors achieve success.
In addition to Mr. Wright’s visit, the U.S. Embassy is sponsoring and participating in a full range of activities for GEW. These include events such as:
- SMEs Boot Camp (November 4): The U.S. Embassy will become a “business incubator for a day” and host a seminar aimed at local entrepreneurs interested in learning more about running an effective, globally-oriented small business.
- Deputy Chief of Mission Sharon Hudson Dean’s Tour of Technology Companies (November 9).
- Creativity Counts workshops (November 2-6): In partnership with the International School of Latvia, the Embassy will conduct a series of workshops on innovation at elementary schools around Latvia to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.
- Film screenings (November 16-20): The U.S. Embassy and the Stockholm School of Economics will host four screenings of films featuring entrepreneurial themes at the John F. Kennedy Reading Room at the Latvian National Library and the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga.
