F123′s founder, Ashoka fellow Fernando Botelho, was selected as one of the six finalists for the eighth edition of the Prêmio Empreendedor Social (the Social Entrepreneur Award). This competition is renowned as one of the top social entrepreneurship awards in Latin America.
Fernando Botelho, Founder of F123
The criteria for selection in this competition include: 1) innovation, 2) sustainability, 3) direct social impact, 4) influence in public policy, 5) the social entrepreneur’s background, 6) scope and distribution, and 7) potential scalability.
F123 is extremely excited to have been selected as a finalist. The other finalists include: 1) Kaninde/Metareilá, which helps indigenous populations in the Amazon, 2) Instituto Chapada, which addresses the eradication of illiteracy, 3) Imaflora which helps with natural resource conservation projects, 4) Raízes, which is involved in sustainable tourism projects, and Graacc, a children’s cancer treatment hospital for low-income families.
F123 was founded by Fernando Botelho, an inspiring individual who is blind himself, to create software for the visually impaired at an affordable price, providing access to job and educational opportunities that they couldn’t otherwise easily attain. F123 software is a high-quality, low-cost software that enables the visually impaired to use computers via a USB flash drive or CD. Given that the competitor software on the market is extremely expensive and unaffordable for the average person in a developing country, F123 software can truly help address the low employment rate amongst the visually impaired in the developing world through this more affordable solution.
To vote for F123, go to http://f123.org/vote, scroll down and click on “Vote Neste Candidato” (Vote for this candidate).
