On March 2, 2022, the 100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund team in Washington, D.C., along with the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala hosted a hybrid-live, virtual event for the official announcement of the latest 100K grant-winning teams between the United States, Central America, and the Dominican Republic. The event included brief remarks by Ricardo Zúñiga, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, William W. Popp, U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala, and Fernando Bolaños Valle, CEO of AgroAmerica and highlighted the regional 100K institutional partnerships between the U.S., Central America and the Dominican Republic that will provide new models of training-exchange opportunities to more students in the areas of public health, environment, education, and STEM, among others.
This 100K Innovation Fund competition was generously supported by AgroAmerica with the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, and provided funding to 12 new partnerships between U.S. colleges and universities with regional higher education institutions in Central America and the Dominican Republic. As a result of these new 100K partnerships, more students and faculty will gain access to innovative, inclusive training and exchange programs in these regions.