Common Pitch comes to South Africa

Common and Design Indaba, one of the world's leading design events, are bringing "A party to fix the world" to Cape Town. Amidst live music, mentors, celebrity judges and over $25,000 in prize money, Common Pitch: South Africa will celebrate fresh solutions to some of the most pressing issues in Africa today.

For the South African event, everybody from designers to business executives to entrepreneurs and tech geeks, from around the world, are invited to submit ideas on how to solve a social problem, whether it is a world-changing solution or an everyday solution.

Following the online entry process, ten finalists will be pitching their ideas on 29 February 2012 to a live and virtual crowd of peers, industry leaders and venture capitalists in Cape Town on Wednesday 29 February 2012, the first day of Design Indaba Conference. The best idea will win R200 000 to make it a reality.

All about shining a light

"Common Pitch is all about shining a light on the incredible people using creativity to find new solutions to the world's toughest challenges," said Alex Bogusky, Common co-founder and an Adweek 'Creative director of the Decade'. "It only makes sense to bring this event to Africa, where creativity and enterprise are colliding in the most brilliant ways."

Creatives Alex and Ana Bogusky, John Bielenberg and Rob Schuham founded Common, which drives positive change through enterprise with its own blend of accelerators for existing and emerging socially conscious ventures. The Colorado-based company is also quickly becoming known for turning the straight-laced world of do-gooding upside down.

Common Pitch events, which traditionally feature timed pitches, celebrity judges, live entertainment and an energetic, collaborative environment, have drawn international media attention and helped numerous entrepreneurs accelerate their socially conscious companies.

First international launch

Collaborating with Design Indaba, the event in February will represent the first international launch of the concept.

"Common Pitch is an expression of the creative manifesto that Design Indaba has promoted since 1997," said Design Indaba founder, Ravi Naidoo. "It symbolises our passion to advance the cause of creativity in a continent challenged by social inequality. We do what we do because design is about more than aesthetics, it is about finding creative solutions to transform and improve the lives of people across the globe."

For more, go to www.common.is and click on "Up & Coming"