NEAR Foundation and Forkast unveil shortlist for Women in Web3 Changemakers 2022 –

• NEAR Foundation has released the shortlist of 20 candidates for its inaugural Women in Web3 Changemaker list 
• From this list – 10 winners will be selected by public vote 
• To participate, voters will need to click on our Campaign link and create or connect to their existing NEAR wallet to claim an NFT. They can then go to the poll, choose their candidate
•  Voting begins on August 18th 2022 and will end at midnight on August 29th

NEAR Foundation, the Swiss non-profit that supports the governance and development of the NEAR protocol,  today published the shortlist of women who will be considered for its final top 10 Women in Web3 Changemakers 2022 list.   

The shortlist was chosen from hundreds of potential applicants from across the globe by the initiative’s DAO Council, which considered every public nomination received. The list was compiled with the following judging criteria: Inclusion – driving ideas that are good for society, sustainable, and socially impactful;  Influence – making an impact in the community and among peers; and Innovation – contributing to interesting and socially impactful projects at work or independently.

Launched in partnership with Forkast, the list aims to celebrate the achievement of women in Web3 and to showcase female role models in the ecosystem. 

Voting for the top 10 women is now open to the public and will end at midnight on August 29th.  

To vote follow these steps:

• Click on the campaign link  

• Connect or create a NEAR wallet

• Claim the Women in Web3 NFT

• Go to the poll, click thumb up to choose your candidate

Those selected by the public will be included in the Women in Web3 Changemakers list, which will be shared with the press and the global community during the week of NEARCON – NEAR’s annual flagship event, which takes place in Lisbon, Portugal from September 11th – 14th 2022.  Winners will also be flown to the event. 

Forkast will feature the Changemakers in a special multi-part series that will air across Forkast platforms and distribution network to share each award-winner’s story and contributions to Web3. Founders of Web3 companies who have made the list will also have the opportunity to meet with investors and pitch for funding at the event. 

“As we ramp up development in Web3, it is critical that we encourage more women to get involved in the sector and to help shape our digital future. A great way of doing this is by creating role models through the celebration of talent that is already pushing boundaries and acting as powerful agents of social change,” said Marieke Flament, CEO of NEAR Foundation. “This is our inaugural Changemakers list and we are thrilled to receive so many applicants of such high calibre for this important celebration. As we transition into the Web3 economy –  we need to play a role in helping to create a diverse workforce that reflects the society we want to serve.”

The women on this year’s shortlist, in alphabetical order, are:

• Amy Soon, Founder of Blu3 DAO

• Bianca Lopez, Social activist and Founder of Talle Communications

• Deborah Ojengbede, CEO of AFEN Blockchain

• Denelle Dixon, CEO of Stellar Foundation

• Erikan Obotetukudo, Founder and General Partner of Audacity

• Kristin Smith, Executive Director of the Blockchain Association 

• Lauren Ingram, Founder, Women of Web3

• Maliha Abidi, Artist and Founder, Women Rise

• Mary Beth Buchanan, President, Americas and Global Chief Legal Officer of Merkle Science

• Medha Parlikar, Co-founder of Casperlabs

• Olayinka Odeniran, Founder and Chairman of Black Women Blockchain Council

• Oluchi Enebeli, Nigeria’s first female blockchain engineer, founder Web3Ladies

• Rebecca Mqamelo, Co-founder of City3

• Selin Suntay, CEO of Polarys

• Sheila Warren, Founder of Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI)

• Sian Morson, Founder and Editor of TheBlkChain

• Tammy Kahn, Co-founder and Co-CEO of FYEO

• Taynaah Reis, Chief Executive and Founder of Moeda Seeds

• Tricia Wang, Co-founder and lead Crypto Research and Design Lab (CRADL) at CISA (the World Economic Forum’s Crypto Impact Sustainability Accelerator)

• Wendy Diamond, Web3 investor of women, Founder of WEDO

About the NEAR Foundation

The NEAR Foundation is a Swiss non-profit that supports the governance and development of the NEAR protocol, a high-performance carbon-neutral blockchain that is designed to be super-fast, incredibly secure, and infinitely scalable. NEAR is built by an award-winning team of engineers and entrepreneurs to be simple to use, inclusive and good for the environment. 

The foundation aims to help raise awareness, support and grow this ecosystem and allocate grants on behalf of the ecosystem. 

About Forkast

Founded in 2018, Forkast is a global digital media platform covering blockchain, digital assets, and web3 at the intersection of business, economy, and politics — from Asia, to the world. The international team of journalists is led by Editor-in-Chief and global anchor Angie Lau. Forkast is a trusted authority in the industry who has partnered with organisations like OECD, World Economic Forum, IBM, EY, and more.

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Press Queries:
Georgia Hanias
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+44 (0) 7812 211 403

Forkast PR
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