Kirchner Food Fellows begin program in late September
Toronto, Ontario and Birmingham, Alabama 02 July 2014 – Kirchner Food Fellowship is pleased to announce new program details for fellowship applicants. The application form as well as additional details are available at www.fundthefood.com.
The inaugural cohort of Kirchner Food Fellows will be chosen this summer. For the 2014-2015 academic year, they will engage in a series of face-to-face and on-line experiences, both academic and practical. The program will form them into an effective investment team that ultimately will make real seed-stage investments in companies that have the potential to improve global food security.
Key dates for this year’s program include:
- July 28th – application deadline
- September 8th – applicant selection and notification
- Late September – introductory gathering, Kirchner Group Corporate Campus (Tranquil Waters, Alabama)
- October – virtual program commences
- December – Wall Street gathering and attendance at International Quality of Life Awards at the United Nations
- February 2015 – Bay Street gathering and attendance at Universities Fighting World Hunger Summit
- February 2015 – European gathering as judges at an international student agriculture business plan competition
- March 2015 – Students begin making discretionary investments
“Applicants should demonstrate tenacity, drive and self-awareness. They should have a strong moral compass and also be excellent team players,” commented Executive Director, Alastair Summerlee.
Kirchner Food Fellows will be selected on the basis of their demonstrated interest in food security issues and a desire to work with seed-stage, for-profit companies with innovative business models and potentially disruptive technologies. Fellows will receive invaluable mentoring from experts in the field of capital investment who will also provide feedback and guidance on investment processes and opportunities. Fellows will also have the opportunity to meet and work with serial entrepreneurs in the United States, Canada and Europe.
“We are very excited to open up the application process for this unique program,” added Steve Dauphin, Investment Director. “We want students to think of investment capital just as they do land, water and seeds; as a scarce resource that needs to be utilized carefully, needs to produce positive yields and needs to be sustainable for the long run.”
To apply visit: www.fundthefood.com/apply
About Kirchner Food Fellowship Program
The Kirchner Food Fellowship believes it is vital for the next generation of leaders to understand, get involved and aid in funding young entrepreneurial businesses which positively impact global food security.
The Kirchner Food Fellowship will provide an opportunity for an elite group of student leaders to be engaged in investment decisions on agriculture-oriented businesses with ground-breaking technologies which can provide long-term sustainable solutions, both environmentally and economically. The students will receive high-level mentoring from networks of investors from across North America. They will also be working directly with our leadership team and our network of thought leaders.
Alastair Summerlee
Executive Director
Kirchner Food Fellowship Program
519.824.4120 x 52986
asummerlee@fundthefood.com
About Kirchner Group
The Kirchner Group has provided traditional merchant banking services since 1985. The Company provides advisory, operational and transactional support to companies as well as asset management services for institutional investors. Kirchner Group’s proprietary platform is built on the premise that pairing deep domain expertise with process experts provides superior results. Our clients and partners range from promising entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 companies and their investors. Kirchner Group also manages assets for some of the largest insurance companies, commercial banks and institutional investors in the world.
Kirchner Group’s Agriculture and Food team has more than 95 years of collective experience as operators, transaction experts, and investors in the sector. Kirchner Group founded its agricultural social impact arm the Food Security Group in 2011. www.kirchnergroup.com
Steve Dauphin
Managing Partner
Food Security Group
205.602.9845
sdauphin@fundthefood.com