Caribbean Young Entrepreneurs Symposium set for May 2006, St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG – Truly Caribbean Network, a St. Maarten-based foundation will be hosting their first annual Young Entrepreneurs Symposium (YES 2006) at the Sonesta Maho Beach Resort & Casino from May 24 to 27.

“Turning Passions Into Enterprise” is the organization’s slogan for YES 2006. According to Nerissa Golden, President of Truly Caribbean Network the event is geared towards young business-minded people who are interested in starting their own business or have already begun a new venture.

“Our goal is to provide an event that will give Caribbean people a much-needed boost to take their dreams from ideas to reality. There will be lots of workshops led by local and regional entrepreneurs and other professionals who have hands on knowledge of the two areas of focus this year, which are Technology and The Arts,” explained Golden.

“We wanted to choose two of the sectors in which there is still room for exploitation. Technology involves persons who use the internet, computers, any electronic or communication device to operate a business or that provides as a service to others. The Arts areas of focus include television and film production, dance, music, and craft. “Other workshops will include issues of copyrighting and trademarks, financial planning, and we will be offering one-on-one sessions to assess business plans and offer ideas on business start-up.”

“An interesting development that will be highlighted is the way in which today’s technology is making the work of artists more accessible to a wider market and more affordable while creating new and viable businesses for our young people that reflect our Caribbean heritage.”

The TCN Founder and President said that young people on St. Maarten as in many other Caribbean islands are finding new ways of using technology to earn a living but added there are many others who are not even aware that a hobby is actually a potential money maker. The same is true for persons in the Arts. “We are hungry to see our stories, our islands, and our culture on film, in print, and on the airwaves. YES is an opportunity for these dreamers to learn how to do that.”

Highlights of the symposium include the Me Inc. workshops, the Telem Group Technology Expo, the Caribbean Showcase which will offer participants the opportunity to perform and show their video or film productions and the YES Awards ceremony to recognize local and regional Outstanding Entrepreneurs.

The conference fee is US$ 125 and includes participation in all workshops. For more information on the conference and to register for the expo call (011) 599-580-1070 .