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Guy Ryan
Guy grew up in a tiny village on the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island called Granity. He played every sport possible, was far too competitive, and often too cheeky. He was the first in his family to study at University, completing a double degree in design and commerce, and then a Masters in Science Communication from the University of Otago. The documentary he co-produced as part of his Masters – Carving the Future – followed four young New Zealanders taking action on climate change and environmental issues, and went on to win awards and screen in over 50 countries.
In 2011, Guy founded Inspiring Stories – a Kiwi charity that began with a bold vision to back young people to change the world and has become an intergenerational movement for impact.
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From an initial one-off grant of $80,000 from the Vodafone Foundation, Inspiring Stories now turns over more than $1M in annual revenues and operates with a team of staff in 10 communities nationwide. Key initiatives include New Zealand’s largest social innovation summit, Festival for the Future; The Impact Awards, which celebrates young New Zealanders making a difference with $30,000 in prizes; and the year-round Future Leaders programme, which is changing lives for a diverse range of young people in some of New Zealand’s most challenged rural and provincial communities.
Over the past decade Guy and the team have built a 12,000-strong tribe of alumni and supporters; provided more than $85,000 in awards and seed funding for young social entrepreneurs; and invested more than $2.5M into life-changing scholarship opportunities.
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