Arkansas startups to compete at UN headquarters in New York

Two Arkansas startups, including one that was founded by a Little Rock college student, have been chosen as finalists for 2017 in the Global Sourcing Council’s 3S Awards, meant to highlight small businesses that are leading the way in sustainability and social responsibility, according to the 3S Awards website.

Inspirational Undies, maker of organic underwear with encouraging messages for child leukemia patients, was founded by Philander Smith College student Anissa Stewart. A junior studying business administration, Stewart founded the company in February, inspired by her “love for caring for children and creative design,” Stewart said. Her great-grandmother and grandfather each died of cancer, she said.

KALIKOE Galaxy, founded by Quentin Allen of Pine Bluff, uses blockchain technology to convert social media “likes” from different platforms into currency that can be used to purchase items from online vendors.

The two companies will compete against a group of 77 companies, representing 22 countries, according to a press release from the Delta Regional Authority.

Awards will be given in the categories of Basic Needs, Empowerment, Social Impact through Technology Innovation, Climate Change and People’s Choice.

Winners will be recognized May 17 at an awards presentation at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.

Other nominees from the Delta region include Renewable Energies, a Memphis-based startup that converts waste into different forms of energy; Skycison of Memphis, which uses mobile drone technology to help farmers detect crop stress; and Think I.N.K, a zero-waste management program, based in Tuskegee, Ala.

“The Global Sourcing Council is thrilled that five entrepreneurs from the Delta region have been nominated for the international 3S Awards, celebrating socially conscious and sustainability focused businesses around the world,” Kelsey Crouch, managing director of the Global Sourcing Council, said in the press release. “The nominees from the Delta represent what we see as the future of business, dedicated entrepreneurs creating successful ventures that make fundamental improvements that have a local and global reach and impact.”

The 3S Awards were established in 2008.