Entrepreneurs Unplugged: With Nir Barkat, Mayor of Jerusalem

Please join the Office of Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., the Colorado BioScience Association, CSIA, Colorado’s Technology Association; the Mizel Family Foundations, and the Silicon Flatirons Center for a special edition of Entrepreneur’s Unplugged with Governor Bill Ritter and Jerusalem’s Mayor Nir Barkat.

Nir Barkat was elected the 9th Mayor of Jerusalem on November 11th, 2008. Mayor Barkat’s vision is to turn Israel’s poorest city into one rich in culture, youth, education, lasting economic development, and tourism. This ambition combined with his message of respect and pluralism for all residents of Jerusalem has inspired many. His tenure as Mayor is off to an encouraging start.

Mayor Barkat’s early success as Mayor, significantly, is rooted in the business methods and entrepreneurial approach which he brings to City Hall. Mayor Barkat’s roots are firmly in entrepreneurship. In 1988, Mayor Barkat co-founded BRM Technologies, a pioneering software house and later venture capital firm that developed and marketed ground-breaking anti-virus software now standard on personal computers throughout the world. His leadership and business acumen brought him to the position of global chairman of one of BRMs largest venture projects.

Mayor Barkat additionally founded Snuneet, a non-profit organization and the largest educational website in Hebrew and Start Up Jerusalem, which encourages the creation of jobs in Jerusalem through economic growth and marketing guidance. He was also a founding member of New Spirit, an organization that works to change the demographic map of Jerusalem by focusing on deepening the connections that students have to Jerusalem so that they will remain to build their homes and raise their families in the city. New Spirit connects students to the city both emotionally and physically, by involving groups of students in areas of Jerusalem most in need. Mayor Barkat’s philanthropic leadership combined with his business background when he helped found the Israel Venture Network, a venture capital network that invests in social initiatives throughout Jerusalem.

This special edition of Entrepreneurs Unplugged will feature a welcome address from Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. and a shortoverview of bioscience in Colorado from John Collar, President, CBSA. The feature presentation will be a keynote address from Mayor Barkat followed by a question and answer session moderated by Brad Bernthal, Director of the Entrepreneurship Initiative at CU’s Silicon Flatirons Center. Entrepreneurs Unplugged is a meeting place where faculty, students and community members with technical backgrounds learn about and get involved in entrepreneurship. In particular, the program offers students and faculty an opportunity to learn how a successful start up is created as well as an opportunity to network. Each Entrepreneurs Unplugged meeting features food, drink and – most importantly – an experienced entrepreneur to discuss his/her start-up experiences.