Orange Economy: Innovations you may not know were from Latin America and the Caribbean

Highlighting the contributions of creative talent to social and economic progress, the Inter-American Development Bank today launched the e-book “Orange Economy: Innovations you may not know were from Latin America and the Caribbean”.

The IDB uses the term “orange economy” to describe the cultural and creative industries, which include activities such as architecture, audiovisual arts, digital services, fashion, graphic and industrial design, handcrafts, music, and software. In 2015, it generated more than $124 billion in revenues and provided jobs to more than 1.9 million people in the region.

The e-book, which can be downloaded for free, showcases 50 outstanding initiatives in the cultural and creative industries from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The case studies underscore how creativity works as an engine for innovation and a tool to help countries diversify their output and engage in the knowledge-based economy.

“Among the selected startups, we highlighted those that succeeded in bridging the analog and the digital realms, a key convergence for reinventing the entrepreneurship ecosystem and our cities, drawing from what communities need, their surrounding environment and leveraging our cultural heritage,” said IDB lead specialist Alejandra Luzardo, one of the authors.

The e-book compiles many of the examples exhibited in different editions of Demand Solutions: Ideas for Improving Lives, the IDB’s flagship initiative on creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Besides Luzardo, the other co-authors of the e-book are the international consultants Dyanis de Jesús and Michelle Pérez Kenderish.