Women honoured for ideas with a cause

NEIDE Sellin designs and sells robotic guide dogs for the blind in Brazil, a country with millions of visually impaired people but barely 100 guide dogs. It takes two years to train a guide dog and the cost of breeding and training one runs into tens of thousands of dollars - not to mention the regular maintenance costs, food and visits to the vet.

Her fellow Brazilian Paula Gomez has built a tool that can predict an epileptic seizure and notify caregivers via a mobile app, offering victims of epilepsy greater autonomy in their daily lives. For a sense of its impact, consider that epilepsy is among the world's most common chronic brain disorder, affecting up to 50 million people globally.

Over in Spain, mixing computer gaming and artificial intelligence (AI), Luz Rello has developed a three-pronged online solution for testing, treatment and monitoring of dyslexia.