CNN iReport

Stars Join Students, Entrepreneurs, and Mentors to Improve America's Communities for Pepsi "Refresh" Project

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Public to Vote to Allocate More than $20 Million in Grants to Fund Ideas

That Move the World Forward

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"Brainstorming" Event in New York City's Fashionable Meatpacking District Kicks-Off National Vote – Voting for February is Now Underway

In New York City's fashionable "Meatpacking District" iconic American actors Demi Moore and Kevin Bacon joined with local students, entrepreneurs, and their mentors at a "brainstorming event" to kick- off the voting for the historic Pepsi "Refresh" Project. Advisory board member, Majora Carter, the president of the Major Carter Group and the founder of the Sustainable South Bronx project and was on hand to moderate the event.

The Pepsi Refresh Project is a groundbreaking effort to foster innovation in social good which will award more than $20 million this year to fund "great ideas" to improve America's communities - including up to $1.3 million per month to the ideas Americans select as the best in open online voting which begins for February now on www.refresheverything.com and continue each month though December.  

Pepsi will fund ideas that "move the world forward" in six categories: Health, Arts & Culture, Food & Shelter, The Planet, Neighborhoods, and Education.

The Refresh project is an evolution of the Refresh Everything initiative Pepsi launched in 2009, which showed the brand as a catalyst of optimism.

The first voting session ends on February 28 and the ideas that receive the top votes will be announced on Monday, March 1, 2010.

The Refresh Project, which began in mid-January, has exceeded expectations as the limit of monthly submissions was reached in less than seven days. Also notable is the fact that at least one idea was submitted from each state in the U.S. - Moore and Bacon have generated their own ideas for the Refresh Project as well.

Bacon vs. Moore: Six Degrees

Kevin Bacon and Demi Moore, are engaged in the Pepsi Refresh Celebrity Challenge on the various Refresh Everything ideas that they are supporting.

Bacon's idea is to supply thousands of people with a SixDegrees.Org "Good Card" - named for his charity - which can be used to support their favorite causes in the United States. In return, he's asking the card recipients to "pay it forward" by sending "Good Cards" to their family and friends. Bacon believes that, akin to the famous trivia game which bears his name ("Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon"), that we are all connected - some of us only by six degrees - and that every individual has more power and influence than they are aware of.  

Demi Moore is supporting "Girls Educational & Mentoring Services" aka GEMS - which helps young women who are victims of sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking to exit the commercial sex industry and develop to their full potential. The Refresh Everything grant would help outreach workers to rescue victims and help integrate them back into society as healthy, safe, productive individuals.

The public can vote on Demi and Kevin’s ideas for the Pepsi Refresh Celebrity Challenge at ww.facebook.com/pepsirefresh

Kyla Grogan has more for the CNN iReport