Facebook Internet-based Solution Innovation Challenge ( $150,000 Prize)

Description:

The Internet.org Innovation Challenge in Africa supports Internet.org’s vision of a connected world. To this end, the goal of the Challenge is to recognize individuals and organizations that are working on internet-based solutions
to promote education and economic empowerment in countries throughout Africa.

The Challenge will encourage the development of apps, websites and online services that provide real value for people under the following pillars:

1. Learning/Education: Apps, websites or online services that make use of technology to inspire and deliver learning
2. Economic Empowerment: Apps, websites or online services that help to advance the economic strength and ability of communities

Eligibility/Considerations:

• Individuals and organizations around the world are eligible to participate so long as their applications, websites or services are designed to meet the needs of the above mentioned categories. (Note: Residents of countries where the United States has trade restrictions will not be eligible. See the “Rules” section above for details.)
• Your app, website, or service can be in any language; you are encouraged to provide local and multilingual support. However, your application and all supporting materials must be in English.
• Your app, website or service must be in a working state. The panel cannot accept prototypes. If your submission is not yet publicly available, be sure to include the timeline for public launch as part of your entry.
• You may develop your app, website or service on any platform, so long as it works on a mobile device. Keep in mind that the platform you choose will affect your application’s potential reach, which is a consideration in the judging process. In order to maximize your potential reach, consider widely accessible platforms like mobile web and Android.

Selection Criteria:

Entries will be judged based on innovation, impact, scalability and launch-readiness.

1. Innovation: How original, groundbreaking or creative is the app, website or service?
2. Impact: Will the app, website or service impact numerous lives in meaningful ways?
3. Scalability: Does the app, website or service scale technically? What percentage of the designated population will it reach? Is the content localized? Is multilingual support available?
4. Launch-readiness: How soon will the app, website or service be publicly available, beyond prototypes and limited trials, if it isn’t already? If it’s already publicly available, how stable and consistent is its performance?

Selection of winners will take place at the judges’ sole discretion.

Prize(s)

• One Innovation Challenge Award prize in the amount of $150,000 USD will be presented to the app, website or service that the judges determine best meets the needs of each of the two categories: Learning/Education and Economic Empowerment (2 awards total). Each of the Innovation Challenge Award winners will also be eligible to receive more than $60,000 USD in tools and services from FbStart, a Facebook program designed to help early stage mobile startups build and grow their apps.
• In addition, two Impact Award prizes in the amount of $50,000 USD will be presented to two apps, websites or services designed for each of the two pillars (4 awards total).

Notification:

Winners will be contacted by email in September 2016. Due to the volume of submissions anticipated, only winners will be notified once selection has taken place.

Submission deadline: May 1, 2016

Visit the official website to apply

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King Baudouin African Development Award 2016/2017 (€200,000 Prize)

Description:

The 2016-2017 call for nominations for the King Baudouin African Development Prize is open.
The King Baudouin African Development Prize rewards outstanding contributions of individuals or organizations in the development field in Africa. 


The Prize spotlights innovative initiatives which improve quality-of-life and empower local communities to take development into their own hands. 

Prizes/Benefits:

€200,000 Prize- non-repayable financial support

Who qualifies as a candidate? 

-The candidate must be either an individual or an organization

-Several individuals or organizations that are not structurally linked cannot be presented as one single candidacy.

-A former Prize winner may not be submitted a second time as a candidate. If a candidate was not withheld, it may however be submitted again for a next Prize.

-The prize will be awarded to Africans or organizations which are founded and led by Africans

Selection Criteria:

*Does the candidate have concrete realizations under his belt?

*Are they innovative and exemplary?

*Are they capable of being duplicated elsewhere on the continent?

*Is there a long-term vision?

*Is the financial management healthy and transparent?

*Are the initiatives embedded at local level?

*Do they take into account the gender perspective?

*Are the initiatives directed at all actors of society?

Who can submit a candidacy?

The submission of a candidate’s file may only be undertaken by a qualified nominator. The selection committee will not consider applications by individuals who are applying for the Prize themselves or for an organization within which they are active.

How to submit a candidacy?

To submit a candidacy you have to use the electronic form.

Selection Process:

The King Baudouin Foundation’s Board of Governors selects the laureate on the basis of a report drawn up by an independent selection committee.
The selection committee is comprised of 14 members in total; under 1 chairperson.

Nomination deadline: March 15th, 2016

Visit the official study page for more information and enrollment

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World Bank Blog4Dev Contest, 2016 (Fully Paid Trip to Washington, D.C USA)

Description:

If you are a Kenyan, Rwandan or Ugandan citizen between the ages of 18-28 years old and currently living in your home country, it’s your turn to have your say.


The World Bank wants to hear your ideas for how to boost opportunities for youth in your home country. Enter the #Blog4Dev contest, and you could win a trip to Washington, D.C. in April 2016!

Eligibility:

-Be a Kenyan, Rwandese or Ugandan aged 18-28 years

-Must be residing in your home country

-Current World Bank Group staff members, their family members and consultants are not eligible

Nationality(ies): Only citizens of  Kenyan, Rwandan or Ugandan are eligible.

Requirements/T&C:

*Submissions must be original and well-written

*Submission deadline is Jan 31, 2016. Late submissions will be disqualified automatically

*The blog post length should be at most 500 words. Longer entries will be disqualified.

*Entries will be accepted only in English.

*Only one submission per entrant will be allowed

*The World Bank Group reserves the right to research and verify the eligibility of any entrants, and the decision of the World Bank Group shall be final

*By entering the contest, participants agree to release the World Bank Group from any claims based on the contest, and grant the World Bank Group all rights to their entry, including consent to publish their entered blog post on its website and social media channels.

*Failure to comply with these rules may result in disqualification from the competition. Bloggers agree to comply with and be bound by the decisions of the World Bank Group, which are final and binding on all matters pertaining to this competition.

*By entering the contest, participants agree that they release the World Bank Group from any claims based on the contest, and grant the World Bank Group all rights to their entry, including, for example, granting permission to publish their entered blog post on its website and social media.

*Failure to comply with these rules may result in disqualification from the competition. Bloggers agree to comply with and be bound by the decisions of the World Bank Group, which are final and binding on all matters pertaining to this competition.

Selection Process:

A panel of expert judges from inside and outside the World Bank Group will review all the entries, select the top ten in each country, conduct interviews and there after select the winners.

Prizes/Benefits:

An all-expense paid trip to Washington DC to attend the World Bank Group-IMF Spring Meetings in April 2016.

The top five entries from each country will be published on the WBG’s Nasikiliza blog page, and also promoted on World Bank social media channels between April – May 2016. These will be credited to the respective bloggers.

How to apply:

Submit your entry here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/QQDBFG2

Submission deadline: Jan 31, 2016.

Visit the official application page for more information and application

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Call for Projects: UNESCO World Heritage Volunteers, 2016

Description:

The World Heritage Centre (WHC) is pleased to announce the Call for Projects for the World Heritage Volunteers (WHV) Campaign 2016.


 In the framework of the UNESCO World Heritage Education Programme, the Initiative is led by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) in collaboration with the Co-ordinating Committee for International Voluntary Service (CCIVS), European Heritage Volunteers (as a branch of Open Houses) and Better World.

About the Project:

The WHV 2016 shall aim to raise awareness of young people, volunteers and local communities, about World Heritage related to sustainable development and biodiversity, integrating non-formal education tools on heritage preservation and conservation. For more information, please consider the Call for Projects document at this website.

Who can participate in this campaign?

Youth organisations that want to sensitise young people to the value of World Heritage sites, NGOs and institutions including public authorities that wish to organise an action camp to preserve and promote a World Heritage site with young national and international volunteers.

How to apply for this campaign? 

All  interested organisations and institutions are kindly invited to join the Initiative. In order to get involved in or renew their commitment to the protection and preservation of World Heritage through voluntary action and non-formal education, please fill in the on-line application as follows: form.jotformeu.com/52584264992366

Application deadline: 3 January 2016 at midnight (Paris Time).

Visit the official application page for more information and application

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2016 UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence ($100,000 Prize)

Description: 

UNESCO invites governmental and non-governmental entities, civil society actors and individuals active in strengthening foundations for peace and tolerance to propose candidates for the 2016 UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence.


Its purpose is to reward individuals, institutions and other entities or non-governmental organizations that have made exceptional contributions and demonstrated leadership in the promotion of tolerance and non-violence.

About the Prize:

The Prize was established in 1995 on the occasion of the United Nations Year for Tolerance and the 125th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi. It was also the year when UNESCO Member States adopted the Declaration of Principles on Tolerance. The creation of the Prize has been inspired by the ideals of UNESCO’s Constitution that proclaims that “peace, if it is not to fail, must be founded on the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind”.

Prize(s)

Awarded every two years, on the occasion of the International Day for Tolerance (16 November), the Prize is marked by a ceremony and the winner is presented with the sum of US$ 100,000.

How to submit your nomination

Nominations for the Prize should be submitted by filling out the nomination form in either English or French, no later than 29 February 2016, by post or by e-mail.

Additional materials (publications, video, audio and other teaching materials, etc.) may be attached to the nomination form.

Download the Nomination Form
in English | in French [PDF format]

in English | in French [Word format]

Send it, duly signed and stamped, to
Ms Golda El-Khoury
Secretary of the Prize
Social and Human Sciences Sector - UNESCO
7 Place de Fontenoy, 75007 Paris Cedex 15 FRANCE
Tel.: +33 1 45 68 45 47
E-mail: tolerance.prize(at)unesco.org

Visit the official application page for more information and application

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2016 UNO Eisaku Sato Essay Contest (¥750,000 Cash Prizes)

Description:

Submissions are now being accepted for the 32nd Eisaku Sato Essay Contest. This international contest is open to anyone who has an interest in both the United Nations University and the designated contest topic.

There are no restrictions as to age, nationality, or profession.

About Sponsor(s):

The Eisaku Sato Essay Contest was inaugurated in 1980, and has been held annually since 1990. It is organized by the Eisaku Sato Memorial Foundation for Cooperation with the United Nations University, which was established by the late Eisaku Sato, former Prime Minister of Japan, with the monetary award that he received with his 1974 Nobel Peace Prize.

About Essay:

The theme of the 2016 contest is:

“Considering the multiple and pressing challenges the United Nations faces today, what is the proper role of the Secretary-General as top international public servant? Discuss the required qualities and discipline of a Secretary-General in view of the practices and achievements of the successive Secretary-Generals.”

Essays may be written in either English (3,000–6,000 words) or Japanese (8,000–16,000 characters). All essays should be printed on A4-size paper and include an abstract of up to 450 words (English) or 1,200 characters (Japanese).

Submissions must be original and unpublished papers, and must include reference notes and a bibliography if other authors’ works are cited.

Prize(s):

A grand prize (¥500,000), a second prize (¥200,000) and several honorable mentions (¥50,000 each) will be awarded.

How to apply:

Persons living outside of Japan may submit their essays via email (to essay@satoeisaku.com) or by postal mail. (Please submit only once; do not send both email and postal mail.) If submitting by email, attach your cover sheet and essay as a single (ONE) document file, and use your full name as the document title.

Persons living in Japan should submit via postal mail. 

Please send your cover sheet and FOUR copies of your essay. Your package must be postmarked before midnight 31 March 2016, (There is no time limit on the delivery date; your submission will be accepted as long as it is postmarked on or before 31 March.)

Postal submissions should be addressed to:

The Eisaku Sato Essay Contest Secretariat

c/o United Nations University Library

5-53-70 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku

Tokyo 150-8925

Japan

Notification:

The winners will be notified by September 2016.

Application deadline: 31 March 2016.

Visit the official application page for more information andapplication

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UNESCO Global Design Contest For World Press Freedom Day 2016

 

Description:

On World Press Freedom Day on the 3 May 2016, UNESCO wants to put a spot light on the importance of freedom of information and the need to create a culture of openness and transparency by running a contest to create the “global look” for the visual identity of WPFD2016. 

The global thematic of the WPFD 2016 is “This Is Your Right! Access to Information and Fundamental Freedoms” 

UNESCO is looking for designs that encapsulate the idea of culture of openness and transparency. It should consider that everyone should have the rights to publicly held information (except in very specific cases) and that access to quality information has the potential to improve quality of life. 

About UNESCO:

UNESCO is the United Nations specialized agency with the mandate to protect freedom of expression: an essential condition for democracy, development and human dignity. UNESCO oft quoted famous founding words states that since wars begin in the minds of men and women, it is in the minds of men and women that the defences of peace must be constructed.

Eligibility:

The contest is open to all interested designers.

Requirements:

*UNESCO is looking for designs that encapsulate the idea of culture of openness and transparency.

*It should consider that everyone should have the rights to publicly held information (except in very specific cases) and that access to quality information has the potential to improve quality of life. 

Note:

The winning design must be adaptable to different formats including for usage on UNESCO website banner, social media networks, standing banner (roll-up banner), A3-ratio print poster, A4-size booklet, conference badges, and interview backdrop. It should also factor in that the final design will be made in the six official languages of UNESCO (English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, and Russian)

Technical note:

All design must be in vector format and be submitted to UNESCO in A4-size (portrait)

Once selected, the winning designer must be able to work with UNESCO to adapt the winning design into various formats including UNESCO website banner, social media networks, standing banner (roll-up banner), A3-ratio print poster, A4-size booklet, conference badges, and interview backdrop.

Prize:

*Winner of the competition will be remunerated to create the “global look” for World Press Freedom Day 2016 for print and online uses.

*Honourable mention for the top 19 submissions. Selected submissions will be featured on UNESCO’s dedicated website for the Day.

How to apply:

Submit your design to wpfd2016@unesco.org

Submission deadline: 20 November 2015

Visit the official UNESCO website for more information.

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