Introduction

Applications are now open for the World Summit Awards (WSA) Young Innovators Contest.

The WSA Young Innovators is a special acknowledgment of young people below the age of 26, who use Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to take action on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). This contest is organized by the International Center for New Media (ICNM).

Moreover, The World Summit Award (WSA) concentrates on digital applications with a strong impact on society in 8 different WSA categories, reflecting the UN SDGs. Therefore, if you are one of those youths and meet the criteria of the award, do apply to be a WSA Young Innovator.

Details

Application deadline: 30 September 2020

Organizer: International Center for New Media (ICNM)

Number of Awards: 40

Announcement of shortlisted Products: November 2020

Announcement of WSA Winners & Young Innovators: End of December 2020

Winners Award Ceremony and Selection of the WSA World Champions:  WSA Global Congress, March 2021

Award Them: Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs)

Award Benefits

The World Summit Awards are a non-monetary award system focusing on sustainable knowledge transfer through a global network. This means that winners not only benefit from a one-time financial reward but a lifelong partnership and incorporation.

Benefits for Winners of the World Summit Awards

•  Invitation to the WSA Global Congress
• Joining a network of internationally renowned digital content developers
• Access to the WSA community of global experts and industry leaders in more than 180 countries
• Exchange opportunity with world-class sponsors and partners of the WSA community
• Workshops specially designed for the winners’ needs.
• A video clip highlighting the winners’ projects
• Special placement on WSA website, YouTube channel and social media featuring
• And, long-term coverage within WSA editorial networks.

Benefits for the Nominees

• More coverage on their products in their national media
• World Summit Award nominee seal to use on websites, social media channels, and publications
• Opportunity to receive feedback from the jurors.
• Nomination for the World Summit Award means to be the best in the respective country in one of our eight categories.

WHO CAN APPLY?

• WSA is open for any company, organization, or individual in any UN and UNESCO member state.
• The contribution to the WSA Young Innovators is confined to any entrepreneur, company, student group, or project team, where at least one of the founding members and the majority of the team is below the age of 26 from any of the UN and UNESCO member states.

The WSA Young Innovators call is eligible for projects that:

• Are developed by young innovators younger than 26
• Provide digital solutions to any of the UN Sustainable Development Goals
• Offer content-rich digital solutions to the user including people, businesses, and organizations.
• Have a strong digital element: websites, apps, SMS based solutions, IoT, wearables, etc.
• are market-ready or already introduced to the market – ideas, drafts, or concepts at initial stages are ineligible
• Can be max. 2 years old by the time of nomination.

More information:

• Participation in the WSA is possible by being nominated by a WSA national expert from the applicant’s respective country.
• The WSA national experts select in a democratic process which submissions will be nominated for each respective WSA category.
• Deadlines for national submission of application for WSA may differ local, and WSA national experts are entitled to set independent national deadlines for application to WSA.

Evaluation criteria

The judges will evaluate applications or projects on the basis of the following criteria:

1. Technical Criteria

• CONTENT | Quality, and exhaustiveness
• FUNCTIONALITY | comfortable use, user experience, suitable interactivity
• DESIGN | Navigation/orientation and visual attractiveness
• TECHNOLOGY | use contemporary technology and quality of technical realization
• INNOVATION | Originality, and novelty to targeted users, Business model society and market

2. Strategic Criteria – social

• IMPACT | Local Impact / Impact on community & society
• VALUE | Addressing UN SDGs, lessening digital divide, global importance and  potential

Selection process

The WSA has a rigorously democratic and transparent system to ensure a fair and inclusive selection of universal digital innovation. Also, once applicants submit a project for the World Summit Awards, it has to go through several stages of evaluation and assessment. In doing so, an assembled international jury process will select winners from among the submissions in each category.

Only submitted and fully completed in applications will be considered by the WSA Jury.

HOW TO APPLY

In applying for the WSA Award, you need to consider the following steps.

• Registration, including submitting project information, must be done online via the WSA contest database in coordination with the communicated international WSA call deadline.
• Applicants shall complete their application following their nomination by their related national experts, while some countries also offer applications through a national contest.
• Upon nomination, you will receive an email confirming your nomination and inviting you to complete your application.
• After submitting your application, you are officially enrolled in the global WSA.

Apply now

For more details about the award, go through the WSA Young Innovators Award.

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