Deadline: 14 January 2020
The Inter-American Development Bank Group together with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Solve has launched an Open Innovation Challenge that seeks to find the most innovative solutions that substantially reduce or eliminate single-use plastic and plastic waste in Latin America and the Caribbean.
To reduce or eliminate the production of single-use plastic and plastic waste in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Inter-American Development Bank is seeking innovative solutions that:
- Shift business models away from the use of plastics in packaging and transportation;
- Reduce single-use plastics and waste through promoting consumer behavior change and incentivizing re-use and recycling;
- Enable the public sector, especially municipalities, to pilot and implement new and innovative systems in their waste management systems.
Award Information
- Ten finalists will be invited to the IDB Annual Meeting in Barranquilla, Colombia in March 2020.
- The Challenge offers 60,000 USD in cash prizes, with a top prize of 30,000 USD. Additionally, the winning submissions could be considered for a pilot project financed by the IDB Group up to 250,000.00 USD subject to due diligence and internal approvals.
- Organizations shall appoint one representative to pitch during IDB Annual Meeting. The travel and accommodation expenses for the finalists will be covered by IDB.
Eligibility Criteria
The Rethink Plastics Challenge (“Challenge”) is open to contestants (“Contestant”) from member countries of the IDB and the Inter-American Investment Corporation (Argentina, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, France, Germany, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela). Contestants may be individuals or organizations. Contestants are responsible for compliance with legal requirements of their country.
- Individuals must be of at least 18 years of age at time of entry. Individuals may form teams and submit entries on behalf of teams. Individuals who join teams must meet the eligibility requirements for Individual Contestants.
- Organizations must be legally established entities in their respective countries.
- Staff, contractors and vendors of the IDB Group, the members of the Judging Panel or any company or individual involved with the design, production, execution or distribution of the Challenge and their immediate family members (spouse, parents and step-parents, siblings and step-siblings, and children and step-children, aunt, uncle, niece and nephew) are not eligible to join the Challenge.
Judging Criteria
Solutions to the Rethink Plastics Challenge will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
- Alignment: The solution addresses the challenge that has been set forth and has been deployed or there are plans to deploy in Latin America and the Caribbean according to IDB Group’s purpose and mandates.
- Potential for Impact: The planned solution implementation has the potential to impact lives and drive economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean, most of all among vulnerable and excluded populations.
- Scalability: The solution presents a clear path to be scaled to affect the lives of more people.
- Feasibility: Solution implementation is feasible, and the team has a plan for financial and technical sustainability.
- Innovative Approach: This is a new technology, a new application of technology, a new business model, or a new process for solving the Challenge, and the team clearly identifies its competitive advantages.
- Team Capability: The team is well prepared to develop the solution and has demonstrated it has the necessary skills and track record to test, improve, expand, or replicate expand the solution in Latin America and the Caribbean.
How to Apply
Interested applicants can apply online via the given website.
For more information, please visit https://solve.mit.edu/challenges/RethinkPlastics-en
