Deadline: 11-May-21
Applications are now open for the 2021 HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program to inspire, support and launch innovative ideas and actions to help address some of the most pressing environmental and conservation challenges currently facing our planet.
Taronga Conservation Society Australia is calling on innovators, thought leaders, disruptors, developers, passionate individuals and everyone in between to help develop and implement brilliant ideas for the planet.
HATCH is a 14-week accelerator program designed to help you develop your brilliant idea into a not-for-profit or social enterprise venture that has a positive impact on the environment. The program will involve two immersive events, weekly online workshops and a final pitch event.
HATCH program inclusions
- The opportunity to receive up to $50,000 to bring your brilliant idea to life
- $2,000 seed funding for each team participating in the program (at zero equity)
- A blended approach of face to face workshops (subject to COVID-19 restrictions), online sessions and digital modules to provide you with the knowledge to develop your initiative
- Expert learning, guidance and support from mentors and subject matter experts including Taronga experts, industry professionals, and not-for-profit and social enterprise leaders
Your brilliant idea is…
- Targeted to address a key conservation or environmental challenge
- An innovative approach to address the issue you’re targeting
- Designed to make a positive impact on the natural environment
- Aligned to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Taronga’s 360 degree approach to conservation (see below)
- A concept, pre-launch or early stage venture – you bring the concept, they will help you to assess, test and validate it
- Is established as, or plans to develop into, a not-for-profit or social enterprise organisation
- Has potential to scale up for ever greater impact over time
Taronga’s 360 degree approach to conservation
At Taronga they recognise that to achieve successful conservation of species they must also consider and support the habitat in which the species live, and the communities that interact with the species and habitat. Below are some examples of activities that Taronga undertakes under each area that may help you to consider how your initiative aligns to these areas.
- Wildlife
- Monitoring of wild populations
- Breed for release programs
- Rescue and rehabilitation of injured native Wildlife
- Research and development of suitable nutrition
- Habitat
- Habitat restoration, e.g. tree planting for Regent Honeyeaters
- Ensuring suitable habitat for native species within two Zoo grounds
- Researching and monitoring habitat use
- Communities
- Guest, student and community education programs
- Tools to enable the public to protect wildlife, e.g. the Wildlife Witness app
- Working with local communities to address challenges and be self-sufficient, e.g. Beads for Wildlife
Eligibility Criteria
- Open to Australian citizens and permanent residents only
- All applicants must be 18 years and over
- Teams can be a maximum of 4 people per team; individual applicants are welcome
- Initiatives must align to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to Taronga’s 360 degree approach to conservation
- Initiatives must be delivered in Australia to benefit/support the Australian environment
- Not for profit and social enterprise initiatives are welcomed; for profit initiatives are not eligible for this program
- If applying as an organisation, the organisation will likely have an annual revenue of less than $150,000
- All participants must comply with the Terms and Conditions associated with the HATCH Program
- All participants must comply with Taronga’s Code of Conduct
For more information, visit https://taronga.org.au/conservation-and-science/act-for-the-wild/hatch#hatchprogram2021dates
