Deadline: 15 May 2020
The U.S. Consulate General, Public Affairs Section in Kolkata (PAS Kolkata) is soliciting proposals for a program entitled “Hackathon for Applicable Solutions to mitigate Air Pollution”.
This funding opportunity seeks to support a two-day hackathon in 2020 for technocrats to draw upon existing expertise and data to develop action able solutions to Kolkata’s air quality problems. Solutions will be shared with the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB); the West Bengal Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change; academics; civil society partners; and students. The solutions will also be tested by various school communities to determine whether they have real-world value that could be implemented on a broader, more systematic basis in West Bengal.
Project Goal
Develop innovative ideas and solutions to address air pollution in Kolkata and to share those ideas with government and civil society partners for testing in real-world scenarios.
Project Objectives
The Air Quality Hackathon will bring together (20) teams, (3) participants per team, to brainstorm for two days and find practical solutions for improving air quality. The solutions will be shared and implemented to the extent possible during a follow-on campaign with school communities and NGO partners. Results of the implementation phase will be shared with government and civil society partners. A survey to measure the impact of the intervention program will be conducted after the project is over. The best results pre- and post-intervention will be documented and recognized in a final event culminating event.
PAS Kolkata has previously hosted two hackathons, one on combatting wildlife trafficking, and another on women’s safety. Both hackathons were successful in eliciting solutions, but those solutions are yet to be tested in the real world. For this project, PAS Kolkata have included follow-on activities that would include real-world testing and sharing for broader implementation.
Project Audience
Technocrats, academics, civil society, and students, aged 14-40, within the Kolkata consular district.
Project Deliverables
The applicant will conduct a survey to study the impact of the practical solutions within the larger community six months after the project concludes. The tools will be introduced by school communities and NGO partners. Participating high schools will likely offer credit to participating students (as they have done so in the past). Later, the study results will be made public and presented to policy makers consisting of leaders from the government, civil society, academia, and the private sector. The purpose of these results is to spur local leaders to implement actionable solutions on a broader scale, perhaps, as an example, in government schools.
Award Information
Maximum Award Amount: $120,000
Eligibility Criteria
- The following organizations are eligible to apply:
- Not-for-profit organizations
- Civil society/non-governmental organizations
- Think tanks
- Public and private educational institutions
- Individuals
- Public International Organizations and Governmental institutions
- Please choose organization nationality and type: International Not-for-Profit Organization.
- Organizations may sub-contract with other entities, but only one, non-profit, non-governmental entity can be the prime recipient of the award. When sub-contracting with other entities, the responsibilities of each entity must be clearly defined in the proposal.
- Cost sharing or matching is not required for this funding opportunity.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=325477
