Deadline: 19 February 2017
The UNESCO, in partnership with Pearson, is seeking innovative and existing digital solutions to help include low-skilled, low-literate youth and adults in the information society and improve their livelihoods.
If selected, applicant’s live digital solution will be profiled as a case study in the Initiative for Literacy: Improved Livelihoods in a Digital World in 2017. The cases will benefit from high visibility on the UNESCO website, form part of project presentations at international conferences and inform the future work of UNESCO.
The study is looking beyond the traditional education lens to link the use of inclusive digital solutions with improved livelihoods and lifelong learning.
Focus Areas
- e-Health services;
- e-Agricultural extension services;
- e-Administration/e-government services;
- e-Services for migrant people (for example, those fleeing conflict and crisis);
- e-Green/environmental services (for example, creating more sustainable consumption and production patterns).
Eligibility Criteria
- Anyone – NGOs, corporates, start-ups, government and even individuals
- Anywhere – Digital solutions can come from any country, regardless of income level. Low skills and low literacy levels are not just issues in developing countries: the European Commission notes that in Europe an estimated 20 per cent of adults lack the literacy skills they need to function fully in a modern society.
- Any interactive digital solutions will be considered: from low-end dumb phones to high-end tech such as Virtual Reality. There is no restriction on the range of interactive ICTs, in fact a mix showing the range of possibilities is desired.
- Digital solutions should be live, active for at least one year and replicable, with plans for future growth. In other words, projects that are no longer active will not be considered.
- Solutions that have been well documented by UNESCO before will not be considered in the final selection.
Guiding Principles of Final Selection
- Diversity: In selecting the case studies we will seek, where possible, diversity and balance — in terms of geography, income level of country, technology used, target audience, focus areas, amongst other factors.
- Representation: The project will select only fifteen case studies so not all regions and countries may be represented. Instead, the solutions should be illustrative of the diversity of ways in which inclusive ICTs can support and serve low-skilled and low-literate youth and adults.
How to Apply
Applicants can apply via given website.
For more information, please visit UNESCO-Pearson Initiative for Literacy.