How to participate

Rules

Before you dive in, make sure to familiarize yourself with the rules and guidelines for nominations.

• All solutions must be submitted through the local National Expert
• All solutions must be submitted through the appropriate category
• Deadlines may vary locally depending on the National Expert
• All submissions must be market ready - no drafts, prototypes, demonstrations or unfinished projects
• All submissions must be digital solutions aligned with the UN SDGs
• If the majority of your team is under 26, consider applying to the Young Innovators Award instead
• Check out the Rules & Conditions for a more comprehensive guide

Contact the WSA team for questions

 

Benefits

The contest gives participants a chance to pitch their solution to a global network of national experts, building valuable connections in the process. The winners will get win the chance to join WSA for the WSA Global Congress. This will give them the chance to:

• • Connect with likeminded people including partners, investors, and fellow impact entrepreneurs
  • Join the knowledge society of thought leaders, innovators and stakeholders in a community that fosters collaboration over competition

• Access unique opportunities through WSA's global network
• Learn globally and act locally - get to know specialists solving similar problems to you, and transfer their learnings to your local ecosystem

Eligibility

Producers

• Any company, organisation or individual from all UN and UNESCO member states can be nominated.

Solutions

• WSA strictly restricts nominations to digital applications that provide a strong benefit for society and have a high local impact.
• Nominations for the WSA can contain mobile applications, SMS based products, webpages, databases, kiosk installations, wearables, devices, IoT etc. There is no limitation regarding the platforms or channels the projects work with.
• The projects can be max. 3 years old at the date of nomination or need to prove major updates/upgrades/innovation within the past 2 years.
• We do not accept ideas, drafts, demonstrations, or concepts; all submitted projects must be market-ready or already on the market.
• WSA evaluates and highlights the content, user value and local impact of digital solutions.

 

General guidelines

• Be concise and clear; avoid long sentences and technical jargon
• Applications must be in English, if you are a non-native speaker, we highly encourage using online translating tools such as DeepL
• Ensure the URL and email provided work
• Provide sufficient information for international jurors, including screenshots or presentations if your project isn't globally accessible
• Draft your application in a word document before copying it to the database
• Fill in all fields, even non-obligatory ones, to keep your application comprehensive

Learn more

Project information to be provided in your application:

• Solution and local context
• Competitors and unique aspects of your solution
• Impact measurement
• Team details
• Supporting digital technology
• Financing and business model
• Relevant UN Sustainable Goals