LEADERBOARD (Current Top 10)
Contest Details
What is this?
We want to hear what you have to say. At Africa Rural Connect, we believe that collaboration is the key to developing the best ideas for Africa. Add your experience and expertise to the insights of thousands of professionals, experts, and likeminded individuals and organizations the world. Together we can build and enhance project plans that could have a real-world impact in Sub-Saharan Africa.
How do I get involved in idea generation?
Post your idea. ARC is an interactive network; you can participate in a number of ways. If you have an idea for a project plan in rural Africa- post it! Members of the ARC community will support your plan by offering their expertise, pledging resources, and adding visibility of your project through endorsements.
You can do your part to help develop other plans as well, putting your skills to use in a variety of projects across the continent. Offer your challenges or solutions, small or large, creative or practical, and see what happens.
Get your friends and colleagues to join the ARC Community to support your idea and make it even better. The support of ARC community members could help you win a prize!
Keep checking the Leader Board above to find out what plans are getting the most attention from the Community.
What if I don't have an idea – but I like some of the others?
Anyone with a profile on the ARC community website can rate a post by clicking “Endorse this Idea,” if he/she thinks that the proposal merits it. Get your friends and colleagues to join the ARC Community to endorse your favorite idea and make it even better so that it wins a Round! Keep checking the Leader Board above to find out what plans are getting the most attention from the Community.
How does the contest work?
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There will be four two-month long rounds in the contest in 2010.The top 10 ideas in each round will become Round Winners.
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The judges will select the 2 best ideas based on how well the plans meet the selection criteria. These 2 winners will receive $1,000 each towards implementation.
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The First Round will run from March 15th- May 15th.
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The Second Round will run from May 1st- June 31st.
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The Third Round will run from July1st- August 31st.
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Fourth Round will run from September 1st- October 31st
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Winners will be announced within two weeks of the last day of each round.
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The top ten leaders of each round, as with all other participants, can continue to work on their plans until the Final Round of the Contest ends
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At the end of the fourth and final round, the competition will close and the panel of judges will select one Grand Prize Winner from all of the ideas posted on the site during the four rounds. This Grand Prize Winner will be selected by merit-based criteria and will receive $12,000 towards the implementation of the idea. We will announce the Grand Prize Winner in early December.
The ideas that garner the most collaboration and engagement with the ARC community will likely grow into the strongest plans- potentially winning prize money and receiving international exposure. So get involved and spread the word to the people you know who care about rural Africa!
Badges
The most active community members will receive badges on their profile to mark their contributions to the ARC community.
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Power Creator- This badge will appear on your profile if you add more than 10 ideas.
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Power Collaborator- This badge will appear on your profile if you remix more than 10 ideas.
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Round Winner- This badge will appear on your idea if it is one of the top 10 ideas at the end of a round.
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Prize Winner- This badge will appear on your idea if it is one of the two prize-winning ideas at the end of a round.
Prizes
The 2009 contest has ended. The 2010 contest will launch soon.
You can still use this space to post your ideas and collaborate with others.
Grand Prize: The 2009 Grand Prize winner has been selected by our Panel of Judges. The winner received $20,000 to help implement the winning plan. Please see our Updates page for details!
Judges
Carol Bellamy, President and CEO, World Learning
Ms. Bellamy has been Director of the Peace Corps, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and President and CEO of World Learning. She was also a fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala.
Wilber James, Managing General Partner, Rockport Capital
Mr. James currently manages Rockport Capital, a leading venture capital firm. He is also the director and former acting chairman of the African Wildlife Foundation, co-founder and director of Massachusetts General Hospital, Center for Regenerative Medicine Innovation Fund, and co-founder and member of the Defense Venture Catalyst Initiative. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kenya.
Angelique Kidjo, West African Singer, Songwriter and UNICEF International Goodwill Ambassador, Founder of the Batonga Foundation
Ms. Kidjo won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Album for “DJIN DJIN,” a tribute to her home country of Benin. She continues to travel the world as a UNICEF goodwill Ambassador and symbol of Africa, helping to raise awareness of a new UNICEF Program, Girls Education, which has been designed to help eliminate gender disparity in schools.
Bruce McNamer, President and CEO, TechnoServe
Mr. McNamer manages TechnoServe, a nonprofit business organization that provides business- and market-based solutions to alleviate poverty in developing countries. He also has worked as an investment banker at Morgan Stanley and as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company. Mr. McNamer was a White House Fellow and a Director at the National Economic Council from 1998-1999, and was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Paraguay.
