The USAID Global Development Lab invites the global research community to share bold and innovative solutions to stem the slaughter of the world’s wildlife. Wildlife trafficking is pushing many animals towards extinction, including species of elephants, rhinos, tigers, pangolins, turtles, and parrots. The crisis also has a human toll: in the last decade, more than 1,000 rangers have lost their lives protecting wildlife. Criminal networks that are increasingly involved in wildlife trafficking are more organized, sophisticated, and technologically advanced than ever before.
The Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge will reward innovative science and technology solutions that tackle specific wildlife trafficking issues. The Challenge comprises three stages of application: Concept Note, Prize Application, and Grand Prize Application. All applicants are required to first submit a short Concept Note from which a group of finalists will be invited to advance in the competition and submit a Prize Application.
The Challenge will select numerous winners from the Prize Application pool to receive a Prize of $10,000 in addition to promotional and networking opportunities and technical assistance to scale or accelerate their solutions. Prize winners will also have an opportunity to further compete for one of up to four Grand Prizes worth between $100,000 and $500,000. The Challenge will use Grand Prizes to target and invest in the most promising solutions. The total number of Prize and Grand Prize winners will depend on the quality of applications.
Your solutions can help:
- Detect transit routes
- Strengthen forensic evidence
- Reduce consumer demand
- Tackle corruption
contact:
Kerry Reeves
Deputy Environment Team Leader
Science and Technology Adviser
Regional Environment, Education and Democracy Office
USAID/Southern Africa
Tel: (+27) 012 452 2266
Cel: (+27) 0838826799
More information: https://wildlifecrimetech.org/index
