News TED Prize

How to enter your idea in the City 2.0 challenge

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This year’s TED Prize is the first ever given to an idea: The City 2.0. And instead of giving the $100,000 prize to one big idea, it’s divided in 10 blocks of $10,000 each, to help seed 10 projects in cities around the world. Onstage right now at TEDxSummit, five TEDx organizers are sharing their bids for the first of these grants (watch the Twitter feed for details).

UPDATE: And the first winner is:

[tweet https://twitter.com/TEDNews/status/192149987898048512%5D

You can pitch for one of these prizes too! Applications are open through May 15, and you can access rules and application form here: http://j.mp/city2award

What makes a City 2.0 project? Read the full guidelines and judging criteria below.

GUIDELINES
1. Projects should be based on creative ideas that can be replicated and spread to other cities.
2. A group of people, rather than just an individual, must be committed to the project. We encourage cross-disciplinary teams and will favor organizing groups that actively engage residents in their work.
3. Unproven concepts with a strong action plan are welcome. Our goal is to help people experiment and think big.
4. Projects that have already begun are eligible for the award. In fact, evidence of progress already made is a benefit.
5. All projects, whether successful or not, will need to report back to us on their progress and findings. Details will be provided to winners directly.
6. All projects must fit reasonably under one of the City 2.0 categories presented in the wish: inclusive, innovative, healthy, thriving, or soulful. You can learn more about what type of projects fit under these categories by looking at the ideas page (and using the filter) on thecity2.org.

JUDGING CRITERIA
1. Is the project feasible given the organizing group and the plan? Bold ideas grounded in practical understanding are best.
2. Will the $10,000 make a significant contribution to kickstarting the project? It need not be the complete budget but it should not be too small of a percentage of the initial needs.
3. Is the concept, or key insights derived from it, replicable? What can be learned from this project that can be applied to other cities? Projects that help other people think differently about their own city, its challenges and possibilities, are best.
4. How does the outcome of the project impact the bigger vision of The City 2.0?

The City 2.0 is about connecting short-term action to long-term vision. A winning project is a possible solution or lesson in solving a larger challenge or reaching a larger goal. Please email info@thecity2.org with any questions.