The ACT Innovation Prize Challenge was announced at Design Indaba this year during Innocentive CEO Dwayne Spradlin’s presentation on the merits of prize incentivisation for innovation. With the prize purse of $80 000, it’s not a challenge to be scoffed at.

Innovation is a major leverage point with regard to designing a more sustainable economic paradigm. A leverage point that still needs some serious R&D if South Africa is to compete with developed countries on a global market scale. The Innovation Prize Challenge series has piqued the interest of the Rockefeller Foundation who plans to co-sponsor the prize with a South African sponsor. Although there are interested parties in the wings, nothing is set in stone and the opportunity of partnering with the foundation is still up for grabs.

The Innovation Prize Challenge is an opportunity for designers, technicians, batty professors and backyard inventors to try their hands at solving one of the most notoriously challenging issues in energisation – energy poverty. The prize criteria will favour more holistic and functional – and dare we say it – less gimmicky innovations that address sustainable energy poverty.

More information: www.africancarbontrust.org
E-mail: actprize [at] africancarbontrust [dot] org