UNFPA East and Southern Africa, under the auspices of the Safeguard Young People Program has recently launched the ‘Climate HackLab’ project, which aims to empower young people and offer them the opportunity to be game-changers and drivers of a sustainable green future.
Through the UNFPA Climate HackLab project, young people are expected to come up with smart innovations that will help build resilience during times of adverse climate events in their communities.
The project solicits from young people aged between 14 and 35 creative and smart innovations or ideas that have the potential to be scaled up in East and Southern Africa.
Eligibility for participation
The innovation project is targeting young innovators, especially women and girls, who have innovative solutions that will accelerate efforts towards UNFPA’s goals of ending preventable maternal death, ending unmet need for family planning, and ending gender-based violence and harmful practices by 2030.
Potential areas for innovation
This exciting innovation project seeks to solicit proposal submissions addressing the impact of climate change on women, girls and young people in the following areas:
- Any idea or innovative solution that supports the empowerment and/or adaptive capacity of women, girls, young people or marginalized groups in hotspot areas affected by climate change.
- Any idea or innovative solution that promotes the involvement of young people, women, and marginalized groups in program design to help in the delivery of sexual and reproductive health and rights issues in climate change-affected areas.
- Any idea or innovative solution that promotes access to health services, including sexual and reproductive health services.
- Any idea or innovation that promotes the protection of women, girls, and young people from harmful practices such as child marriage, early marriage, and gender-based violence.
- Any idea or innovation that promotes protection systems to prevent and minimize acts of violence, such as sexual exploitation and gender-based violence in emergency settings.
- Any idea or innovation tools that promote knowledge of sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender and climate change issues.
Benefits of participation
Two winners will emerge from the UNFPA Climate HackLab 2021 challenge. Each winner will receive $10,000 in seed money and business support services.
The two winners will be matched with a business incubation/acceleration partner to support the business growth.
How to apply
Are you working around innovation in East or Southern Africa? You can go ahead to apply here for UNFPA Climate HackLab 2021. The deadline for application is Saturday, July 31, 2021.
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