• Applications for the 2017 award are due September 1, 2017.
• The first annual US$ 3,000 NatureTech.Solutions award will be presented to a resident of an Eastern Caribbean island on or about 1 October 2017.
• The award is for an open-source innovation that improves the management of natural or cultural resources in a small island [or islands] of the Eastern Caribbean. Applications (e-mail preferred) are due to

Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands (CFVI),
PO Box 11790,
St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands 00801,
or
dbrown@cfvi.net

by close-of-business,  1 September 2017.

• The award will be made by CFVI on behalf of the Potter Fund for NatureTech.Solutions] as part of the legacy of Island Resources Foundation, which provided technical assistance to conservation activities and organizations in small islands while based in the US Virgin Islands from 1971 to 2016.
• For details about the application process, go to http://NatureTech.Solutions, sign up with the NatureTech e-mail list by writing to NatureTech@irf.org, or write to dbrown@cfvi.org.

Detailed Guidelines:

The NatureTech.Solutions award is for a technology (a reproducible application of knowledge for practical purposes) that can be used by private or public decision-makers in small islands of the Caribbean to make better decisions about the management of natural or cultural resources. An assumption is that this technology would be information-based, but there are many ancillary potential applications such as self-contained training modules, front-ends for existing resource databases, visualizations of existing data, and so forth.

Deadline for applications for the first NatureTech.Solutions award is Friday, September 1st, 2017. Unless otherwise agreed to by the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands, applications must be submitted in electronic form through the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands, at dbrown@cfvi.net, with “[NatureTech]” in the subject line.

Application Requirements:

• Small Island — The award application must be submitted by an individual or organization resident or based in a small island of the wider Caribbean region:
  • Smaller than 10,000 square kilometers and less than 1 million inhabitants;
  • Political status not relevant.
• Instructions — The submission must be in English or Spanish, and must include instructions that would enable a potential user to actually apply the technology.
• Open Source — The submission must include an operational version of the technology that is in the public domain — that is, it can be used and adapted by any potential user.
• Electronic Submission — May be in a document format, or multi-media, or an operating application for standard operating systems, such as Mac OS, Windows, iOS or Android.
• Due Date: — The Application should be emailed to the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands at dbrown@cfvi.net with [NatureTech] in the Subject line of the message, before close of business, 1 September 2017.

Elements of the Application:

Application Process — Applications, not to exceed four single-spaced typed pages, should include the following information:

• The Name of the Innovation being proposed for the award (e.g., “Property Record Ownership Method — PROM Barbuda”)
• Applicant Name, address, telephone number, email address (and point-of-contact if the application is an organization).
• A brief history of the innovation, highlighting the resource management need addressed by the innovation, and the applicant’s involvement in addressing that need.
• Description of who has been using the innovation for how long or how many iterations, what are the specific products from the innovation, and the resource management advantages from using the innovation.
• Current status of the innovation, including planned modifications or extensions, and adaptations for other places or organizations.
• Names, addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses of three people familiar with the innovation who can be contacted for additional information about the operation and effects of the innovation.

Supporting documentation in the form of access procedures or instructions or software implementing the innovation may be submitted, but should not exceed the equivalent of an additional ten (10) pages.  Contact CFVI if specialized support systems are required.

Virtues:

As in real life, virtues are not mandatory, but they are likely to have a positive effect on the decision of the Advisory Committee:

• Engagement with local organizations and agencies (and note that local agencies and non-profit/non-governmental organizations can be applicants themselves).
• User endorsements
• Clarity
• Brevity