Do you have a status of NGO and an idea of how to solve a certain social problem using ICT and? Then apply to Sector 3.0 Fund to get funding and mentor’s support for implementing your service or product. Deadline for applications with projects in line with #TechForGood idea is on November 3, 2024.
The Fund is a part of the “Sector 3.0” program of the Polish-American Freedom Foundation, managed by the Information Society Development Foundation. For years, the program has been supporting creation of new socially useful digital tools that are in line with #TechForGood idea.
#TechForGood is a very broad concept related to such areas as environment protection, equal opportunities, sustainable development or assistance to the disabled, as well as everyday operations of a civic organization. The necessary condition is the use of technologies to solve a given social problem.
“The Sector 3.0 Fund will select best tech projects responding to social challenges for the 12th time. It is important that such initiatives have a chance to develop, especially at the era of artificial intelligence fast development. With the Fund, we want to accelerate civic organization digitalization and facilitate their effective operation with the use of ICT,” Sector 3.0 Program Director Dr. Dawid Szarański explains.
What kind of support is offered by Sector 3.0 Fund?
Under the incubation process, which this year again will be held in hybrid form, the teams will take part in a three-month training and consulting program that will allow working on details of the idea, creation of a consistent initiative and launch of the digital service or product on the market. The process consists of the following stages: creation of users’ path and value offer, experimenting, creation of business model, drafting the product framing, intellectual property protection, communication and sale, and making a pitch.
During the incubation meeting, experts in various environments will support the participating teams with their expertise. In this year’s round of the Fund the group of Mentors includes: Paweł Nowak, Katarzyna Drożdżal Agata Nowak, Bartosz Narzelski (Wtem), Van Anh Dam (social enterprise educator), Aleksandra Maciejewicz (LAWMORE), Jakub Jedliński (Startup Hub Poland), Anna Bielak-Dworska (Stable Foundation), Sławomir Molenda (Roche), Anna Orzech (Láska nebeská) and Adam Liwiński (Seriatim Foundation).
“The Sector 3.0 Fund is a unique undertaking and in that context it is really important that using tools suitable for startups we are looking for innovative initiatives that can have a real social impact, and I believe that is the only such a program in our country,” Bartosz Borowiec of Deloitte Digital says.
The crowning of that three-month work is presentation of projects to the Experts of the Fund Committee by the participants, and the Committee’s decision on granting funds for the selected projects. The Committee is composed of: Mirosław Czyżewski of the Polish-American Freedom Foundation, Bartosz Borowiec of Deloitte Digital, Patrycja Walencik of Zendesk, Jacek Królikowski of the Information Society Development Foundation, and Dr Magdalena Andrejczuk of mBank. The winning teams can receive grants of up to PLN 150,000 for further development of their projects.
“After the incubation, the organizations will submit their applications for the Sector 3.0 Fund grants. The projects in the applications will be assessed by the Committee, which will select the best ones deserving to be further developed. Solutions shall serve the common good and help develop the civic organizations, but first of all they have to respond to the needs of those who they are addressed to,” says Mirosław Czyżewski, the Polish-American Freedom Foundation Program Officer and a member of Experts of the Fund Committee.
Who can apply?
Invited are authors of new social solutions. Sector 3.0 Fund is addressed to every organization that has an idea of a new technology in line with the #TechForGood idea but does not know how to start its implementation or does not have sufficient funds. The project team shall be composed of 2 to 5 members and have the status of an association or a foundation. Encouraged to apply are also mixed teams composed of representatives of organizations, companies or independent specialists in technology sector that cooperate in partnerships.
How to apply?
Team applications to this-year’s round of incubation process are to be submitted via form posted on Sector 3.0 Fund site by November 3, 2024. For more information, contact project coordinator Karolina Walecka.
Join the team of Sector 3.0 Fund Winners!
The team of former Fund winners includes, among the others, authors of the following products:
- Obieg [Circulation] (BRDA Foundation),
- ArchiveMaster (Pravda Association),
- Baza Historii Kobiet [Women’s stories base] by Women’s History Museum Foundation,
- Mam Głos [I have a say] by Euforis Artists Association,
- Dizajn na wynos [Take-away design]( Bochińscy Foundation),
- CoZaTo [What in exchange] (Terra Futura – a platform supporting barter trade),
- Portal stypendialny [Scholarship portal] (The Saint Nicholas Foundation),
- Pacjenci Pacjentom [Patients for patients]– virtual platform of patients’ support for patients suffering chronic or oncological diseases,
- Tu Możesz [ Here you can]– induction loop availability database for people with hearing aids,
- 2do2 – an application allowing to run and settle projects, suitable especially for civic organizations.
Partners of the Fund in 2024/2025 round
- Honorary Patronage: Kozminsky University
- Substantive Partner: WUD Silesia
- Media Patrons: Mam Startup, Startup Voice, ngo.pl
- Supporting Partners: Landingi.pl, LAW MORE, Social Movers Hub, Tech to the Rescue
