Terra Futura Team with its Cozato project and Santa Claus Foundation with its project of Santa Claus Scholarship portal have won this year’s round of Sector 3.0 Fund supporting creation of innovative solutions that are in line with #TechForGood idea.
The first installment of PLN 20, 000 and PLN 30, 000, respectively, the teams can use now to make prototypes of products they have finally designed in the incubation phase.
The Fund combines financial support and expertise necessary to implement the new technology. It invests in new products and tools that support digital transformation. It is addressed to those organizations which have ideas of new solutions responding to social needs and problems.
In November 2020, as many as 66 teams applied to the Fund. Eleven of them were invited to the incubation phase and they spent 14 weeks working hard on making prototypes of technology based also on solid business ground,” Sector 3.0 Program Director Dawid Szarański notes.
The subjects of the projects and technologies used in them were diverse. The incubation phase conducted by the “Sector 3.0” program coordinators Jacek Siadkowski, Monika Goszcz, and Katarzyna Słowik, was participated by best experts in research, making prototypes, business model developing, sale, fundraising and presenting: Iga Mościchowska (Witflow), Patrycja Walencik (Orange), Konrad Jarociński (Netguru), Katarzyna Królak-Wyszyńska (Innovatika), Wojciech Mróz (Ashoka), Piotr Łęgowski (Ringier Axel Springer Poland), Ewa Konczal (EVPA), Tadeusz Chełkowski (Patronite), and Adam Liwiński. Like it was a year ago, the whole comprehensive training and consultation series was successfully held online.
Finally, 8 teams competed for grants allowing them to continue with their projects. They presented their digital solutions in videos (more details available on Sector 3.0 website).
Cozato and Santa Claus Scholarship portal have won
Following the decision of committee composed of experts representing Polish-American Freedom Foundation, Orange, Netguru, Deloitte Digital and the Coalition for Polish Innovations, the winners will get their first installment of grants which they can use now to develop their ideas and make prototypes of tools they have invented. The grants amount to PLN 20 000 for Cozato and PLN 30, 000 for Santa Claus Scholarship portal.
“I’m very impressed because over 60 organizations applied to the Sector 3.0 Fund this year. I was impressed also with very broad range of their activities. And I’m very glad to be able to announce that this year we have two first prize winners,” Polish-American Freedom Foundation Program Officer Mirosław Czyżewski said during the Sector 3.0 Fund Finals.
Santa Claus Scholarship portal – Santa Claus Foundation
The tool for Santa Clause Scholarship program operation. The program counteracts educational exclusion of children coming from low income families. The platform shall support the foundation, schools and students in reliable servicing of awarded scholarships.
Cozato – Terra Futura
The platform for fast and comfortable exchange of things we don’t use anymore. It allows to give a new life to those things thus contributing to decreasing the excessive production of new goods and inhibiting general consumerism. It promotes the attitude of less waste and is a practical tool for exchanging things that can be useful for their new owners.
The Fund – what are the next steps?
The participants can obtain a total of PLN 100, 000. The first round will be decided in June 2021. It is then that the committee of experts will assess the results of the inventors’ activities and decide of subsequent installments of the grants. The committee members will pay special attention to the scope of change the tool can potentially make and how big the group of people the tool can be used by.
Over the following moths the winning teams will develop their products farther. The teams will be supported by mentors – experts in technology, product development, as well as marketing and sale. Under individual consultations the experts will support the winners in farther development of their solutions and prototypes. The group of mentors consists of over 30 people, including Piotr Łęgowski (Ringier Axel Springer Polska), Wiktoria Przybylska (Microsoft), Maciej Budkowski (explain.visually), and Karol Górnowicz (Skriware).
The Fund is a part of the “Sector 3.0” Program of Polish-American Freedom Foundation. The program is managed by Information Society Development Foundation.
