20 January 2017

WFP is excited to announce its first ever external call for moonshot solutions to hunger. In collaboration with Silicon Valley-based incubator Singularity University, WFP invites start-ups and budding entrepreneurs to participate in the 2017 ‘Global Impact Challenge’.

The Global Impact Challenge is a significant and challenging call for high-impact ideas that will make a difference in the lives of millions of people. This year’s theme ‘Food in Emergencies’ challenges people from around the world to bring forward their BIG idea to tackle some of the world’s toughest problems using technology.

At WFP we believe that only the most disruptive technologies can bring us closer to the Zero Hunger goal at a faster pace.  This is why, for the 2017 Global Impact Challenge, Singularity University and WFP are joining forces to find exponential technologies and bold solutions that can be rapidly deployed during a food crisis.

How would you use technology to change the world?

Whether refugees are fleeing war, floods are washing away homes or drought is destroying farmland, hunger is often the first emergency. Catastrophes like earthquakes and conflict in vulnerable countries force the poor to abandon their homes and livelihoods, creating even more victims of hunger. As a consequence, WFP has to respond to more, and more complex, emergencies than ever before. To meet rising needs, humanitarian assistance needs to become more efficient and faster. Innovation and exponential technologies can revolutionise the food supply chain, to help vulnerable families meet their household food needs and decrease their dependency on external assistance.

A unique prize

To achieve this ambitious goal, the Global Impact Challenge will select moonshot solutions and support teams of innovators, or individuals, with the brightest ideas. Shortlisted winners will be invited to a bootcamp at the WFP Innovation Accelerator in Munich in April 2017. There they will have access to a world-class support structure, innovation gurus and WFP's unparalleled operational expertise to develop their promising ideas. One winning team will have the incredible opportunity to take part in a nine-week long Global Solutions Program hosted at SU’s campus at NASA Research Park in Mountain View, California, to boost their enterprise and high-impact solution.

 

To learn more and apply, click here.

Applications close 10 March 2017.