Competition is open for Global Apps to Empower and Educate Women Everywhere

I was delighted to be asked to judge a competition of apps that are being created to empower all young women in leadership and mentorship, jobs and entrepreneurship, education and conflict resolution.  

The challenge is being brought to us by Agnite Education, American Digital University, Applications for Good, BluWorld, Datawind, Equal Access International and the United Nations Office for Partnerships.  

Datawind CEO Suneet Tuli said, “Our goal is to feature apps on our tablets for young women in developing countries who seek to become leaders in their communities; to be mentored by some of the best leaders currently in business and government; to learn how to start businesses; find meaningful work; and gain a practical skill that can improve not only her life but the lives of those in her community.”

“Our challenge is to leverage the power of technology and bridge the digital divide,” UN Secretary General Moon said. “We need to do more to help all children and young people make the most of the opportunities provided by information and communications technology – especially all those who are still unconnected from the digital revolution,” UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon noted.

The competition will be held from now through April 30^th, 2013 with the winners announced in July 2013.  The judging criteria is based on 

• Relevance: Value addition to a young woman’s life
• Usability: Ease of Use/Intuitiveness/User Experience
• Innovation/Creativity: Originality of thought and execution
• Ability to Solve Problem Statement: How well the submission addresses the problem about informing, educating and empowering women.  

There are a few categories for each of the criteria.  

Leadership – Help young women to understand outstanding leadership traits, gain confidence, become leaders in their communities, run for political office, or coalesce others to aid and support others.

Mentorship – How can more experienced or more knowledgeable men and women help to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable young woman? True mentoring is more than just answering occasional questions or providing ad hoc help. It is also about ongoing relationships that provide learning, dialog, and challenges.

Jobs – There's got to be a better way to match jobs with women who are ready, willing and able to work. Create that app!

Entrepreneurship – Entrepreneurship has been defined as "one who undertakes innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods". In other words, let's help women start businesses!

Education – Open, low-cost and no-cost education, training, certification and skills development is ubiquitous on the Internet. Create an app that can educate a young woman in a particular field or an app that will help women create greater peace, prosperity and cultural understanding in her life and community.

Out of the Box – Perhaps you have a great app submission that just doesn’t fit these categories. Tell us!

Submit your app here. 

• The top 5 applications submitted will be featured on the Ubislate series of tablet devices and at the BluWorld portal, and promoted through a global alliance of technology firms, foundations and United Nations organizations.
• Cash prizes of US$2,500 will be awarded to the winning app in each of the four categories (Leadership/Mentorship; Conflict Resolution; Education/Out of the Box; Entrepreneurship/Jobs).