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Background
We live in an era where the poor are disproportionately affected by threats like COVID-19, economic recession and climate change. Seeing this, we at Oxfam Hong Kong fight local and global poverty, and work with the community to take action and create a world without poverty.
We firmly believe that passionate grassroots initiatives – especially among the youth and start-ups – that are dedicated to serving the underprivileged have much to offer. Their expertise, creativity and drive have injected new life into the fight against poverty. With the Grant for Good initiative, Oxfam Hong Kong is now inviting those dedicated to the cause to come up with creative solutions to alleviate poverty and empower vulnerable groups in the community.
Teams that are selected to join the initiative may receive a grant of up to HK$200,000, as well as the opportunity to participate in a unique and practical social innovation and capacity building programme. The programme, jointly developed by Oxfam Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s Jockey Club Design Institute for Social Innovation (JCDISI), will support selected teams to implement their poverty-alleviation solutions within one year.
If you are interested in the programme, please read the application guidelines below and fill in the application form. We would love for you to work with us to reduce poverty, help change the lives of the underprivileged, and create a world without poverty.
Deadline for Application: 17 September 2021 (Friday) 23:59
Download PDF Version of This Guideline
Guidelines
1) Community Development/Community Care/Community Services: Community-based development projects that help improve the living conditions of the poor in Hong Kong, or help create more pro-poor community infrastructure
2) Social Design/Innovations: Innovations that address the needs of the poor and help them solve their daily problems, such as products, use of space, systems, etc.
3) Global Citizenship Education: Interactive and participatory education or training programmes that raise awareness and encourage people to learn about local or/and global poverty issues, and take action to improve the wellbeing of the poor.
| 1) Community Development/Community Care/Community Services 2) Social Design/Innovations | 3) Global Citizenship Education |
| ● Working poverty ● Helping underprivileged communities adapt to climate change ● Improving climate resilience of vulnerable groups ● Low-carbon development/poverty reduction ● Poverty among ethnic minorities ● Gender inequality and poverty among women ● Long-term care for the economically disadvantaged ● Poverty among the elderly ● The homeless, and people in substandard living conditions ● Migrant workers ● Economically disadvantaged families/children/youth ● Economically disadvantaged persons with disabilities Or other themes that address the needs of the poor in Hong Kong. | ● Climate change and poverty ● Global economic inequality ● Sustainable development and poverty eradication ● Gender inequality and poverty ● Poverty in Hong Kong ● Racial equality and multiculturalism ● Poverty among the elderly ● Ethical consumption, corporate social responsibility Or other themes that address local and/or global poverty. |
- Locally registered organisations (such as NGOs, businesses, and societies) that have a passion for poverty alleviation and have outstanding ideas, or teams sent by the above registered organisations (team members must be at least 18 years old), or teams representing these organisations.
- Recommended number of participants per team: 3 to 5.
- Preference will be given to teams that have more than half of their members aged between 18 and 35, or teams led by individuals aged 18 to 35.
- Preference will be given to teams with some experience in social innovation/community service/community projects, while teams with less experience but with outstanding preliminary proposals will also be considered.
- Each person can only join one team, and individuals cannot be a member of more than one team.
Teams selected during the first round of the evaluation will be eligible for the final evaluation phase if they are able to complete the capacity building programme – see point 6 (Application Process) and point 7 (Capacity Building Programme) – and submit a complete, feasible and impactful proposal at the end of their training. There is no limit to the number of finalists that will be chosen. All selected teams will have the opportunity to receive a grant of up to HKD200,000, and their proposed solution must be implemented within one year.
| Date | Phase | Instructions/Details |
| 2 August to 17 September 2021 | Applicants Form Teams; Submission of Preliminary Proposal | 1. Interested organisations may form a core team (recommended team size: 3-5 members). 2. Teams should complete the application form and preliminary proposal for Oxfam Hong Kong’s social innovation grant-making & capacity building programme. If you require assistance in preparing the preliminary proposal, please refer to the “Social Innovation for Poverty Alleviation Planning Toolkit” on the programme website. 3. Teams are to submit their completed application forms and preliminary proposals to Oxfam Hong Kong by the deadline: • Via email: grant4good@oxfam.org.hk (please use ‘Application for Grant for Good’ as the subject line) • By post: 17/F, China United Centre, 28 Marble Road, North Point, Hong Kong (please write ‘Application for Grant for Good’ on the envelope) |
Early Bird Proposal,
| 4. Teams are welcome to submit their preliminary proposals by late August and register for the online consultation sessions (which will be conducted in early September) when submitting their application forms. During the session, experts will provide suggestions for improvements based on the preliminary proposals submitted by the respective teams. Teams that submit their proposals by the early bird deadline will have the opportunity to resubmit a revised proposal before the application deadline. The online consultation sessions will be available on a first come, first served basis. | |
| Application Deadline | 5. Deadline: September 17, 2021 (Fri) 23:59 | |
| Mid-September to End of September 2021 | First Round of Judging | 6. Teams’ application forms, preliminary proposals and other information will be submitted to the judging panel for evaluation. 7. Oxfam Hong Kong may conduct interviews with teams over the phone or online, if necessary. |
| Early October 2021 | Shortlist Announcement | 8. Shortlisted teams will be announced. Oxfam Hong Kong will notify teams of their application results by email. |
| Mid-October to Early December 2021 | Training for Shortlisted Teams | 9. Shortlisted teams will participate in a series of 5 training sessions jointly developed by Oxfam Hong Kong and the JCDISI. Teams are to select 3 to 5 core members to represent them and attend the entire training programme. Experts will support shortlisted teams to create more impactful projects and complete a formal proposal, which will boost their chances of success at the final round of evaluation and winning the HK$200,000. |
| January 2022 | Final Round of Evaluation | 10. Shortlisted teams that have completed the training sessions, and have submitted an impactful and comprehensive proposal will move on to the final round of evaluation. |
| February to March 2022 | Projects Officially Launched | 11. The social innovation poverty alleviation projects from the teams that have passed the final round will be officially launched. |
To help shortlisted teams improve their project planning and execution skills, Oxfam Hong Kong will partner with the JCDISI to host five workshops on ‘Social Innovation for Poverty Alleviation’ through the capacity building programme. With the support of facilitators who have experience in social entrepreneurship or poverty reduction, shortlisted teams will develop a complete, feasible and impactful proposal, which will boost their chances of success at the final round of evaluation and winning the HK$200,000. All shortlisted teams that complete the training programme with full attendance and submit a strong proposal at the end will have the opportunity to move on to the final round. There is no limit to the number of finalists that will be selected.
Each shortlisted team must select a core group of 3 to 5 members to join the entire training programme. If the team is unable to join the entire programme, it will affect their chances of receiving the grant.
The training programme will be held on five Saturdays (AM and PM) between October and early December 2021; the tentative dates are: 16/10 (Saturday), 23/10 (Saturday), 13/11 (Saturday), 27/11 (Saturday), 11/12 (Saturday). The programme will be conducted in Cantonese, all learning materials will be in Chinese, while some content will be available in English.
● Designing Social Innovation for Poverty Alleviation: How to plan an impactful and pragmatic social innovation project?
● Discovering Community Needs: How to listen to the diverse and actual needs of the community?
● Meaningful Connections: Build a stronger network of contacts, meet and connect with people with a common vision.
● Refine Your Proposal: Transform your ideas into a complete and actionable proposal, with the support of professional facilitators.
February or March, 2022. (for a maximum period of one year)
The following criteria will be used to evaluate preliminary proposals.
● Social Impact (30%): Benefits the poor, empowers disadvantaged communities, encourages more people to learn about issues such as poverty and sustainability.
● Feasibility (30%): The preliminary proposal is complete, well-focused, clear in its objectives, and utilises resources effectively.
● Team Capability (30%): The team demonstrates a passion for poverty alleviation, is equipped with relevant experience and skills, shows openness and flexibility, is committed to participating in the entire training programme if shortlisted, etc.
● Creativity (10%): Solves problems with new perspectives, new approaches, new technology, and/or able to discover new and critical problems.
17 September 2021 (Friday) 23:59
We will be conducting a mini workshop and briefing session on the ‘Grant for Good’ initiative. We welcome interested applicants or groups to join us to learn more about the grant, the training programme. We will also give some pointers on the application process.
If any social innovation platforms/organisations/institutions are interested in introducing this project to their members or students, we can provide online or in-person workshops and briefings to organisations at no charge. Please feel free to contact us for an appointment if you are interested.
1. This initiative is not available to individuals or groups currently receiving funding from Oxfam Hong Kong.
2. Oxfam Hong Kong staff and their immediate family members are not eligible to participate in this initiative. Please inform us if the applicant is a family member of our programme staff.
3. Applicants must provide all personal information requested in the application form. Failure to provide all the required information may result in the application not being considered.
4. The personal data collected by Oxfam Hong Kong through the application form will be used for the following purposes:
● To process and evaluate applications
● The daily operation of the programme
● To facilitate announcements and publicity
● To follow up with the applicants
● To make disclosures as required by any laws and regulations
● To record and review the programme's overall effectiveness
● Any other activities related to the above purposes
Enquiries:
| 3120 5266 / carmen.lee@oxfam.org.hk Carmen Lee Oxfam Hong Kong, Senior Programme Officer | 3120 5146 / esther.ng@oxfam.org.hk Esther Ng Oxfam Hong Kong, Acting Assistant Education Manager |
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