10 ideas from Australia, Italy, Netherlands and US – winners at 1st edition of Cannes Chimera

Cristina Blanaru Creativity, CSR

Cannes Lions and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced the first Cannes Chimera Gates Foundation grantees that will work to develop innovative approaches to changing the global conversation about the impact of development aid.

The grantees are part of the foundation’s Grand Challenges Explorations initiative that fosters innovation to overcome the most persistent challenges in global health and development.

The Cannes Chimera (made up of the 2011 Cannes Lions Grand Prix winners) will partner with each grantee and provide mentoring as they develop their winning ideas and prepare for a chance at $1 million US in additional funding from the Gates Foundation to execute their project.

This is an amazing initiative for anybody to put the power of a creatively inspired communications idea to good use and help others less fortunate (…) It’s also a unique chance to work with the Cannes Chimera – the best creative brand communicators in the world – and have the funding to see the idea put into action

Philip Thomas

CEO Cannes Lions .

The grant programme, “Aid is Working. Tell the World”, calls for creative ideas to help the public engage with the issues involved in overseas aid and understand that development investments are already paying off and saving lives. The ten new grantees, from Australia, Italy, The Netherlands and USA, were selected from more than 900 entries submitted from 85 countries. Each grantee will receive $100,000 US to develop their idea. A review panel comprised of experts from the Cannes Chimera, winners of the 2011 Cannes Lions Grand Prix, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, selected projects based solely on merit – applicants’ details are kept confidential.

We believe new thinking and creativity can help influence the way we address really tough problems (…) To change the way people look at development and to help share success stories, we have to do things differently. Thanks to our partnership with Cannes Chimera, people from around the world answered the call and channelled their innovative ideas to help with this challenge

Tom Scott

Director of Global Brand & Innovation Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The first cadre of “Aid is Working. Tell the World” grantees will gather at the Gates Foundation’s campus in Seattle mid-November, with representatives from Cannes Chimera and the Gates Foundation, to further develop their ideas. Grantees then have the opportunity to apply for additional funding of up to $1 million US to bring their idea to fruition. Select grantees will be invited to present at the Cannes Lions Festival in 2013.

Grant applications for a second round of “Aid is Working. Tell the World” are now being accepted through November 7, 2012. The current challenge calls for ideas in four specific submission categories:

  • Mobile: projects that will activate emerging mobile networks and engage cell phone users to build support in wealthy economies for development efforts where they are needed most.
  • Data: New analyses of existing data that can tell compelling stories about the impact development efforts are having around the world.
  • Young audiences: Projects that will increase youth awareness of global development challenges to help them become informed advocates for solving these important development problems.
  • The Progress of Development: Proposals that show the virtuous cycle of development efforts: how the beneficiaries of aid are becoming self-sufficient, and how countries that were previously received aid are now providing it to other nations.

The Grand Challenges Explorations program  is open to anyone from any discipline, from student to communications executive, and from any organisation – for-profit companies, universities, government agencies, and non-profit organisations. The initiative uses an agile, accelerated grant-making process with short two-page applications and no preliminary data required. Applications are submitted online, and winning grants are chosen approximately four months from the submission deadline.

Initial grants of $100,000 are awarded two times a year. Successful projects have the opportunity to receive a follow-on grant of up to $1 million.

Cannes Lions festival will hold its 60th edition in Cannes on June 16-22 2013 and is world’s leading celebration of creativity in communications. Founded in 1954, the Festival takes place every June in Cannes, France.

Grand Challenges Explorations fosters innovation in global health and development research. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has committed $100 million to encourage individuals worldwide to expand the pipeline of ideas to fight our greatest health and development challenges. The grant program is open to anyone from any discipline, from student to tenured
professor, and from any organization – colleges and universities, government laboratories, research institutions, non-profit organizations and for-profit companies. The initiative uses an agile, accelerated grant-making process with short two-page applications and no preliminary data required. Applications are submitted online, and winning grants are chosen approximately five months from the submission deadline. Initial grants of $100,000 are awarded two times a year. Successful projects have the opportunity to receive a follow-on grant of up to $1 million.

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.