CISCO is looking for stories about how people and organizations have used network services (mobile video and gaming, video conferencing, SMS, and social networking) to achieve different social or personal goals. The idea is to find stories not only about how technology developers are inventing things, but also about how different tools are enabling a range of things to happen and helping people to resolve challenges and achieve progress in their communities.
The application process is quite simple – just answer 5 questions through a form on the website to formulate the story. You can also download a form, fill it out, and then cut/paste into the form online if you are on slow internet. Contest and story submission information is here.
According to CISCO, by posting a story on how you’ve developed solutions, or used these services, you will be an inspiration to others and CISCO will help you promote your work through their social media channels thereby increasing your visibility. They hope that the stories help generate more conversation around the impact of Internet services.
They also hope the stories can help answer some questions around the benefits of increased connectivity. For example:
- How will growth in Internet access impact global economies?
- How can more communities and businesses take advantage of the significant growth in mobile services?
- What new opportunities can be created for those least connected?
- Why are there regional variations in adoption rates of certain networking services?
I know a lot of smaller local organizations – especially some great youth-led organizations – are doing some fantastic things, and a prize like this could help these organizations get to the next level. More information here.
The more academic folks out there may not want to submit stories, but you might be interested in the Virtual Network Indexing Forecast.
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