Deadline: May 31, 2023
Applications are open for the IBM Sustainability Accelerator Water Cohort 2023. Through this new water cohort, the IBM Sustainability Accelerator will be supporting availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation. IBM believes that the power of science, technology, and innovation can help tackle environmental issues while helping communities address societal needs.
According to the World Bank, climate-related disasters and natural hazards push 26 million people into poverty each year, putting these populations in need of access to technical, financial, and institutional resources to be more resilient in responding to climate change. By uniting experts and technology, IBM wanted to find a way to scale and speed up solutions for helping underrepresented communities most vulnerable to environmental threats.
At IBM, they believe that technology has the potential to transform lives when directed with purpose. That’s why they’ve designed this program to have a bigger, long-term sustainable societal impact with the power of science and technologies such as hybrid cloud and AI.
Examples could include:
- AI foundation models and geospatial analytics to discover new insights
- AI for improved condition forecasting
- Asset management for customer/user support
- Cloud-based data security
- Internet of Things (IoT) solutions for operational and situational awareness
- Weather and climate forecasting to predict impacts on natural and built infrastructure
Benefits
- Throughout the experience, IBM provides organizations with credits for IBM Cloud and IBM Environmental Intelligence Suite Data APIs as well as technical mentorship to advance the initiative of focus within the Accelerator.
Eligibility
- The IBM Sustainability Accelerator is open to organizations globally.
- Submissions are welcome from nonprofit and government organizations.
Selection Process
IBM will select about five organizations each year – forming a cohort – to focus efforts on addressing a specific sustainability issue area. The selection process includes RFPs that will be public and open to proposals from any nonprofit or government organization (which are then reviewed through standard IBM Trust and Compliance processes). The organizations in the first IBM Sustainability Accelerator cohort were selected based on proposals solicited through an invitation-only pilot RFP that was shared with organizations already in IBM’s network and/or that of their partners.
Application
IBM is accepting proposals for the next Accelerator cohort now through May 31. The Accelerator will support each selected organization for up to two years.
For more information, visit IBM Sustainability Accelerator.
