The French American Charitable Trust (FACT) is pleased to announce the inaugural FACT Social Justice Awards.

FACT is committed to addressing the fundamental inequalities and injustices in our society by helping develop and sustain networks of community-based groups in the U.S. and France that educate, organize, and empower people to actively participate in developing public policies that directly affect their lives.

FACT Award Winners

A panel of judgest reviewed all the N2Y4 Featured Projects for their potential to address social justice issues. The five awardees* are...

• DatAgro: Increasing the Yield of Latin American Farming Cooperatives
• Digital Democracy's Handheld Human Rights
• FrontlineSMS:Medic - SMS for Medical Records and Mobile Lab Diagnostics
• The Extraordinaries -- On-demand crowdsourcing volunteerism via smartphones
• Slave Free

* In alphabetical order

How it Works

A panel of three judges designated by FACT will review all N2Y4 Featured Projects for their potential to address social justice issues. Five awardees will be announced on May 27, 2009, at the N2Y4 Mobile Conference. Â All FACT Social Justice Awardees will receive a cash award of $5,000 each and recognition at the N2Y4 Conference and on the conference Web site.

In addition to direct financial support through the FACT Social Justice Award, FACT is generously supporting fund development assistance for all N2Y4 Featured Projects.This assistance will connect the Projects with fundraising experts and guidance to help them move towards increased investments and greater community impact. Details regarding this assistance will be shared with the Featured Projects following the conference.

FAQ

Q: How do I apply for the FACT Social Justice Award?
A: To be considered for the FACT Social Justice Award, you need to be an N2Y4 Featured Project.

Q: What are the eligibility rules?

A: There are only (2):

• Projects must utilize social technology for the benefit of the social justice issues.
• Employees or contractors of FACT, TechSoup/NetSquared, or their immediate families are ineligible for this award.

Q: How can I learn more about FACT?
A: The French American Charitable Trust (FACT) was founded in 1989 by a French-American family to address fundamental inequalities and injustices in our society. FACT's mission is to help develop and sustain networks of community-based groups in the U.S. and France that educate, organize, and empower people to actively participate in developing public policies that directly affect their lives. Learn more by visiting their website: http://www.factservices.org/.

Judging Criteria

The following criteria will serve as guidelines for the panel of judges who will determine the Top Five from the 15 Featured Projects.

1. Technical feasibility

• Can the Project be implemented in a reasonably short amount of time?
• Is the proposed technical solution reasonable, achievable, and not overly complex?

2. Social Justice Potential

• Does this idea educate, organize, or empower people to address a particular social justice issue and does it have potential to make a significant contribution to work on the issue?
• Â Is a clear, specific target population articulated?

3. Value for money and likelihood of attracting outside investment and/or interest

• Is this an elegant ICT solution that provides scalable impact for relatively little cost? (For example: heavy infrastructure spending requirements are not desirable.)
• Will external partners (other human rights actors, venture capitalists, IT companies, etc.) be intrigued by this idea and want to invest in it? Will it provide adequate social or capital return on investment?

4. Innovation

• Does the Project provide an innovative solution? (The idea does not need to be brand new and never tested, but it should feel innovative and primed for success in the proposed environment.)

5. Replicability and Scalability

• Is the idea replicable and scalable in different communities, countries, or settings other than the one addressed in the description?