TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers Announces: Global Innovation Challenge to Solve Needs of People With Disabilities

TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers launches an international innovation competition – the Global Innovation Challenge, where makers, entrepreneurs, engineers, designers and social activists will develop technological solutions for people with disabilities. Winners will receive a cash prize and an opportunity to participate at the Expo 2020 Dubai. Registration is now open at www.tomchallenge.org

We invite everyone to participate in the competition!

Now is the time to build a team, identify a person’s unmet need and develop a solution for them. Join The GIC and make an impact!

For more information and to register visit the GIC website at www.tomchallenge.org or send an email to nadav@tomglobal.org

During the competition, teams from around the world will compete in one of two tracks: The Live Track, which encourages solutions to challenges of daily activities such eating, drinking, mobility or personal hygiene; and the Aspire Track, which will support solutions that allow people with disabilities to participate in arts, music, sports or other hobbies. Participating teams will gather online and in-person (COVID permitting) to conduct an accelerated development process of their products.

The TOM GIC will run from August 15 to October 31 with teams from five continents competing for a total of $18,000 in prize money and an opportunity to showcase their winning solutions at a closing event at the Expo 2020 Dubai in November.

All projects are developed in an “open source” format, so that the products can be manufactured anywhere. Each solution is designed to change the life of a single individual, while at the same time have the potential to impact many others. Collectively, TOM’s library of solutions is designed to improve the lives of millions of people around the world.

TOM is a global humanitarian venture, which was launched in Israel in 2014 and is now led from New York City, with an R&D center in Tel Aviv. TOM seeks to help millions of people by inspiring and supporting a global movement of communities that co-create open-source affordable solutions that are deposited in a library of free solutions available for anyone anywhere. TOM Solutions will be manufactured and distributed by 3D printers and makerspaces around the world. Since TOM’s inception, TOM Communities have led more than 100 Makeathons, which are marathons of innovation, in thirty countries in five continents.