Welcome!
Sustainable Vision grants fund transformational education programs where breakthrough technologies are created and commercialized through entrepreneurial models for the benefit of people living in poverty in the US and abroad. Funds are awarded to US-based colleges and universities and can then be shared with partners (other universities, NGOs, etc.) in the US and abroad.

Focus areas include, but are not limited to, health, clean air and water, energy, nutrition, and shelter. The grants support enrichment and deepening of ongoing programs by building and strengthening interpersonal and inter-institutional networks, and by creating new initiatives within existing programs.

Successful Sustainable Vision proposals meet the following criteria:

• Technology: market-driven affordable technology innovations that meet basic human needs (such as medical devices, mobile phone software for income generation, energy alternatives, etc.)
• Entrepreneurship: economically sustainable business model(s) with proven customer and market needs instead of a philanthropic or aid model
• Commercial potential: programs that lead to the creation of economically sustainable social ventures (for profit and/or non- profit) with a business model that includes manufacturing, marketing, distribution, and repair (as applicable)
• Education: experiential curricula with measureable objectives and an emphasis on multidisciplinary teams (engineering, science, technology, social science, business, etc.)
• Partners: to support the project from the nonprofit, for profit and/or government sectors, including collaboration with customers
• Replicable and sustainable: models that can be replicated and programs that continue after the grant period ends
• Impact includes potential for:
  • widespread adoption across communities, regions, and/or nations, and potential for an impact on a global scale
  • affecting a significant number of people and having a real and measurable impact on the problem being addressed
  • improving the quality of life for people living in poverty
  • positive (or neutral) environmental impact

Scope of grants

• Sustainable Vision grants range in size from $10,000 to $50,000.
• The award period ranges from one to three years.
• Sustainable Vision grant recipients are required to attend a summit-style workshop in March at the NCIIA Annual Conference where they will share their work, learn about periodic program evaluation and follow-through, and define/refine an evaluation plan and developing, documenting, and disseminating transferable models.
• Sustainable Vision grant recipients are required to participate in an Advanced Invention to Venture (AI2V) workshop (or provide explanation of an equivalent experience) in order to develop a solid commercialization strategy. AI2V workshops are held around the country throughout the year. A small pool of scholarships are available for (NCIIA) funded teams without adequate travel funds.

Who may apply?
Tenured or tenure-track faculty and staff from NCIIA member colleges and universities may apply on behalf of collaborative teams involving representatives from education and industry. Collaborations with governmental and non-profit organizations are also encouraged. Universities, colleges, NGOs and other institutions outside the US may partner with a US college or university and fully participate in the grant; however, Sustainable Vision proposals must be submitted by a US college or university. Grants will be made only to the US college or university, which will manage activities and disbursement of funds to partners.

What will be funded?
Sustainable Vision grants support programs that apply technology entrepreneurship to address poverty and environmental degradation, and/or meet basic human needs such as clean air and water, nutrition, health care, and shelter. Preferred proposals address the proposal criteria and:

• Follow a collaborative and entrepreneurial, rather than an aid or donation model
• Generate entrepreneurial opportunities and define an economically sustainable business model
• Build upon existing relationships (e.g., historic collaborative or exchange programs between the applicant institution and an institution overseas)
• Establish measurable educational objectives
• Plan to engage beneficiaries of new technologies in their design and development
• Demonstrate sustainability after the end of the grant period
• Include documentation of market potential
• Examine environmental and social outcomes
• Apply technological innovation or innovative use of resources
• Show potential global impact
• Address the needs of people living in poverty

For examples of funded SV grants, please click here.  It may also be helpful to review our frequently asked questions page before beginning an application.

NCIIA requires Sustainable Vision grantees to participate in an Advanced Invention to Venture (AI2V) workshop (or provide an explanation of an equivalent experience) in order to develop a solid commercialization strategy. The workshop is followed by eight weeks of coaching.  There is a small pool of scholarships for teams that do not have adequate travel funds to participate. These funds are provided on a first come, first served basis.

How to apply
All proposals must be submitted to the NCIIA online (login). Create an account and login here. You may start, save, stop and return to the proposal before submitting.  Start early! The online application process has five steps and will require the following:

Step 1: basic contact information
Step 2: basic proposal information
Step 3: request verification
Step 4: upload required documents (including proposed budget) and other appendices
Step 5: submit

STEP ONE: Submit basic contact information

• Name of the institution you represent.
• Names and contact information of team members, including the Principal Investigator and the Administrative Contact.

Please note that résumés NO MORE THAN 3 pages each will be required as appendices for all team members, except the Administrative Contact.

Who can serve as my Administrative Contact?

The NCIIA defines the administrative contact as a grants administrator or fiscal officer authorized to commit the institution to the terms of the grant. Often, the AC works in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs or the Office of Contracts and Grants. The Principal Investigator and the Administrative Contact CANNOT be the same person.

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STEP TWO: Submit basic proposal information

• Project title.
• An abstract (250 words or less) with the top three objectives (in bullet format) of the program.

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STEP THREE: Request verification
The following people must verify their support for your proposal: Administrative Contact (grants administrator or fiscal officer authorized to commit the institution to the terms of the grant), Department Chair, and the Principal Investigator (this is waived if the PI is also the applicant). To ensure timely approval of your proposal by your institution, apprise them of your intention to submit in advance of the deadline and share your proposal with them prior to submission.
When you have entered their email addresses, each of the above will receive an automated email from NCIIA requesting verification of their support. Allow 2-3 days for them to respond.

The proposal cannot be submitted until the administrators have responded to the request for verification.

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STEP FOUR: Upload required documents and other appendices
An attached narrative (see description below):

Proposal Narrative
Your proposal narrative may not exceed eight pages in length. Prepare the narrative in Microsoft Word, using 12-point Times font. NCIIA suggests the following narrative format/questions to be addressed:

Introduction

• What problem(s) are you addressing? What is your proposed solution?
• What is the technology innovation(s)?
• How is your technology better, cheaper or faster? How does it demonstrate market potential? How does it apply technological innovation or innovative use of resources?
• What cultural and social barriers will be addressed?

History and context

• What have you done so far?
• What support have you received for your work?
• What are others doing in the same field (for example, if you are developing a water filter, compare your solution to existing ones) and what is the market size?
• What is the potential global impact and how will it benefit society?
• How does it address the needs of people living in poverty?

Team (about one paragraph for each team member)

• Who is on your team and (briefly) what role does each member play?
• Is there a balance of technical and business expertise?
• How does the program build upon existing relationships?

Note: résumés of key team members up to three pages each should be submitted as appendices.

Proposed Business Model

• If your technology is successful, what is your proposed distribution channel?
• Who are the local champions/entrepreneurs? What is their motivation to work with you?
• What is the proposed business model and how does it demonstrate economic self-sustainability (who is the customer, how much and how will they pay)?
• How will you support commercial activity resulting from the grant?

Work plan and outcomes (please use a spreadsheet or table for your workplan)

• What do you hope to achieve? What processes will you follow? What steps are involved? 
• How will you communicate among partners?
• What are the commercial outcomes? Does the plan address design, testing, manufacturing, distribution and maintenance or licensing?
• What are the measurable educational objectives?

Evaluation and sustainability plan (you may attach a details evaluation plan as an appendix)

Please address how you will know if you have succeeded, name your internal measures of success, and respond to the following:

• What are your hoped-for outcomes? How do you define success?
• How will the program be self-sustainable (how will the program continue beyond the end of the grant period)?
• How will you define ongoing partnerships capable of creating further change?
• How will you document your process?
• How will you determine if the process is replicable and transferable?

Appendices (maximum of ten appendices, up to 5MBs each)

Required Appendices

1. Budget template with budget justification. NCIIA requires you to use the provided SV budget template which you can download here.

Eligible expenses:

• Faculty time up to $20,000
• Travel expenses related to network development and program plans or attendance at related meetings
• Expenses related to early implementation of program, including materials, prototypes and testing
• Graduate student support up to $5,000
• Up to 5% institutional overhead if required.

Ineligible expenses include, but are not limited to:

• Undergraduate student stipends
• Institutional overhead above 5% of the total budget

2. Résumés. Resumes should be no more than three pages, and are required for key participating team members. We do not need resumes for Administrative Contacts.

3. Documentation of work completed to date.

Optional Appendices

1. Letters of support. Letters of support are recommended as a way to demonstrate to reviewers that there is institutional support for your project and demonstrated market demand for your innovation.  Letters can also serve to verify partnerships discussed in your proposal narrative.

2. Other optional supporting documents.  This could include curricula, photographs, websites, or links to video, etc.

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STEP FIVE: Submit
When you are sure Steps 1-4 have been completed and advisors have verified their support, please click 'submit.' You will receive an email confirming the submission of the proposal.

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To start an application, login here.

Check upcoming submission deadlines.

Address questions to the NCIIA at (413) 587-2172, or email us at info@nciia.org. Thanks for your interest and please share this information with interested colleagues. The RFP will open approximately six weeks before the grant deadline. Start an application HERE.