Google today named the fifteen beneficiaries of its €1million Google.org Impact Challenge Dublin, with each receiving €50,000 in grants to bring their ideas to life. Launched last November, the Google.org Impact Challenge Dublin invited nonprofits, social enterprises, and educators throughout Dublin to submit proposals for bold ideas to grow economic and social opportunities in their local communities.
Of the fifteen recipients announced today, five are in line to receive an additional €50,000 of funding, bringing their total grants to €100,000 each. Four of these will be selected by Google’s esteemed panel of judges, with the fifth open to a public vote. Voting is open for one week from Tuesday 19th to Tuesday 26th of March at http://g.co/dublinchallenge. The five projects to receive additional bursaries will be announced at a celebratory event on the evening of Thursday 4th April and is funded by Google’s philanthropic arm, Google.org.
Fionnuala Meehan, Head of Google Ireland commented, “We were blown away by the quantity and quality of the entries received. Over our 15 years here in Ireland we’ve supported many local projects but this is our biggest drive yet to support the community initiatives in the city we call home. The diversity and ambition of the submissions were very impressive, with small local initiatives through to more established charities all submitting entries.
“Choosing the final fifteen was not an easy task. Our aim was to tap into innovation across the city to support great ideas to build stronger communities, and the list of finalists represents a broad spectrum of charities and community initiatives across Dublin, with mental health, education, employment, support services, and more represented. I really hope that the Google.org Dublin Impact Challenge goes some way to assisting these great projects in achieving their goals, and I look forward to announcing the additional five bursaries in April.”
The Google.org Impact Challenge Dublin has been immensely popular with over 150 entries received by groups from all areas of the city covering a wide spectrum of initiatives. The public has been given the opportunity to double the funding of one of the winners by way of a “People’s Choice Award”, with voting now open at http://g.co/dublinchallenge for one week only (closes Tuesday 26th March).
The fifteen finalists are:
A Lust for Life
- A Lust for Life is creating a new, innovative platform to share creative mental health content
An Cosán Virtual Community College
- An Cosán is harnessing the power of technology to grow and innovate community education
Citywise Education
- Fast Track Academy is providing educational support to young people in underserved communities
Down Syndrome Ireland
- Down Syndrome Ireland is helping adults with Down syndrome to secure meaningful paid employment
Dublin Rape Crisis Centre
- The DRCC is removing barriers to accessing support for those who have experienced sexual violence
Irish Females in Technology (I-FITs)
- I-FITs is a Tech Apprenticeship Programme for unemployed females from Dublin’s ‘Silicon Docks’ area
GiveBack.ie
- GiveBack.ie is technology that empowers individuals to break the cycle of homelessness
THEATREclub
- THEATREclub wants to affect a shift in Dubliners’ view of addiction using audience activist groups
Irish Youth Foundation
- ‘Next Step’ is supporting students in the transition from primary to secondary level school
Music Generation Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
- Infinite Music is a music performance programme for young people with special educational needs
Peter McVerry Trust
- Peter McVerry Trust is establishing a culinary training program for people experiencing homelessness
Senior Line
- SeniorLine is offering peer-to-peer IT education and drop-in facility for older people
Dublin City Farm and Ecology Centre
- St. Anne’s City Farm is a sustainable farm that promotes education and multiculturalism
Teen-Turn
- Teen-Turn is changing how girls from underrepresented communities identify with STEM careers
Young Social Innovators
- YSI is empowering Ireland’s most disadvantaged youth to address local issues using robotics and STEM
The Google.org Dublin Impact Challenge judging panel includes the following members:
Lord Mayor of Dublin, Cllr Nial Ring; Senator Lynn Ruane; CEO of Dublin Chamber, Mary Rose Burke; Dublin GAA legend, Bernard Brogan; Journalist, Roisin Ingle; Business In The Community CEO, Tomás Sercovich; and Head of Google Ireland, Fionnuala Meehan.