The Tech Awards
The Tech Awards is a program of The Tech Museum of Innovation wherein innovators from any country are recognized for technological contributions which benefit the greatest number of people.
History
The Tech Museum created the award in response to The Millennium Project's State of the Future report, which recommends the granting of awards to accelerate technological to improve the human condition.[1]
The Tech has granted the awards yearly since 2001 to multiple recipients in each category, and as of 2011, one recipient in each category also gets a cash award of $50,000 from any of various award sponsors. Awards are granted in five categories - environment, economic development, equality, education, and health.
In 2012, the categories changed to environment, economic development, education, health, young innovator, and Sustainable Energy. The sustainable energy category will not return in 2013. Along with the changes in the categories, the number of laureates changed. Each category would have 2 laureates, one laureate will receive $25,000 and the other laureate would receive $75,000. Therefore both laureates received a cash prize.[2]
Sponsors
The following organizations are currently sponsors of The Tech Awards[3]:
Prize laureates
| Award Laureates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| year | award | laureate | affiliation | contribution | region | notes |
| 2010 | environment | Peer Water Exchange | Blue Planet Network | water sustainability | India | award |
| 2010 | Economic Development | Alexis T. Belonio | Gasification system for rice husks | Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam | award | |
| 2010 | Education | BBC World Service Trust | Mobile application development to teach English | Bangladesh | award | |
| 2010 | Equality | A Single Drop for Safe Water | social entrepreneurship for drinking water | Philippines | award | |
| 2010 | Health | Venkatesh Mannar | promotion of double-fortified salt | India | award | |
| 2011 | Environment | AquaClara Cornell University | inexpensive water treatment | Honduras | award | |
| 2011 | Education | PhET Interactive Simulations | free educational physics and math simulations | United States | award | |
| 2011 | Equality | Universal Subtitles | A simple, open, and collaborative way to subtitle videos | United States | award | |
| 2011 | Health | WE CARE Solar | A “solar suitcase” to provide emergency lighting and power for medical procedures | United States | award | |
| 2011 | Economic Development | Eko India Financial Services | Simple, instant, and safe banking and money-transfer services | India | award | |
| 2012 | Environment | Arup K. SenGupta | transform arsenic crisis into an economic enterprise while protecting human health | India | award | |
| 2012 | Education | Literacy Bridge | audio computer playing locally produced lessons that address the practical needs of people in oral cultures | Africa | award | |
| 2012 | Young Innovator | Angaza Design | Low-cost, embedded Pay-As-You-Go technology that allows customers to pay for energy use in small amounts | Africa | award | |
| 2012 | Health | BioLite | A low-cost, highly efficient wood-burning stove that dramatically reduces smoke and harmful black carbon emissions | Global | award | |
| 2012 | Economic Development | Pamela C. Ronald, David Mackill, Kenong Xu | Identification of a submergence tolerance gene and precise introduction of the gene into locally adapted varieties favored by farmers using modern molecular breeding | Global | award | |
| 2012 | Sustainable Energy | Simpa Networks | Simple, affordable, pay-as-you-use pricing and mobile payment for off-grid solar energy solutions | India | award | |
References
- ^ "About The Tech Awards". techawards.org. 2011. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
- ^ "Press Release: Larger cash awards, new categories announced for The Tech Awards 2012". The Tech Museum of Innovation. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
- ^ "The Tech Awards - Sponsors". The Tech Museum of Innovation. Retrieved 14 March 2013.