Prototype Fund: apply now!

Open Knowledge Germany has launched a new programme!

The Prototype Fund supports projects in civic tech, data literacy, data security and software infrastructure. With a grant of up to €30,000, software developers, hackers and creatives can write code and develop open source prototypes over a period of six months.

THE FOCUS AREAS

  • Civic Tech
    Building digital tools for citizens, e.g. new models and applications for creating, sharing and using (open) data, data visualisation and storytelling, Social engagement, transparency and citizen participation

  • Data Literacy
    Apps around the use and analysis of (open) data; tools that promote the ability to read, create and communicate data.

  • Data security
    Code that focuses on privacy, secure communications / data transmission and data minimisation.

  • Software infrastructure
    Tools that enable and facilitate the operation of application software.

To apply, you (or someone from your team) have to be a legal resident of Germany, over 18, self-employed, and willing to make your project available under an open source license. Details are in the FAQ.

Deadline for the first round of applications (out of four in total): September 30, 2016.
The programme is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Research and Education.

Idea: It might be worth sharing this on the CKAN channel as a way for people who are lacking a CKAN feature to find someone in DE willing to build it for them. CKAN get’s used a lot by cities and if the extension is done well it can be applied to many other platforms (deployability!). I would have thought that the effort involved would fit well for this budget, and perhaps the person looking for the extension could even pay some of the “self-invested” time required in the conditions.

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