Inspired by Crowdsourcing, Imagine Cup Solve This Enables Students to Help IGOs, NGOs and Nonprofits

REDMOND, Wash., Nov. 22, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Microsoft Corp. today announced Imagine Cup Solve This, a new program to provide inspiration for students looking to help solve the world's toughest problems. In the spirit of "crowdsourcing," intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and nonprofits now will be able to seek the help of the brilliant and passionate students competing in Microsoft's Imagine Cup, the world's premier student technology competition, to develop innovative solutions to real-world problems. Global IGOs and NGOs including NetHope, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the United Nations Programme on Youth, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and local New York City nonprofit the Robin Hood Foundation are among the first organizations to participate.

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IGOs, NGOs and nonprofits often encounter difficult challenges while working to address tough global issues such as education and literacy, disaster relief, environmental sustainability, and global healthcare. These organizations recognize that technology solutions can expand the reach of their services and help them more effectively meet the needs of their audiences. Through Imagine Cup Solve This, Microsoft is providing a marketplace of ideas that students can select to create solutions for as part of the annual Imagine Cup competition. In their submissions, participating organizations have asked students to create these solutions:

• Technology solutions to promote and assist organizations and educators that foster early reading and literacy among young children
• An online knowledge management system, or "online campus," with educational content and virtual classrooms for different areas of interest, allowing teachers to interact, collaborate and share information with students
• Mobile or fixed devices to capture and send videos or transmit live broadcasts from remote areas and under harsh conditions
• An integrated collaboration and communication platform that encourages youth participation in global development efforts

"The Imagine Cup competition features students who are very passionate about societal issues, problem-solving and technology," said Pamela Passman, corporate vice president of Global Corporate Affairs, Microsoft. "To help students generate project ideas, we created Imagine Cup Solve This, which connects them with nonprofits and organizations in need of new approaches to the variety of problems they encounter. This pairing illustrates how we are evolving the competition to empower students to help make a real difference in the world."

Students can register for Imagine Cup 2011 today and access a library of problems submitted by the organizations to find project ideas that address issues that matter most to them. Students can put their ideas into action as they create technology solutions in several different categories of competition. Additional details about the Imagine Cup 2011 competitions and challenges are available at http://www.imaginecup.com. Microsoft plans to expand Imagine Cup Solve This over time to include submissions from additional global IGOs, NGOs and nonprofits that are interested in participating.

"The Imagine Cup provided an outlet for me to bring my ideas to life," said Vinny Jeet, a member of Team OneBeep from the University of Auckland, Imagine Cup 2010 third-place winner in software design. "But the Imagine Cup isn't just a competition, it's a global movement that is helping students become entrepreneurs with a purpose."

Participating organizations also expressed their support for Imagine Cup Solve This; their comments are included below.

Microsoft also announced today the first round of Imagine Cup finalists from the United States. These finalists will compete at the U.S. national finals that will be held on the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Wash., in April:

Software Design

• BearPaw, Brigham Young University
  • Project: The team created a solution that converts ultrasound image files to an open standard format, and that relies on the cloud for further processing and storage, which enables ultrasounds to be more portable, affordable and easier to use.
• LifeLens, University of California, Davis; Harvard Business School; University of Central Florida; UCLA Anderson School of Management; University of California, San Diego
  • Project: The team developed software that uses a mobile phone camera to deliver an accurate diagnosis of malaria in the field.
• Transit Tracker, Arizona State University
  • Project: The project relies on crowdsourcing and GPS data to provide accurate estimations of bus arrivals and departures, benefiting public transit users in general and the visually impaired in particular.
• Uca Ursus, University of Central Arkansas
  • Project: The team created an automated system to track the speed of a skin lesion's progression to better diagnose and treat skin cancer.
• Voltron, University of Arkansas at Little Rock
  • Project: The team created an application to support the global collection of medical data by parents and doctors, allowing global researchers to access and study the cloud-based information as a means to help eradicate cancer among children.

Game Design – Windows and Xbox

• Plump Pixel, California State University, Chico
  • Project: The team created "Green World," an educational game blended with real-time strategy and simulation where the player takes on the role of a city planner whose responsibility is to provide a sustainable level of energy to the city while keeping the environment clean and free of pollution.
• Righteous Noodle, University of Houston
  • Project: The team created "Eva Frontier," a real-time strategy game designed to develop problem-solving skills by managing a humanitarian mission that delivers food and medicine to villages.
• STC, University of Houston
  • Project: The team developed "Deep Sea," a game designed to protect the ocean environment and promote innovation in keeping oil rigs safe.

Game Design – Mobile

• SDEG, University of Texas San Antonio; Texas A&M University, San Antonio; San Antonio College
  • Project: The team created a mobile video game, "Renuvia," which allows players to travel the world and fight pollution by using green technology, recycling and renewable energy.
• Team AAMP, University of Houston
  • Project: The team developed a mobile game, "Operation Clean Sweep," where the player has the objective of cleaning up rivers polluted by their adjacent cities.
• Team Inspiration, University of California, Riverside
  • Project: The team developed a mobile game, "Trash Boy," where players prevent trash from entering the ocean to protect fish.

More information on the U.S. finalists and other student programs can be found at http://www.facebook.com/MicrosoftTechStudent.

Now in its ninth year, the Imagine Cup has grown to become a global competition with more than 325,000 students representing 100 countries and regions entering the competition last year. The theme for the 2011 competitions is "Imagine a world where technology helps solve the toughest problems." Typically, students define the problems they solve through research, personal passion for social causes and inspiration from the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Problems featured within Imagine Cup Solve This complement the other problems students identify for themselves. The Imagine Cup 2011 Worldwide Finals will be held in New York City July 8–13— the first time the United States will host the final stage of the competition.

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

SOURCE Microsoft Corp.