Solution Search Unveils 10 Finalists in its Water Pollution & Behavior Change Contest

ARLINGTON, Va., May 3, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Helping to spotlight local solutions to the world's most challenging environmental problems, Solution Search today announced the 10 finalists in its Water Pollution & Behavior Change contest. The finalists were chosen from a pool of 100 submissions across 33 countries and will be eligible for two $25,000 grand prizes - the Judges' Prize, which is determined by a panel of experts and the People's Choice award, which relies on public voting. The winners will be announced in September 2021 during BE.Hive, a virtual summit and awards presentation event hosted by Rare's Center for Behavior & the Environment.

Solution Search is a global crowdsourcing contest that surfaces, spotlights and accelerates solutions to environmental challenges that shift individual and community behavior. The approach combines the dynamism of a talent competition, the focus of a mission-driven organization, and the transparency of an online platform to identify how behavioral insights can help solve the world's most challenging environmental problems.

This year's contest is supported by Rare, 11th Hour Racing, The Circulate Initiative, the Inter-American Development Bank, Lonely Whale, The Nature Conservancy, and the Ocean Conservancy.

The top 10 finalists are:

• Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (India)
• ECOACT Tanzania (Tanzania)
• Environment Conservation Society (SwitchON Foundation) (India)
• Instituto Andino de Montaña (Peru)
• 丽江健康与环境研究中心 - Lijiang Health And Environmental Research Center (China)
• Net Your Problem (USA)
• Siklus (Indonesia)
• Surfers Against Sewage (United Kingdom)
• Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods (SOIL) (Haiti)
• Wetlands Work Limited (Cambodia)

Voting to determine the People's Choice prize is now open to all, and individuals can vote once per day for as many days as they want during the voting period. The public can vote between May 3 – June 11 by accessing the voting portal here.

The Judges' Choice is determined by a panel of 15 experts deriving from a range of professions including environmentalism, academia, TV/media and activism. For the full list, please visit here. 

In addition to the Grand Prizes, Solution Search: Water Pollution & Behavior Change will award a $10,000 Environmental Justice Prize to the best entry addressing the disproportionate impact of water pollution on communities of color, indigenous groups, and marginalized communities. It will also award a $10,000 Youth prize to the best entry led by youth (25 years or younger) and highlights the role of young people in powering solutions to water pollution.

To learn more, please visit www.solutionsearch.org.

ABOUT SOLUTION SEARCH
An initiative facilitated by Rare's Center for Behavior & the Environment (BE.Center), Solution Search surfaces, spotlights, and accelerates existing solutions that use behavioral science to help solve the world's most challenging environmental issues. Since its inception in 2011, Solution Search has surfaced 886 solutions from 132 countries across all contests. Water Pollution & Behavior Change marks the sixth Solution Search contest. Previous contests included Climate Change Needs Behavior Change, Farming for Biodiversity, Reducing Our Risk, Adapting to a Changing Environment, and Turning the Tide for Coastal Fisheries. More information at solutionsearch.org.

SOURCE Solution Search