Congratulations to our 24 finalists!
Meet the finalists here.
Our panel of judges is now selecting winners. We will be announcing the winners of the Together Towards Tomorrow Challenge on the 21st of November 2024.
We are now in the refinement stage of the challenge and are excited to announce the finalists on the 3rd of October. If you have any questions in the meantime, please email us at [email protected], or message us on Instagram @ashokachangemakers.
Timeline
- May 6th 2024
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Challenge Launch
- June 3rd 2024
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Early Entry Deadline
- July 1st 2024
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Final Entry Deadline
- October 3rd 2024
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Finalist Announcement
- November 21st 2024
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Winners Announcement
About this challenge
Our global innovation challenge: Together Towards Tomorrow, is a collaboration between Ashoka and HSBC, which invited changemakers from around the world with initiatives that unite people across generations to activate young people as leaders. We are now reviewing over 450 innovative solutions that promote equitable collaboration, connecting young minds with their inner purpose. Keep an eye on this page to learn about our winning solutions.
In partnership with:
Meet our Early Entry Winners
Congratulations to our 3 Early Entry Winners, Youth x Youth, From Tradition to Tomorrow and Y-Ultimate. Read more about the winners below.
- YouthxYouth
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(YxY, “Youth by Youth”) is a global learning community of youth education activists and adult allies dedicated to transforming education systems. Their mission is to empower youth to create a world where learning supports collective liberation and well-being for all.
YxY achieves this through Global Action Circles and in-person Global Hubs, equipping young people to lead changemaking projects in areas like mental health, climate education, and vocational skills. They also offer a 10-month Weavership fellowship, where youth leaders learn to connect people, projects, and communities to build thriving learning ecosystems. These youth weavers engage about 100 peers each to co-create systemic change with local partners.
Every year, YxY brings their intergenerational community together for a 3-day Learning Festival around the International Day of Education. Read more here.
- From Tradition to Tomorrow
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From Tradition to Tomorrow is revitalizing the 200-year-old tradition of wooden toy building in Budhni, India, empowering artisans across generations. With younger artisans leaving the profession due to financial challenges, From Tradition to Tomorrow is addressing this through their Common Facility Centre, offering:
The project fosters intergenerational collaboration by creating spaces where experienced artisans train young people, who, in turn, mentor others. Leadership councils of young people ensure their voices are heard and community projects are born. Read more here.
- Training and skill enhancement – blending traditional techniques with modern methods
- Production optimization – providing modern machinery and ensuring quality
- Market expansion – supporting marketing efforts to reach broader audiences
- Y-Ultimate
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Based in India, Y-Ultimate use the sport of ultimate frisbee to share life-skills with young people from underprivileged communities.
Ultimate frisbee is self-refereed, meaning that players call out their own fouls, and develop skills of respectful communication and collaboration through play.
At Y-Ultimate, young people who experienced the power of this sport go on to coach the next generation, developing skilled, responsible, and resilient leaders. By bringing people together across age groups, promoting fitness, teamwork, and effective communication, they help young people from underserved communities build the essential life skills they need to thrive. Read more here.
Congratulations to our 3 Early Entry Winners, Youth x Youth, From Tradition to Tomorrow and Y-Ultimate. Read more about the winners below.
- YouthxYouth
-
(YxY, “Youth by Youth”) is a global learning community of youth education activists and adult allies dedicated to transforming education systems. Their mission is to empower youth to create a world where learning supports collective liberation and well-being for all.
YxY achieves this through Global Action Circles and in-person Global Hubs, equipping young people to lead changemaking projects in areas like mental health, climate education, and vocational skills. They also offer a 10-month Weavership fellowship, where youth leaders learn to connect people, projects, and communities to build thriving learning ecosystems. These youth weavers engage about 100 peers each to co-create systemic change with local partners.
Every year, YxY brings their intergenerational community together for a 3-day Learning Festival around the International Day of Education. Read more here.
- From Tradition to Tomorrow
-
From Tradition to Tomorrow is revitalizing the 200-year-old tradition of wooden toy building in Budhni, India, empowering artisans across generations. With younger artisans leaving the profession due to financial challenges, From Tradition to Tomorrow is addressing this through their Common Facility Centre, offering:
The project fosters intergenerational collaboration by creating spaces where experienced artisans train young people, who, in turn, mentor others. Leadership councils of young people ensure their voices are heard and community projects are born. Read more here.
- Training and skill enhancement – blending traditional techniques with modern methods
- Production optimization – providing modern machinery and ensuring quality
- Market expansion – supporting marketing efforts to reach broader audiences
- Y-Ultimate
-
Based in India, Y-Ultimate use the sport of ultimate frisbee to share life-skills with young people from underprivileged communities.
Ultimate frisbee is self-refereed, meaning that players call out their own fouls, and develop skills of respectful communication and collaboration through play.
At Y-Ultimate, young people who experienced the power of this sport go on to coach the next generation, developing skilled, responsible, and resilient leaders. By bringing people together across age groups, promoting fitness, teamwork, and effective communication, they help young people from underserved communities build the essential life skills they need to thrive. Read more here.
Who were we looking for in this challenge?
Enabling youth leadership for social impact:
Solutions that enable young people to take charge, actively identifying their strengths and passions. With this self-awareness, they lead the charge in effecting positive change within their communities.
Promoting equitable intergenerational collaboration:
Solutions that promote equity by fostering intergenerational social connections, mutual learning and empathy, ensuring that young people have an equal opportunity to lead and effect change. This inclusive approach allows young people to access the collective wisdom and resources of all generations, amplifying their impact and sustaining their commitment to changemaking.
Fostering agency in young people:
Solutions that foster agency among youth by catalyzing them to take ownership of their ideas, actions, and impact. As a result, young individuals develop the confidence and autonomy needed to lead changemaking efforts, ultimately becoming lifelong changemakers.
Prize Packages - Awards and Recognition
- All eligible applicants will receive:
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- Receive feedback from Ashoka and/or HSBC representatives.
- Have a chance to connect with a community changemakers through this challenge (by providing/receiving feedback, and meeting them through community events).
- Early Entry Applicants will receive:
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- Those who get their application in by June 3rd 2024 will have the chance to be selected as Early Entry Winners.
- All Early Entry Applicants will receive feedback ahead of the final entry deadline.
- 3 Early Entry Winners will be awarded $1,500 each
- Note: Being selected as an early entry winner does not mean that you will be selected as a final challenge winner.
- All semifinalists and finalists will:
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- Get a chance to refine their applications based on feedback from Ashoka, HSBC, and their peers.
- Have the opportunity to learn from Ashoka, HSBC, and its networks, and have additional learning opportunities as part of the journey.
- Winners Awards:
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We seek to ensure diverse representation in our winners, covering as many focus areas, ages, and geographic regions as possible.
Prizes Structure:
- Up to 12 winners, will receive a minimum of $15,000 and up to $25,000.
- We will select a minimum of 3 winners at Early Stage (0-3 years since registration), and a minimum of 3 winners that are at an Established Stage (3+ years since registration).
- The top winner in each of these two categories will receive a prize of $25,000.
- All eligible applicants will receive:
-
- Receive feedback from Ashoka and/or HSBC representatives.
- Have a chance to connect with a community changemakers through this challenge (by providing/receiving feedback, and meeting them through community events).
- Early Entry Applicants will receive:
-
- Those who get their application in by June 3rd 2024 will have the chance to be selected as Early Entry Winners.
- All Early Entry Applicants will receive feedback ahead of the final entry deadline.
- 3 Early Entry Winners will be awarded $1,500 each
- Note: Being selected as an early entry winner does not mean that you will be selected as a final challenge winner.
- All semifinalists and finalists will:
-
- Get a chance to refine their applications based on feedback from Ashoka, HSBC, and their peers.
- Have the opportunity to learn from Ashoka, HSBC, and its networks, and have additional learning opportunities as part of the journey.
- Winners Awards:
-
We seek to ensure diverse representation in our winners, covering as many focus areas, ages, and geographic regions as possible.
Prizes Structure:
- Up to 12 winners, will receive a minimum of $15,000 and up to $25,000.
- We will select a minimum of 3 winners at Early Stage (0-3 years since registration), and a minimum of 3 winners that are at an Established Stage (3+ years since registration).
- The top winner in each of these two categories will receive a prize of $25,000.
Evaluation Criteria
Remember, we are looking for innovative and creative ideas at all stages of development, which means your initiative could be in its first year of implementation or a fully baked one! Each of the below 5 criteria will be considered equally in the evaluation of each application, following this rubric.
Connection and Commitment:
Your initiative engages deeply with your community whilst valuing the voices and servicing the needs of young people.
Activating Young Changemakers:
Your venture enables young leaders to drive meaningful change and create a brighter future.
Impact:
As a standard working practice, you measure the impact of your initiative whilst prioritizing continuous learning and skill development.
Innovation:
Your venture actively pushes boundaries and explores new possibilities to address complex challenges.
Operational Viability:
Your organization was created with a focused plan for secure long-term sustainability and adaptability in diverse local contexts.
The first entry phase closed on July 1st, resulting in a total of 450 applicants, including 180 early-entry candidates who were eligible for an early-entry prize. A team of reviewers from Ashoka and HSBC scored the submissions and deliberated to select 56 semifinalists, each of whom received personalized feedback from the Ashoka team. During the refinement phase, semifinalists incorporated the feedback from the first round and improved their applications. Following a deliberation session involving Ashoka staff, HSBC personnel, and external advisors, 24 finalists were selected. From these 24 finalists, a panel of judges will choose 12 winners for the Together Towards Tomorrow Challenge.
The first entry phase closed on July 1st, resulting in a total of 450 applicants, including 180 early-entry candidates who were eligible for an early-entry prize. A team of reviewers from Ashoka and HSBC scored the submissions and deliberated to select 56 semifinalists, each of whom received personalized feedback from the Ashoka team. During the refinement phase, semifinalists incorporated the feedback from the first round and improved their applications. Following a deliberation session involving Ashoka staff, HSBC personnel, and external advisors, 24 finalists were selected. From these 24 finalists, a panel of judges will choose 12 winners for the Together Towards Tomorrow Challenge.
Resources
If you’re passionate about empowering young changemakers, supporting youth leadership, and fostering intergenerational collaboration to build a brighter future, we have something special for you. Explore our curated collection of top resources on intergenerational collaboration below. Dive in to find tips, insights, and inspiration on how to bring people together across generations and make a lasting impact.
- Thrive Together is our Changemaking Guide to Intergenerational Collaboration, you can explore it here.
- We spoke to a former challenge winner, Football for Future about intergenerational collaboration for changemaking. You can read our conversation here.
- A We Are Family Foundation Global Study: Collaborating Across Generations: Insights, Challenges and Best Practices, published earlier this year provides an incredible temperature check on and incentive for intergenerational collaboration around the world. Read the report here.
- "An Organisation’s Guide to Youth Co-Leadership written by Young Changemaker Jaiden Corfield in partnership with Ashoka and the Inkey List, provides practical tips and advice on how to meaningfully and authentically embed youth co-leadership practice within an organisation. Explore the guide here.
Click here to read this challenge's full Terms & Conditions.
If you’re passionate about empowering young changemakers, supporting youth leadership, and fostering intergenerational collaboration to build a brighter future, we have something special for you. Explore our curated collection of top resources on intergenerational collaboration below. Dive in to find tips, insights, and inspiration on how to bring people together across generations and make a lasting impact.
- Thrive Together is our Changemaking Guide to Intergenerational Collaboration, you can explore it here.
- We spoke to a former challenge winner, Football for Future about intergenerational collaboration for changemaking. You can read our conversation here.
- A We Are Family Foundation Global Study: Collaborating Across Generations: Insights, Challenges and Best Practices, published earlier this year provides an incredible temperature check on and incentive for intergenerational collaboration around the world. Read the report here.
- "An Organisation’s Guide to Youth Co-Leadership written by Young Changemaker Jaiden Corfield in partnership with Ashoka and the Inkey List, provides practical tips and advice on how to meaningfully and authentically embed youth co-leadership practice within an organisation. Explore the guide here.
Click here to read this challenge's full Terms & Conditions.
Meet the team
People supporting the strategy, operations, and technology of the challenge:
- June Wardé - Challenge Advisor
- Jennifer Hartzell - Outreach Integrator
- Rara Reines - Outreach Support