Apply here for GOSH's 2022 Regional Events Funding! (Round 1)

Opportunities
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1. Name of organization
AfricaOSH (Africa Open Science and Hardware Summit)

2. Email address (or preferred and reliable way of official contact)
team@africaosh.com

3. Tell us about your organization
The Africa Open Science and Hardware (OSH) Summit is a grassroots effort to bring together researchers, technologists, hacker hobbyists, educators, government officials, and start-up innovators around the world. Our goal is to create a conversation and set of actions on OSH, among African actors, and between them and the international community, in order to adopt OSH principles and practices appropriate to our context. Our Core Values are : Openness, Collaboration, Humanity, Respect, inclusion.
The first Africa OSH summit took place in Kumasi, Ghana in April 2018, hosted by Kumasi Hive and brought together 46 participants from across Africa, Europe and the USA. Topics discussed during the summit include STEM education in Africa, harmonizing technical skills for educational research across the continent, Open Educatinal Resources, Open Science for impactful education and innovation in Africa. Also the three panel discussions and thematic workshops engaged participants in vivid discussions and resulted in new partnerships between participants and initiatives such as the launch of the pan-African preprint repository AfricarXiv.org, designing learning kits for primarx school kids, concepts for STEM/STEAM practical trainings for all educational levels and new members for the global MakerNet Alliance.
The second Africa OSH took place in Dar es Salam, Tanzania, in April 2019 and hosted by STICLab on the theme ‘Nurturing Sustainable Innovations through Open Science and Hardware’. Key deliverables for this summit were to continue conversations from the previous summit, invite new members into the AfricaOSH community, strengthen existing collaborations and build new ones. A total number 58 participants were in attendance with 42 out of the total being new members of the community.

4. Does your organization have representation for a marginalized demographic due to factors such as, but not limited to, race, ability, place of birth, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class situation or other identification? If so, how?
AfricaOSH is building a multidisciplinary and inclusive ‘Family’ to deliver its mission and advance research, education and innovation in Africa and abroad. We strive to make our community welcoming and open to everybody, regardless of scholarly or professional background, gender identity and expression, ability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, economic background, country of origin or employment, religion, and other characteristics. As we come from different backgrounds, it is important to be intentional about providing respectful, equitable spaces — both online and in-person — for our community to come together and engage in constructive, respectful discourse.
We particularly strive for equity. We are intentional about actively reducing the inequitable barriers that stand between science and those who create, use, and learn from it.

5. What is the event about, and what do you want to achieve with it?
The third edition of AfricaOSH was supposed to take place in Yaounde, Cameroon from 14-16th May 2020. But do to COVID19, we were not able to organise it. After two years (2020 and 2021) without summit any gathering, we are confident that the time is come to gather again. The Summit’s theme is ‘Growing the Do-It-Yourself & Do-It-Together (DIY/DIT) Culture for Community Transformation’ and will be hosted by the MboaLab, in YaoundĂ©, Cameroon.
The summit will bring together, researchers, technologists, hacker hobbyists, educators, government officials, and start-up innovators from around the world. Open Science & Hardware (OSH) opens an alternative path to education, research, scholarly communication and manufacturing to create an ecosystem for innovation that is locally adapted, culturally relevant, technologically feasible, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable.
Due the Covid19 restrictions, the format of the event will be hybrid, running from 27th - 29th May, 2022. During the summit, we will bring together around 100 participants (for the in person meeting) from across Africa, Latin America, Asia, Europe and North America. The rest, will attend online. The three-day program is a platform to continue conversations that were initiated in the previous summits and will include:
‱ Presentations and working group discussions on challenges, opportunities and recommendations to contextualize Open Science and Hardware1 ;
‱ Workshops on making, hacking and DIYBio for a wide range of stakeholders to experience the process of design, co-creation, problem solving and to contribute ideas to OSH development ;
‱ Conference sessions by networks, startups, and innovators from Africa and the Global South.

6. Which of the three levels of funding would you like to apply for? (in round 1 only USD $9910 is avaiable for applications, in further rounds $3000, $6000, or USD $9910 will be available)
USD $9910

7. What is the funding for? Describe your budget. List what you are going to spend it on and how.
For the 3rd edition of Africaosh summit, we need a total amount of 50200 USD. But we request a support of 9900 USD from GOSH, the rest of the budget will be provided by Make, an European Union Grant.
The budget we are requesting from GOSH is mostly to support the participation of for 05 African Women. Like that will contribute to strenghten the gender balance in OSH.

Items Total Amount (USD) What we request from GOSH Provided by MAKE (European Union Grant)
Venue 1000 0 1000
Accomodation 10000 1000 9000
Catering 7200 1200 6000
Communication and documentation 5000 1700 3300
Travel 25000 6000 19000
Unexpected, Transactions, overhead fees 2000 0 2000
Total 50200 9900 40300

8. How will you share the outcomes of this event. What documentation will result that will this project benefit the community as a whole? (videos? photos? a how-to? innovative hardware designs?)
As per usual, we will provide :

  • A report
  • Share Video and photos
  • Openly share Share protocol and designs used in workshops.

9. How would your event address GOSH’s values of diversity and inclusion?
In terms of diversity, in AfricaOSH, our definition of Africans is not related to the color of your skin or your geographical location. It is mostly a way to be. Moreover, Ubuntu is our community value. That is why we are accepting participants from Africa and others parts of the world.
In terms of inclusion, our event is targeting the participation of at least 35% of women and 15% of LGBTQ+

10. Are there any conflicts of interest that you wish to declare?
None

4 Likes
22
  1. Name of organization

ART±BIO Collaborative (U.S.)

  1. Email address (or preferred and reliable way of official contact)

artbio@artbiocollaborative.com; sdowdynava@artbiocollaborative.com

  1. Tell us about your organization

We are the ART±BIO Collaborative (www.artbiocollaborative.org; @ArtBioCollab), an artist- and scientist-led organization that fosters the integration of Science, Nature, and Art through novel collaborations, public engagement, education, and research. Our work utilizes the intersection of the Arts, Biology, Natural History and the Life Sciences as a catalyst for social dialogue and creative exchange of ideas with artists, scientists, and diverse publics.

We are committed to broadening participation, accessibility, and equity in the Arts and Sciences and their intersections. To that end, we create cross-disciplinary, inclusive, and collaborative opportunities for the leadership and participation of underserved, historically excluded/underrepresented, and marginalized communities and populations.

  1. Does your organization have representation for a marginalized demographic due to factors such as, but not limited to, race, ability, place of birth, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class situation or other identification? If so, how?

Yes. The ART±BIO Collaborative’s mission and activities are centered around supporting, engaging and creating opportunities for historically excluded and underrepresented communities. We work hard to create meaningful, cross-disciplinary, accessible, and collaborative opportunities (education) for the inclusion and participation of under-served, historically underrepresented, and marginalized communities and populations. As founders of an organization focused on embracing and promoting Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion in the arts and sciences and who are ourselves members of marginalized populations, we directly address issues of diversity and equity both in our professional and personal lives.

In addition to focusing on marginalized and historically underserved and excluded populations in our outreach initiatives and educational programs, ART±BIO Collaborative founded the Desert Outreach Summit and has created the Cultivo Field Residency and Cultivo Field Mentorship, to reduce barriers and create vital opportunities for Artists and Scientists of Color to create, collaborate, lead, learn, mentor, support, and flourish—making the Arts, Sciences, and their intersections more equitable, inclusive, and diverse ecosystems.

  1. What is the event about, and what do you want to achieve with it?

The Sun City Art+Science Festival, founded by the ART+BIO Collaborative with support by the Science Festival Alliance, is the first-ever science festival for the city of El Paso, Texas, on the U.S.-Mexico Border. The festival will launch in Spring 2022 with Science Murals, public art by local artists about the biology and natural history of the Chihuahuan Desert. Additionally the event will include targeted educational outreach with area K-12 schools and hi-impact public engagement events within the community, highlighted by the distribution of free DIY Art+Bio Kits for participatory, supplemental science learning and artmaking.

We have received modest funding for the Sun City Art+Science Festival and are seeking additional funding from GOSH to allow us to expand our ongoing open access and inclusive efforts to sharpen the focus and impact of our event through the inclusion of Art+Bio kits, a Cultivo Mentor, and focused public access and documentation that share the GOSH ethos and democratize science in ways that would simply not be possible without additional funding.

We are collaborating with the BioMedia Lab of MassArt for this event via the Art+Bio Methods Project (ArtBioMethods-Exhibition). A primary goal of the SunCity Art+Science Festival is to empower and engage the border community to explore nature and biological inquiry via public art and science outreach. Because this is a bilingual, transnational region, we seek to promote science education through the most accessible language we can provide: Visual Art.

El Paso, TX is located within the beautiful and mountainous Chihuahuan Desert which boasts the greatest biodiversity of any desert in the world. Despite the rich and abundant ecological resources, the greater El Paso community is disproportionately and historically disadvantaged economically. By hosting the Sun City Art+Science Festival in a predominantly Latinx, Chicano, immigrant community, we are committing to broadening participation via open-access and inclusion as the foundational premise and core strength of our festival. This event will be particularly impactful to the borderland community which is in the national political spotlight, divided by a literal wall, lacking in funding and opportunities, strongly supportive of educational opportunities in the arts and sciences, and most importantly, yearning for free and accessible science engagement.

  1. Which of the three levels of funding would you like to apply for? (in round 1 only USD $9910 is available for applications, in further rounds $3000, $6000, or USD $9910 will be available)

Round 1: $9910

  1. What is the funding for? Describe your budget. List what you are going to spend it on and how.

Funding from GOSH’s 2022 Regional Events Funding will largely support the Sun City Art+Science Festival and in particular the creation of DIY Art+Bio Kits to be widely distributed to K-12 classrooms and event attendees. Kits will contain instructables and supplies for artmaking + diy science and biological exploration, including Foldscopes and other diy microscope-making materials, Neo Lucidas and other diy camera lucida-making materials, field sketchbooks, magnifiers, 2D drawing materials and other supplies. The Art+Bio Kits will be put together with a focus on integrative art and science education, with activities centered on inquiry about the ecology and biodiversity of the Chihuahuan Desert. Funding will also support a Cultivo Mentorship position to provide a paid leadership role and learning experience for an Artist or Scientist of Color, as well as provide funding for artist fees, instructor fees, and honoraria to regional artists and scientists.

BUDGET
$1000 - Cultivo Mentorship funding for BIPoC Art/Science Graduate Intern
$3,000 - Artist Fees for mural design + creation
$1,200 - Instructor Fees + Honoraria to Scientists for artmaking instruction & science communication
$3,700 - DIY Art+Bio Kits: 100+ kits with instructables, hardware and supplies for diy artmaking + science exploration (i.e. Foldscopes/ diy microscopes, Neo Lucidas/ diy camera lucidas, field sketchbooks, magnifiers, drawing supplies, etc.)
$1,010 - Documentation + Publication Fees
TOTAL: $9,910 USD

  1. How will you share the outcomes of this event. What documentation will result that will this project benefit the community as a whole? (videos? photos? a how-to? innovative hardware designs?)

We will collect art, photos, video, and written documentation of the Sun City Art+Science Festival and activities including mural making and unveilings, school visits and public engagement events. All documentation of the festival activities and other diy processes and open hardware will be posted on the festival website with instructables and/or lesson plans when appropriate and shared widely with the public on social media and through strategic media partners, as well as with key stakeholders, including with information in Spanish. All DIY Art+Bio Kit instructions and activities will be made available via the festival website and social media. Murals themselves, as fully accessible public art, remain in the community permanently and have an indefinite and immeasurable public impact. A virtual art exhibition will be created to celebrate and share all artwork by K-12 students created from the DIY Art+Bio Kit explorations, in addition to a published exhibition book which will be distributed to educators and community members for free. Through a collaboration with the BioMedia Lab of MassArt, all creative outputs from our events and outreach efforts will also be documented and shared via the Art+Bio Methods project, wherein artists adapt the scientific method to explore, create, document, and share their methods of creating art inspired by biology and natural history online.

  1. How would your event address GOSH’s values of diversity and inclusion?

We believe that artistic and scientific literacy, and access to natural resources and the discoveries, advancements, and creations of the arts and sciences, are universal human rights and will be central to our festival. We are certain our efforts allign with GOSH’s Mission to make open science hardware open to everybody, regardless of scholarly or professional background, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, ability, physical appearance, body size, race, age, economic background, country of origin or employment, religion, and other differences.

The greater El Paso community seemingly has access to educational resources and the potential for economic growth. Instead, structural racism presents a real barrier. It is building a literal wall that blocks ecological flow and threatens desert species and blocks economic flow and immigration between the U.S. and Mexico. It keeps academics, researchers, experts, higher education, University resources and SCIENCE inaccessible, intimidating, or simply out of reach for those El Pasoans most in need. Broadening participation in science via an open access Art+Science Festival in this region allows the public to celebrate science and to participate and lead in the process of scientific inquiry and not simply access (if at all) the findings of science. In this way, our event and the out-of-school science learning, diy explorations, and public artmaking it provides become mechanisms for social justice for a critical and marginalized population and are well in line with GOSH’s values of diversity and inclusion.

  1. Are there any conflicts of interest that you wish to declare?

No

2 Likes
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Hi everyone! Just wanted to let you know that Round 2 has opened up! If you submitted an application here that didn’t get funded, it will automatically be entered in Round 2! There’s nothing more you need to do! So easy!

If you have revisions to your application, you can submit to that post (and make a note of what you may have changed in the new version of your application).
Thanks!

2 Likes
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FYI, I’ve posted some general feedback for the round 1 applications. Also, if you didn’t apply during round 1, remember to apply for round 2!

25

Hello,

We have not heard back after submitting our application.for round 1 and at this point we don’t seem to be able to find an further information about the applications. Is there an new info on this topic?
Thank you,
Adrian

1 Like
26

Hi @adrianMolecule thanks so much for reaching out.

At the closing of round 1, messages were sent to everyone via the contact information they provided.

@hikinghack I think you were the one who sent the emails? Here’s the link to @adrianMolecule’s application, can you chime in on this? Thanks!

27

Hi @adrianMolecule , i think you applied to the collaborative development grant program. This is an entirely different grant for regional events :slight_smile: and so we don’t know much about it, you’d have to ask them :slight_smile: