The Internet Society Foundation Announces The Second Round Of Its BOLT Innovation Grants

Aug. 10, 2022, 10:43 a.m.

The Internet Society Foundation has announced the second round of its BOLT program, a grant funding to advance Internet access and connectivity worldwide.

The Internet Society Foundation believes innovation is at the core of providing better opportunities for people to transform and enrich their lives. The Foundation also believes that teamwork and collaboration are the cornerstones of forging new ideas, realities, systems, and ways of working.

In its second year, the BOLT grant program aims to support teams of creatives, technologists, and researchers to develop innovative solutions to Internet connectivity, particularly among communities where current technologies are unavailable or inaccessible. Grants of up to $200,000 will be awarded for projects lasting up to 12 months.

“The Internet Society Foundation is committed to using our funding to address the challenges that prevent people from accessing the Internet, in line with our vision of an Internet for Everyone. With almost half of the world still offline, these grants aim to bolster the development of imaginative and sustainable solutions that will promote greater Internet access and connectivity for communities around the world”, noted Sarah Armstrong, Executive Director of the Internet Society Foundation.

Eligibility

Teams may include creatives, artists, technologists, researchers, and social or cultural workers and must be housed in a relevant non-profit organization or institution.

Teams should be focused on building technical and social innovations related to Internet connectivity that strive to be:

Cost-reducing
Environmentally sustainable
Trust-enhancing
Relevant to users and community
Imaginative and engaging in experimentation and play
Accessible

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The Foundation seeks to fund teams housed in organizations that align with the Internet Society’s mission and work for an open, globally-connected, secure, and trustworthy Internet for everyone.

How To Apply

Applicants are strongly encouraged to register their organization in the Foundation’s grants management system before the application window opens. Please allow adequate time to prepare your registration submission as it will be closely reviewed by Foundation staff.

Only applications submitted in the Foundation’s grants management system will be considered for funding by the deadline. We encourage you to submit your application early.

Incomplete applications or applications that do not meet eligibility requirements will not be considered (see “Eligibility” section above).

Applicants can submit a portion of their application in writing, visual, or audio form. Audio/visual submissions should be no longer than three minutes and can be in any format.

The BOLT program is open for applications between 8 August and 2 September, and the grantees will be announced in October.