4 Weeks
4 Challenges
4 Winners (well actually, every community involved will be a winner...)
4 Prizes .........1st - $3,000; 2nd - $2,000; 3rd - $1,000; 4th - $500
Community groups
or municipalities will propose and plan a community driven project,
program or business ideas for your community or region.
...It can be a brand new idea
...It can use existing assets or infrastructure
...It can benefit a community group or
...It can provide an opportunity to create future jobs and economic wealth
• The challenges
will test the creativity, business idea and marketing skills of
the group.
• Viewers will be able to follow the competition on the Newsask Website
• The public will be able to vote on the internet for their favorite business
development idea.
• The winners will receive their prize money to fund their project concept.
• The winners will have an opportunity to have their commercial aired on
CJVR
The Challenges:
1. Submit with your application and an essay of approximately five hundred
(500) words or less, outlining the benefit your project will be to your community.
You may include a photo with the essay. The application must be received by
Community Futures no later than November 2, 2012. Encourage your friends to vote for your project on our website.
2. November 9, 2012 - Create a Facebook Fan Page to promote your idea and market
it to the region. Submit your Facebook link to Newsask. Encourage your friends to vote for your project on our website.
- Responsibly encourage your Facebook networks to join your fan page.
- Positively represent any partners and Community Futures Newsask.
3. November 16, 2012 - Create a YouTube video promoting your project. (Scroll to the bottom of the page and check out our help page if you are unsure of the procedure.) Submit your YouTube link to Newsask by Nov 16. Encourage your friends to vote for your project on our website.
4. November 23, 2012 - Create an audio advertisement for a 30 second radio
commercial to be submitted in writing (paragraph form.) Submit your ad to Newsask by Nov 23. Encourage your friends to vote for your project on our website.
Project Examples:
1. A local agricultural society notices empty hog facilities – they would like to develop a feasibility model that would look at alternatives uses for these empty facilities for such businesses as aquaculture production or ??
2. Participation and development of a business opportunity survey for tourist destinations within the region.
3. Participation and development of “Asset Mapping” in your community or an area within the region; and creating an interactive map highlighting landmarks, points or interest, historical sites in addition to future development of related attractions.
4. Collaboration of several rural municipalities to conduct a survey to determine the feasibility of constructing a specific manufacturing plant in the area.
5. Development of a consortium or cluster of like businesses or services in a region and identifying the benefit of partnering to attract business or tourism, or services, etc to the region.
6. A local town council would undertake the feasibility of developing affordable housing and/or rental units for their community.
7. A town or municipality may be examining the opportunity to purchase or build a local garage/repair shop, and rent or lease the space at a preferred rate in order to attract a journeyman mechanic to the area.
What other kind of projects could community groups submit? They may include ideas that focus on:
- Diversification
- Innovation
- Development of new technologies
- Community Benefit
- Long-term economic impact
- Community involvement
Ineligible Projects:
• Projects where activities are already funded by another organization or level of government.
• Facilities or services normally considered municipal, provincial or private-sector. Example: community centre, street improvements.
• Projects where the main purpose is fund raising. (You can budget fundraising as part of the income for the project; however, it cannot be the main purpose of the project).
• Projects that primarily benefit one person
To download pages in PDF format, click on the the heading:
Newsask will require a status update on the winning projects within six months of the declaration of prize winners. If the project has not been completed by that date, status updates will be required at six month intervals until project completion.
Your application form includes permission for Newsask to use photos of your project in promotional materials; however, if there are any photos that include people, we require an additional Photo Release Form to enable us to use these photos for our presentations, workshops, website or social media.
Click here for help to create a Facebook page or YouTube video
Check out last year's Challenge projects from November, 2011 by clicking below:
Check out the projects from our challenge November, 2010 by clicking below:
