The Mozilla Technology Fund Call for Proposals: AI and Environmental Justice
The Mozilla Technology Fund seeks to fund open source projects at the intersection of environmental justice and AI which are making a positive impact in ecosystems and human communities.
Mozilla is interested in convening technical projects that have a firm grounding in environmental and climate justice, sustainability, and ecology. We understand that the effects of climate change will be felt disproportionately by the global south, especially people of color, indigenous and traditional peoples, local communities, and specific ethnic-racial groups.
We are particularly interested in projects which can address the health, economic and social impacts of climate change on these groups (e.g. the Most Affected People and Areas (MAPA)) and which are built by these groups or in close partnership with affected communities.
Some categories of projects we are interested in funding during this round:
Projects which expose or mitigate the climate impacts of AI systems
Projects which utilize AI to conduct environmental impact assessments
Projects that prototype Grassroots AI systems for ecological management
Projects which combat climate disinformation
Requirements
All applicants should:
Have a product or working prototype in hand (we will also consider projects at the idea stage if the project team can demonstrate a track record of success in launching and building community around similar projects in the past)
Already have a core team in place to support the development of the project (this team might include software developers working in close collaboration with ecologists, AI researchers, designers, product/project managers, and subject matter experts)
Embrace openness, transparency, and community stewardship as methodology
Make their work available under an open-source license
Eligibility
These awards are open to all applicants regardless of geographic location or institutional affiliation, except where legally prohibited.
However, Mozilla is especially interested in receiving applications from Most Affected People and Areas (MAPA); members of the Global Majority or Global South; Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color; women, transgender, non-binary, and/or gender-diverse applicants; migrant and diasporic communities; and/or persons coming from climate displaced/impacted communities, etc.
Applicants must meet the following requirements
Be legally able to receive funds in the form of a grant from the Mozilla Foundation (a U.S. 501(c)(3) non-profit organization)
Be working towards solving a public interest problem or issue related to the focus of this Call for Proposals
Benefits
The Mozilla Technology Fund will provide awards of up to $50,000 each and one year of mentorship and support to open source projects which meet the criteria
Awardees will be expected to join monthly cohort calls for the duration of their project (12 months, beginning in January 2023) in order to share their progress, ask questions, and offer peer support to other project teams.
Awardees will also have access to Mozilla Fellows with relevant subject matter expertise, who will serve as mentors to members of the MTF cohort.
All MTF awardees past and present will have access to the MTF Slack/Discord Community for asynchronous discussion and updates.
Application Process
Applications will be accepted for a period of four weeks and will then be reviewed by a committee of experts, which will make final funding decisions and allocate awards out of a total pool of $300,000.
How to Apply
For more information and job application details, see; The Mozilla Technology Fund Call for Proposals: AI and Environmental Justice
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