Call for Applications: Digital Spark Challenge

Through a 4-day immersive workshop, up to 24 teams of two (two teams from each participating country) will be invited as participants of the Ideathon to develop a deeper understanding on fake news identification and mitigation, as well as its impacts to society, and be equipped with communication and advocacy tools to address them. Participants will be guided through a collaborative and participatory learning process to develop ideas for powerful online campaigns to address this issue. Selected experts will serve as on-site mentors and judges. The winning team will be further supported to implement their campaign idea.

Themes

• The Digital SPARK Challenge 2024 will focus on two main themes:
  • Fake news, such as misinformation, disinformation, misinformation.
  • Content manipulation, such as AI-generated contents, deep fakes.
• Other important issues such as hate speech, online bullying, privacy violation and online scams can also be covered as they relate to the above themes.

Award Information 

• All participants will have the opportunity to engage and learn from relevant experts during the Ideathon and will receive certificates of completion.
• In addition, the first-place winner will be awarded:
  • Grant funding and ongoing mentorship support for campaign implementation.
  • Campaign amplification and integration through ASEAN official communication channels.

Eligibility Criteria 

• Below criteria and qualifications are applicable for every member of each team:
  • Each team must consist of two (2) persons only.
  • Must be between 18-25 years old at the time of application.
  • Members of each team must be citizens of the same participating country (Brunei, Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam, Timor-Leste, and Australia).
  • Must not be government officials or affiliated with government.
  • Must have the ability to travel (in-country and cross country) and own legitimate travel documents, such as a passport that is valid for at least six months beyond the date of arrival in Indonesia.
  • Must be available to fully attend a 4-day program in-person in Jakarta, Indonesia from 30 September to 3 October 2024 (plus travel days).
  • Both members of the winning team must be committed to collaborate with the organizing committee in developing the campaign idea for implementation.
  • Must be able to work and communicate in English.
  • Have basic knowledge and experience in using social media platforms for creating online contents for public communication and accessing digital public data.
  • Possess the ability to access the Internet and have relevant computer proficiency.
  • Be highly motivated to engage collaboratively with representatives from diverse communities in order to strengthen understanding and enhance personal growth in  alignment with the program’s goal.
  • Demonstrate leadership skills, motivation, time management, accountability, and strong commitment to promoting social impact.

For more information, visit ASEAN.