The deadline for The Clinton Global Initiative University’s 2010 Outstanding Commitment Awards is tomorrow, April 30th. The awards, ranging from $1,000 to $10,000, are used to support innovative student initiatives in one of five areas: Education, Environment & Climate Change, Peace & Human Rights, Poverty Alleviation, and Public Health. Applicants must submit a specific, measurable commitment and a plan for developing partnerships and ensuring sustainability. The contest is open to undergraduate and graduate students from around the world.

In 2009, 78 student-led initiatives were awarded grants to carry out their commitments to positive change. Winning projects included the demolition and new construction of an ecologically sustainable theater in an impoverished area of Brazil, a radio station in Nigeria broadcasting agricultural information to poor rural farmers living in isolated communities, and a partnership with cell phone companies in Ghana and Nigeria to create a system where any consumer with a cell phone could send a free text message to drug manufacturers to verify that their medication is real and not counterfeit.

Does your student group have a great idea? Apply today!

Nominations for the 2010 Civic Ventures Purpose Prize are due March 5.

The Purpose Prize recognizes outstanding innovators who are working creatively to spearhead significant social change in the second half of life. If you know someone over the age of 60 who has initiated important innovations in an encore career, and who is currently working in a leadership capacity on an initiative to address a major social problem in the United States or abroad, consider nominating them for the prize. Five nominees will be selected to win $100,000 and five more will receive $50,000 as a “down payment on what these 60-plus innovators will do next.”

Previous winners include a doctor and special education teacher who treat victims of terrorism around the world; a psychiatrist who recruits mental health professionals to provide free, confidential counseling to veterans, active-duty military personnel and their families; a computer executive who built a nationwide substance abuse recovery program based on Native American beliefs and traditions; an engineer who created “green” bricks out of fly ash, the residue of coal-fired power plants; and a telecommunications executive who brought broadband to Rutherford County and created an online ordering system that enables local farmers to sell their produce directly to Charlotte restaurants.

Funding for the prize is provided by The Atlantic Philanthropies and The John Templeton Foundation. Nominees must be residents of the United States or a U.S. territory.

Today is the official end of the first-ever Mozilla Service Week. So far, our friends at Mozilla know of at least 11,869 hours donated to worthy organizations by tech-savvy volunteers around the world. We want to offer big congratulations to Mozilla on this undertaking, and thanks to everyone who participated!

Completed a project?

Head over to the Mozilla Service Week site to log your service hours and share your story. One student from North Bengal Medical College already wrote about how he set up a website for the North Bengal Orphanage.

Want to keep spreading the Web goodness?

If Mozilla Service Week showed us anything, it’s that the Web is a precious public resource. Tomorrow, September 22, is OneWebDay. Visit the Mozilla Causes page to learn more. You can download posters, help conduct an Internet Health Check, or make a donation that Mozilla will match.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

Students have long been involved in social change efforts, aligning themselves with diverse causes including the labor movement, anti-war movements, divestment campaigns, Fair Trade campaigns, climate change, access to education, and a lot more.

To celebrate such efforts, nominations are now being accepted for the first ever Campus Hellraisers award, honoring the year’s “most noteworthy student campaigns and other creative feats of campus activism.” The award is sponsored by Mother Jones, Campus Progress, and WireTap. Winning campaigns will be featured in the September/October issue of Mother Jones.

Note: Nominees are not limited to college students. Grad students, high school students, and kindergartners are all potential candidates.

Nominate a student activist here by June 10th

Photo by Flickr user Muffet (Creative Commons)

I drink a lot of bottled water. Every day. But I don’t normally associate bottled water with making a difference — in fact, quite the opposite. So I was pleased to learn that Project 7, a brand new Texas-based company, not only uses 100% recycled bottles but is also going to give a portion of its proceeds to nonprofits. Why? Because they want to “change the score.”

Project 7 is now accepting applications from nonprofits whose work fits within these seven areas of focus: Heal the Sick, Save the Earth, House the Homeless, Feed the Hungry, Help Those in Need, Build the Future, and Hope for Peace. So if your organization is striving to reduce gang violence or increase the existence of renewable energy, for example, you have an equal chance to receive $15,000 from Project 7′s “community piggy bank.” Consumers vote on which organizations receive the prize, and they can then stay connected to your cause and see the money in action. During this economic crisis, it’s a safe bet to say some extra cash couldn’t come at a better time.

Funding is open to any US-based charity or nonprofit that works both locally and abroad. Finalists will be selected by September 2009.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

Here at Idealist we see a lot of contests for social good in our inboxes, and we often pass the word on to you. (Julia recently blogged about this Social Entrepreneurship Competition for Youth, and Celeste spread the word about the Members Project.) Now Google is committing $10 million to fund up to five great ideas, suggested by you, and selected by an advisory board through their Project 10 to the 100th.

They’re looking for ideas that will reach a lot of people and have a deep and lasting impact; can be implemented within a year or two; and are simple and cost-effective. The cool thing about this contest is all you need is a great idea—you don’t necessarily need to have the skills or time to implement it yourself. If your idea is selected, Google will identify organizations (through an RFP process) that can actually implement it. So, you can sit back and watch as your idea becomes reality.

Click here for more information and a video introduction to the contest! The submission deadline is October 20.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

By Flickr user Toasty Ken (Creative Commons)

For any American Express cardholders out there, there’s a chance right now for you to use your credit card to make a difference. No swipe needed—all you have to do is log on and vote.

The American Express Members Project is giving away $1.5 million in funding to an inspiring project dedicated to making a positive impact in the world. From over 1,190 projects submitted, the following five were chosen as finalists:

Help 100,000 children thrive in the classroom! Through DonorsChoose.org, provide 4,000 low-income classrooms across the country with needed school supplies.

Saving the Lives of Malnourished Children: International Medical Corps’ program to prevent children from dying of starvation.

Alzheimer’s Disease: Early Detection Matters: Help the Alzheimer’s Association educate the public about a disease that affects five million people.

Loans that Change Lives: Using the web platform of Kiva.org, fight global poverty by becoming a “social investor” for entrepreneurs in developing countries.

Feeding 1 Million Children Daily: Provide school lunch for children across India through the Akshaya Patra Foundation.

The deadline to cast your vote is October 13.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

As the United States presidential election approaches, I’ve been thinking a lot about democracy and voting. Even when voter turnout increases in a given election year, I’m usually disappointed that half of the eligible population stays home on election day. It’s particularly frustrating to know that for the last 30 years, voters have been disproportionately of higher income, older, or more partisan in their interests than non-voters, and that because of that, politicians don’t conduct outreach to many communities.

Even though I work for a nonprofit (and one that supports other nonprofits), I’d never really considered the role that the sector could play in increasing voter engagement. Then I heard from the Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network (NVEN), and I started to consider what organizations in the sector can do to reduce barriers to participation.

Because of confusing lobbying rules, many nonprofit professionals might think their organization can’t get involved in voting or elections. Not only is this not true, but the reality is nonprofits can play a significant role in promoting democracy. On the Why Nonprofits? page of the NonprofitVote.org website, the Network points out, “Any map of the nonprofit sector reveals its highest density among underrepresented populations with a history of lower voter participation.” Nonprofits can build democracy by providing calls to action, educating voters, and helping to reduce barriers to participation.

What you want to steer clear of, as Put wrote last week, is doing anything with the goal of affecting the outcome of the election.

To help you figure out the rules, and get ideas for how your organization can help, the Nonprofit Voter Engagement Network is giving away complimentary 501(c)(3) “Nonprofits Help America Vote” kits, including their Nonprofits, Voting and Elections guide to nonpartisan activities for charities.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

Photo from Flickr user Kevan (Creative Commons)

If you could advise the next United States President on what they should do their first day on the job, what would you say? Would you urge them to pull the US out of Iraq? Ask them to focus on eradicating the debt of developing nations? Request universal health care for all Americans?

If you’re under 24 and have an idea for a better future, check out the Y in the World: International Cooperation and My Generation video contest. Hosted by On Day One, a project of the Better World Fund, the contest calls on all youth with creativity and a camera to let the world know what they have to say. How? Create a short video about what you think the next President should immediately start working on, and simply put it up on YouTube for judging.

Two winners—one for Most Creative Video and one for Best Idea—will receive an all-expenses paid trip to NYC to take their ideas from mock reality to real life at the Youth Leadership Summit this July. Besides getting to hang out in a cool city with other innovative youth, the winners will also have the chance to become guest bloggers for On Day One.

Submissions are due June 15. Why not let your voice be heard?

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]

Photo by Flickr user AMagill (Creative Commons)

Do you have an eye for composition and color, and a heart that cares about making the world a better place? If so, don’t miss out on Sappi’s Ideas That Matter grant program.

Sappi is a global producer of fine paper that believes designers’ talents can be used for more than what simply looks good. The company has put out a call for graphic designers to create a printed communication campaign for an organization of their choice. Whether it’s a humanitarian cause or an environmental issue, the topic doesn’t matter—as long as it’s something you’re passionate about.

Last year, designers created snazzy new materials for a diverse palette of fifteen organizations. New York’s Innocence Project, which provides legal assistance to those who could be proven innocent with DNA testing, and Chicago’s Creative Pitch, which redistributes unwanted art materials, were just a couple that received a portion of the total $1 million in prize money.

Drawn to this contest and want see your name in print? Make sure to submit your entry by May 31st.

[This blog entry appeared on an older version of Idealist; any broken links are a result of having re-launched our site in Fall 2010.]