Application
To improve underserved community engagement and participation in health research and adoption of tools to detect, treat and monitor diseases and disorders.
Thank you for participating in the NIH Build UP Trust Challenge. We recommend reviewing all submission requirements, rules, and the scoring rubric used to assess all valid submissions before you begin.
Your entire submission will be shared with Judging Panel members and the Build UP Challenge Team during the evaluation process. Portions of your submission may be published online and may be shared with the general public to promote your solution or to highlight results (see Section 2. Participation Rules #13 for more information). Those portions may include, but are not limited to, Quick Pitch and Video Presentation.
This submission form saves automatically and the status of your submission is available to view on your dashboard (you will not receive any automated emails).
Responses to this submission form must be in English. This provides consistency across all entries during our review process and reduces the risk of misinterpretation or translation error.
Prior to submission, confirm the information provided on the Registration Form is correct. Be sure to review your submission as it will appear after it’s been submitted (links at the top and bottom of page). When you have completed all requirements, a message will display on the screen with the option to submit your entry. Once you have submitted the entry, you will no longer be able to make changes.
You must submit your entry no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on Tuesday, December 5, 2023. Participants who do not submit their completed entry by the deadline will not have their entry considered for this prize competition. Contact questions@builduptrust.org with questions or technical issues.
All fields are required.
Make a strong first impression with a succinct overview of your solution. This should include a brief introduction to the problem you aim to address and a summary of the solution’s impact.
Solution Title (up to 10 words)
Provide a title for your solution that easily identifies and sets your project apart from others.
Solution Statement (up to 25 words)
Provide a short, one-sentence description of your solution using language that can be easily understood by non-experts, while avoiding jargon and acronyms.
Executive Summary (up to 75 words)
Provide a concise description of the most powerful aspects of your solution. This should be a stand-alone statement that does not require any other context to clearly explain what you propose to accomplish. Focus on delivering an engaging and persuasive overview.
Solution Type
Select one area that best describes your proposed solution for the Build UP Trust Challenge. While Lead Participants may submit only one solution to this competition, proposed projects can focus on one or more of these solution areas. You may describe how your solution addresses more than one solution type in other narrative responses throughout this submission form.
Project Stage
Select one option that best describes the project stage for your proposed solution.
You are required to submit a video that captures your solution and describes why it should be supported. The video is an opportunity to showcase your passion and pitch your story in a succinct format. We want you to share your vision in a way that is different from the written format. This DOES NOT need to be a professionally produced video – a video shot on a smartphone is acceptable.
In order to complete this part of your application, upload a short digital film using YouTube. Video submissions should follow these guidelines or else it will render the submission ineligible:
Here are general suggestions for delivering a high-quality video pitch:
Frame the problem you intend to solve and show how your understanding of its nuances has informed your strategy.
Problem Statement (up to 250 words)
Set the stage for your solution. Identify specific challenges, concerns, and barriers your solution will address to build community trust and increase engagement from underserved populations. If you are focusing on a specific disease or health condition, describe the scope of that condition and the populations that are most heavily impacted.
Existing Landscape (up to 150 words)
Briefly describe other efforts aimed to address this problem and other organizations or projects that are most similar to your work, if applicable. Explain how your team and proposed solution fit into this landscape. Introduce your understanding of the current relevant systems and conditions which affect your plans and the impact of your solution.
Provide a basic understanding of the leadership, structure, and capabilities of those working on this solution. Should you receive a prize, you must designate a Lead Participant responsible for taking accountability for prize funds, as well as providing project direction, control, and supervision. You identified your Lead Participant during registration. If your Lead Participant has changed, please select Edit Registration Form from the Profile menu to update the Lead Participant information.
Track Record (up to 250 words)
Describe your team’s skills, capacity, experience, and commitment to designing a practical, innovative solution that can deliver results. Highlight your strong and authentic connection to one or more underserved community groups. Be sure to include core competencies and how they apply to your solution, any relevant past solutions or experience to address the problem described above, and any other details that support your ability to deliver a solution that effectively engages with and gains the trust of underserved communities and populations.
Team Structure (up to 200 words)
List key team members and/or partner organizations. Describe the roles, responsibilities, and contributions of each key team member/partner and measures taken to ensure equity between partners.
Showcase the proposed solution and your strategic approach to increase participation in medical research and adoption of existing and new tools and strategies to detect, treat and monitor diseases and disorders. Participants who move on to Phase II of the competition will have up to one year to further strengthen, test, and implement the proposed solution. Be sure to emphasize how your solution aligns with the criteria used to assess each valid submission (see scoring rubric).
Solution Description (up to 250 words)
To make strides toward eliminating all types of underrepresentation, institutions must target systemic change and institutional transformation by identifying specific barriers in their environment and developing targeted strategies to combat them.
There is a critical need to identify the fundamental drivers of health disparities and research opportunities that could reduce barriers to medical diagnosis and treatment and to promote effective interventions in underserved populations. A fundamental aspect of the adoption and implementation of effective interventions is strong community-level engagement and trust in healthcare workers and the broader healthcare system.
Share how your solution will utilize new and existing strategies to resolve the problem you described above and address major barriers preventing the adoption of new and existing health care tools and diagnostics in underserved communities. Describe the short- and long-term impact of your solution, including any opportunities for structural or systemic change.
Community Demographics
Select the communities your team aims to specifically and directly benefit through the solution. You may select more than one.
Community Description (up to 200 words)
We expect teams to be thoughtful about working with a range of communities, and how to actively plan for and include the most marginalized and/or vulnerable from within those populations in project design, planning, and ongoing work. Describe your priority population(s), as well as any secondary or other populations who may engage with and/or benefit from the solution. Explain how the project design and plans authentically embrace diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) across all aspects, including persons with disabilities, religious or ethnic minorities, BIPOC, women, gender identity and sexual orientation, rural, urban and other geographically diverse populations, and/or populations with low socioeconomic status. Include any other demographic details.
Community & Stakeholder Engagement (up to 200 words)
The Build UP Trust Challenge aims to: bring solutions to underserved communities; inform and engage community members; demonstrate the usefulness of solutions; and create opportunities to build confidence in the health system. Describe how your approach responds to existing needs of the populations you intend to serve. Share plans to engage and collaborate with communities and stakeholders throughout the process to ensure long-term success. Articulate any negative externalities or costs/burdens absorbed by stakeholders.
User Experience (up to 200 words)
Describe up to three (3) personas for potential users of the solution you propose. Explain the main flow of action(s) for the primary potential users/intended audiences of this solution, as well as any alternative use cases the solution can support. Include any plans to promote your solution to your intended audiences, and how the personas identified might access then use your proposed solution.
Key Features (up to 150 words)
Identify and describe features of the solution, including any data management and/or reporting capabilities available to users.
Innovation (up to 150 words)
Explain how your solution diverges from, enhances, and/or reinforces existing methods/practices. Emphasize unique aspects of your solution and any other information that showcases creativity and innovation in your approach.
Project Visual (upload)
Upload a single PDF of a visual representation of your solution. This may include but is not limited to illustrations, schematics, images, graphs, diagrams, maps, flow charts, organizational charts, or other visuals to help reviewers to better understand your team and proposed approach. The PDF should not exceed 10MB and a total of three pages and should not contain additional text explanations or be used to circumvent word counts in this submission form. Some brief labels or basic text descriptions are permitted. Pages beyond the three-page limit, as well as unrelated content, will render the submission ineligible.
Current Locations (up to 50 words)
List the location(s) where your solution has already been implemented. If your project has not yet been implemented at another site or region, then you may identify a project of similar type or scale, where your team may not have been responsible but where the similarities are significant. If there has been no other project of similar type or scale, enter NOT APPLICABLE.
Solution Location
Enter at least one and up to three US-based locations where you plan to implement your solution. These locations may or may not be the same as the locations where you are currently implementing your solution.
Location Description (up to 75 words)
Provide any additional context that may be helpful in understanding the locations in which you are working or plan to work. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Integration (up to 100 words)
Operating under a one-year project period should you move on to Phase II, explain any plans you have to build upon and integrate within existing systems or technologies. Illustrate your understanding of the current environment where you have chosen to implement your solution, including current relevant systems and local conditions which might affect your plans. If applicable, explain how you’ll build upon and integrate within existing systems and/or infrastructure. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Project Sustainability (up to 100 words)
Describe plans to sustain and support any ongoing, long-term maintenance, operations, or upgrades for your solution after this competition is completed. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Intellectual Property (up to 100 words)
If you are building on an existing or off-the-shelf technology, identify the owner(s) of the intellectual property and detail the permissions you have secured to utilize that technology. Describe how you will protect any IP that is developed during this challenge and for the purposes of scaling, replication, and/or expansion of your proposed solution during the one-year Phase II period. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Demonstrate how your solution will drive change, including evidence that supports your approach.
Metrics & Results (up to 250 words)
Identify key goals and objectives and describe your methodology for measuring overall performance of the proposed strategy, including the means through which you will track results or milestones to indicate success.
Scalability (up to 200 words)
Identify how your solution differs from, improves upon, and/or bolsters existing methods or practices. If appropriate, explain how you will tailor and adapt your solution for scaling and/or amplifying impact to meet the diverse, growing needs of underserved communities. Briefly describe plans to promote your solution and share your results, key findings, lessons learned, and other helpful information with others.
Evidence of Effectiveness (up to 200 words)
Provide evidence to show the solution will work and share evidence or reasons your results could be replicated and/or scaled. Present any internal (e.g., informal studies, observations, or other indicators of change) or formal academic evidence, including any results from complementary or previous work.
References (up to 200 words)
If you included citations [#s] above, provide a bibliography with a corresponding bracketed number [#] for each citation. If you did not insert citations, offer a list of resources that may be used to validate general claims made in your application. Link to any articles that may be accessed online. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
The Build UP Trust Challenge will award up to $45,000 to up to 10 Phase I finalists. If awarded a prize from Phase I of the Build UP Trust Challenge, finalists will have up to one year to further develop, test, and implement the proposed solution for an opportunity to win one of four Phase II prizes of up to $200,000 each. Describe how you will implement your plans during the one-year demonstration period of Phase II.
Project Plan & Timeline (up to 250 words)
Describe your timeline and key milestones for Phase II implementation.
Barrier Assessment & Risk Mitigation (up to 200 words)
For the milestones in Phase II, describe any key go / no-go criteria and how you plan on addressing known and unknown challenges.
Budget & Resources (up to 150 words)
Provide the estimated total costs to successfully participate in Phase II of the NIH Build UP Trust Challenge and describe how this prize will help improve your participation, as well as improve the feasibility, scalability, and adaptability of your solution. Explain any in-kind support and other resources already secured for the proposed solution.
Total Projected Costs at Scale (up to 100 words)
Share your best estimate of how much your solution will cost to scale beyond Phase II of the Build UP Trust Challenge. Include any potential to leverage the NIH Build UP Trust Challenge for additional resources to realize or scale your solution. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Other Considerations (up to 150 words)
This is your opportunity to raise any other considerations. Here, you may emphasize or expand upon a previous point or provide new information. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Provide additional information about the Lead Participant and any partners.
Unique Entity Identifier
If applicable, provide the 12-character Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) for the Lead Participant and each partner organization. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Institutional Profile File Number
If applicable, provide the unique NIH eRA Institutional Profile File (IPF) number for the Lead Participant and each partner organization. If not applicable, insert NOT APPLICABLE.
Prize Eligibility
In order to be eligible for a prize, individuals must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States and be 18 years of age or older, and organizations must be an entity incorporated in and maintaining a primary place of business in the United States. If you are selected as a potential Winner and you are an individual, you will be asked to confirm citizenship or permanent residency. If you are selected as a potential Winner and you are an organization, you will be asked to confirm the location of your primary place of business.
