First WMO HydroHub Innovation Call - Innovation for Operational Hydrology

100.000 CHF seed-funding will be provided to sustainable solutions that can be up-scaled around the world. We will support you to operationalize your solution and give your approach visibility in the WMO community and partners network.

Applications to this call must address the following issues:

• Focus on freshwater quantity observation, namely water levels, river discharge, soil moisture and precipitation;
• Innovative observation technologies or monitoring approaches that could be adopted by National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs);
• Reduced total cost of ownership, i.e. comprising both direct and indirect costs (such as operations, maintenance, personnel training);
• Especially fit for Least-Developed Countries (LDC) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS);
• Maximizing impact on the ground through the creation of local income from sales and services generated by the awarded solution.

Maximum funding and benefits for the winner/s

The maximum amount to be awarded is 100.000 Swiss Francs. Depending on the proposals received, the funding might be split among several projects.

The winner/s will be awarded:

• Seed-funding to operationalize the solution proposed;
• Visibility in the WMO community and partners network to create sustainable solutions that can be up-scaled around the world.

The Challenge

The ambition of the WMO Global Innovation Hub is to improve the quality, efficiency and availability of hydrometeorological information from existing and new sources of data. To this end, it identifies obstacles and fosters the implementation of pragmatic solutions along the full data value chain. In particular, it tackles specific challenges for operational users in the fields of Hydrometry, Data Management and Management Processes.

This Innovation Call aims to address issues experienced by National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) in hydrological monitoring. NMHSs operate observation networks to collect measurements as a basis for forecast and warning services. These networks are expensive and the demand for more cost-effective products is high.

A variety of alternative solutions has been developed including low-cost sensor technologies, crowd-sourcing of observations and utilization of data for other purposes. Nonetheless, operational uptake by NMHSs is rather low. Reasons are diverse and range from unknown cost and quality to lack of trust in innovative approaches.

The WMO Global Innovation Hub is looking for projects that encourage the endorsement of innovative observation technologies or monitoring approaches by NMHSs at a lower total cost.

Who is eligible

Your innovative idea and your capacity to bring it to life is the most important criteria. If your idea has potential and you can show that you can implement it, you are eligible.

Applications are accepted from private sector, academia and public sector, including large and small companies, start-ups, university working groups and individuals.

A National Meteorological Hydrological Service, preferably in a LDC or SIDS, should represent the end-user of your solution and must be included in your proposal. You can find contact details of potential partners on WMO Country Profile Database Portal. If you are unable to identify suitable NMHS partners yourself, WMO will help find collaborators for the awarded proposal.

Provisional timetable

• Deadline for submissions: 20 August 2018 at midnight CEST
• Selection of the candidates by the selection committee: August-September 2018
• Announcement of the winner/s: early October 2018
• Signing of the agreement: November 2018
• Implementation phase: nine months from the signing of the agreement

Selection Committee

Representatives of the WMO HydroHub Secretariat, WMO Secretariat, WMO Procurement Office and the WMO HydroHub Innovation Committee.

How to apply

Language: Applications must be submitted in English. Use of French is also accepted.

Application procedure: Applications must be submitted through the United Nations Global Marketplace (UNGM). Registration is free. If you need help with the submission process, you can contact the WMO Procurement Office (procurement@wmo.int).

Proposals must include a project plan that describes the following aspects:

• A detailed description of the observation technology or monitoring approach including material demonstrating its accuracy and dependability;
• A detailed description of intellectual property ownership of all components relevant for operational use (i.e. foreground and background IP);
• An overview of the advantages expected from the operational use of the solution within NMHSs, including an estimate of the reduction in the total-cost-of-ownership, facts and figures about the improvements to data quality/reliability and an outline of anticipated progress in the long-term suitability of hydrometric observations;
• A description of the potential opportunities and challenges of widespread national, regional and global uptake of the solution proposed, including details on the environments, terrains and geographies in which the solution could be used as well as how the solution conforms to current international hydrometry standards.

Intellectual Property

WMO requests the full hand-over of all intellectual property created in this project with the aim to release it to the public domain for profit-making business.