Climate Adaption & Low-Carbon Housing Challenge – May 9

Posted by MIT Solve on April 11, 2023

MIT Solve invites applications for its Climate Adaption & Low-Carbon Housing Challenge.

According to MIT Solve, the climate crisis requires dramatic action from all stakeholders, and a thriving zero-carbon world will require rapid shifts for mitigation and adaptation. A billion people lack decent housing, while current housing drives 6 percent of global emissions from construction and 16 percent from electricity and heating. Simultaneously, the world saw $268 billion in losses from natural catastrophes in 2022—climate-linked droughts, floods, and heat waves that disproportionately affect countries with low cumulative emissions. With strained disaster response and recovery systems, communities need new approaches to build good housing at scale, plus ways to integrate climate risk into planning across all decisions.

The MIT Solve community seeks eight technology-based solutions with the potential to help communities create quality low-carbon homes at scale or adapt to more extreme weather. Solve seeks solutions that: reduce emissions from multifamily housing during construction, operation, and end-of-life while addressing barriers to local adoption; support informal communities in upgrading to more resilient housing, including financing, design, and low-carbon materials or energy sources; help communities understand and incorporate climate risk in infrastructure design and planning, including through improved data collection and analysis, integration with existing systems, and aligning financial incentives such as insurance; and adapt land and coastal areas to more extreme weather, including through climate-smart agriculture or restoring natural ecosystems.

All teams selected for Solve’s Global Challenges will receive a $10,000 grant. Additionally, the GSR Foundation will award a prize to solutions that use innovative technology to address pressing issues in their communities and the world (preference will be given to solutions that use blockchain to improve financial inclusion). Up to $200,000 will be awarded across several Solver teams from any of Solve’s 2023 Global Challenges.

Additionally, supported by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, the AI for Humanity Prize is open to solutions leveraging data science, artificial intelligence, and/or machine learning to benefit humanity. Up to $150,000 in funding will be awarded across several Solver teams from any of Solve’s 2023 Global Challenges.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the MIT Solve website.

Deadline: May 9, 2023