Next Big Idea Challenge
You don't need to have the perfect idea to get started. Throughout the challenge, you'll build the skills and confidence to take an early idea and turn it into something that could make a real difference.
Thinking about applying to the Earth Prize? This challenge is a great way to prepare. You'll practice the skills you'll need to develop a strong environmental innovation while getting your idea out of your head and into the real world.
Challenge Duration: September 28 - December 15
Status: Register by Sept. 25
Submissions Due: December 15, 2026
In collaboration with Inspire Citizens
Join the Next Big Idea Challenge and Bring Your Ideas to Life
Register to participate in the challenge and get started.
Whether you're a student, educator, or learning together as a class, registration gives you access to the full Next Big Idea Challenge, including:
Challenge updates and reminders
Practical tips, tools, and activities to help you move from ideation to implementation
Strategies for identifying meaningful problems, understanding the people affected, testing your assumptions, and developing stronger ideas
Activities to help you prototype, gather feedback, build partnerships, and refine your solution
A printable Certificate of Completion
The opportunity to develop and pitch your own environmental innovation
Whether you already have a big idea or are still figuring out what problem you want to tackle, Next Big Idea will help you get moving.
Ready to find your next big idea? Register today to participate.
How it works
1. Register
Sign up for the Next Big Idea Challenge to participate and unlock the full experience. You'll receive challenge updates, reminders, and practical Innovation Drops filled with tools, strategies, and activities to help you move from ideation to implementation.
2. Explore, Build, and Test
Start with a problem worth solving. Throughout the challenge, you'll explore environmental challenges, talk to stakeholders, test your assumptions, develop and prototype ideas, gather feedback, and build partnerships. Along the way, you'll turn an early idea into a stronger environmental innovation.
3. Pitch and Celebrate
Bring your idea together and pitch your environmental innovation. Whether you're preparing for the Earth Prize or developing a solution for your own community, you'll finish the challenge with new skills, greater confidence, and a clearer path for turning your idea into action.
Participants who complete the challenge can receive a Certificate of Completion and the opportunity to share their work with the wider Earth Foundation community.
Develop your next big idea
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Step 1: Explore and define
Start with a problem worth solving.
Begin with curiosity and explore an environmental challenge that matters to you. Use practical activities to:
Identify problems and opportunities
Explore why the problem matters
Understand who is affected
Talk to stakeholders and gather different perspectives
Challenge your assumptions
The goal: Find a problem worth solving and understand it from more than one perspective.
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Step 2: Ideate and Innovate
Turn your insights into ideas.
Now it's time to start imagining what could be possible. You'll use creative strategies to:
Generate potential solutions
Explore different approaches
Identify what makes your idea innovative
Choose an idea to develop
Think about what you'll need to make it happen
The goal: Develop a promising solution to the problem you've identified.
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Step 3: Prototype and test
Take your idea into the real world.
It's time to move from an idea to action. You'll explore how to:
Create a prototype or early version of your solution
Test your idea with real people
Gather feedback
Learn from what works and what doesn't
Refine your solution based on what you discover
The goal: Learn by doing and make your solution stronger.
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Step 4: Build and implement
Think about how your solution could create lasting impact.
With feedback in hand, take your idea further. You'll explore:
How to improve and adapt your solution
What resources and partnerships you might need
How you could implement your idea in your community
How your solution could grow or create greater impact
The goal: Develop a clearer path from prototype to implementation.
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Step 5: Tell the story of your innovation
Share what you discovered along the way.
Create a short video overview of your innovation journey. Tell us:
The Problem: What problem did you identify, and why did you choose to focus on it?
The Solution: What did you develop, and how does it address the problem?
The Test: What happened when you put your idea to the test? What did you learn, and how did you adapt?
The Journey: What would you do next?
Your video doesn't need to be perfect. We want to see your thinking, your process, and what you learned along the way.
Submit your video, receive a Certificate of Completion, and celebrate your journey from problem to possibility.
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Step 6: Apply to the Earth Prize!
This challenge is also a great way to build skills and develop an idea if you're considering applying to The Earth Prize.
Take your idea to the next level!
Submit your project by December 15, 2026.
Your tasks:
Identify a problem worth solving.
Develop and test an innovative solution.
Gather feedback and refine your idea.
Share your innovation journey.
Create a short video showing the problem you focused on, the solution you developed, and what happened when you tested it.
Submit your video as an MP4 or provide a YouTube link.
Click the button below and complete the submission form to finish the challenge and share your Next Big Idea!
