Future Vision is a unique student awards scheme that celebrates bright ideas for
creating sustainable communities, innovations and new thinking that will have a
positive impact on the places in which people live, work and play.
Who can enter?
The entry form
What are the categories?
Closing dates
Getting started
What sort of ideas are we looking for?
Help!
Who can enter?
Anyone studying in full time, higher education, anywhere in the UK, is welcome to
submit an entry to Future Vision – regardless of what course you're studying. This
includes foreign students studying in the UK, mature students, plus those studying
for Masters and PhD degrees.
The entry form
As well as filling in your personal details, you can also upload documents or post
links to web pages relating to your ideas – for example a You Tube video of you
presenting your ideas, or an online photo gallery showing how you would bring a
bright idea to life. Find the entry
form here
What are the categories?
Future Vision includes five award categories and an overall winner – the entry that
in the opinion of the judges best demonstrates a vision for a sustainable community
fit for the future.
We’ve created the following categories for the awards but it’s quite possible that
your idea falls into more than one – you’ll only be able to win once but feel free
to submit your entry into one, some, or all of the following categories.
Buildings:
transform the way we design and build
Open spaces:
make better use of space in towns, cities and villages
Play time:
bring local communities closer together
Work life:
improve local economies
Green thinking:
create environmentally-friendly solutions for everyday living
Closing dates
- Submit your entry to the Future Vision Awards by 30 April 2009.
Getting started
Wander around your local community and explore how it has evolved over time – you'll
see that it's often a combination of innovations and simple ideas that help create
and maintain thriving communities.
We’re looking for any idea or concept that helps make our villages, towns and cities
more sustainable. Visit our
Example Entries page for some inspiration.
You could also research sustainability and regeneration news to find out what’s
going on in the sector at the moment – perhaps you’ll be the one to devise a solution
to an ongoing, troublesome problem! Some good sites to start with are:
www.regen.net
www.newstartmag.co.uk
www.insidehousing.co.uk
Finally, take a look at HCA Academy’s Showcase website to see how some brilliant
sustainability ideas are already being used in practical settings.
What sort of ideas are we looking for?
Your entries can be as complicated or as simple as you like. Read the following
to get some idea of what we’re looking for.
You might:
- Plan a street or housing estate that can accommodate individuals, couples and families
in a strong community
- Suggest ways to reduce car usage in your village or town centre
- Create a community building that provides services for everybody
- Design an inner city garden space where people feel safe
- Come up with a scheme or product that gives local people a voice
Examples of 'futuristic' ideas
- Mono rail transport systems that improve transport links
- Modular buildings where walls, rooms and floors can be added or taken away to ensure
homes are appropriate for people's needs
- Composting toilets and rooftop rainwater collection systems that promote energy
efficiency
- Interactive video services that engage residents in decision-making processes
Examples of simple ideas
- A wooden bench in an open space that encourages community interaction
- City-centre allotments, mobile libraries and schools’ sports facilities that are
open to the public in evenings
- Walking school buses that reduce traffic congestion
- Cycling paramedics who provide rapid response healthcare
- Street parties to boost community spirit
- Neighbourhood watch schemes to help reduce crime
- Artwork that inspires respect amongst the local community
Remember: some of the best ideas can also be the simplest.
Help!
If you’ve still got some unanswered questions, you’re having difficulty with this
website, or you need help with the entry process, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.