What is it?

Startup Tasmania is excited to partner with the Riverside Lions Club to launch the first ever Tasmanian Innovation Expo 2021. The Expo is a competition open to Tasmanian students (Year 3-12) to propose an innovative solution to a real-life business challenge. It is a chance to practice business problem solving, be challenged by a panel of industry-leading professionals and win prizes to help take your idea to fruition.

The Tasmanian Innovation Expo has three categories:

Startup
School Year 3-6 – see below
School Year 7-12 – see below

Key Dates

Entries open – Wednesday 10 March 2021
Entries close – 5.00pm Wednesday 19 May 2021
Applicants notified of outcome – Monday 10 May 2021
Tasmanian Innovation Expo – 22-23 May 2021

The competition

To enter, all you need to do is tell us about:

1. A real-life problem or opportunity you want to address
2. Your innovative solution for solving that problem/ opportunity, and
3. Who would buy or use your innovative solution (the customer).

Your innovative solution could be a new or improved:

• Product or service
• Way of doing something
• Commercial market
• Source of supply

Why participate?

Stand out – demonstrate you have the skills to succeed. The Tasmanian Innovation Expo will test your critical thinking, presentation technique and problem solving skills.
Challenge yourself – it’s a chance to get feedback from a panel of industry-leading professionals.
Real experience – participating is a great way to test your skills and knowledge from the classroom in a real-life business challenge.
Get ahead – it’s a great opportunity to make connections and test out your business idea.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can apply?

The Tasmanian Innovation Expo has two competition categories open to Tasmanian students (Years 3-6 and Years 7-12). To be eligible you must be enrolled in a Tasmanian school in one of these year levels during the 2021 calendar year. Both teams and individuals can apply. Teams must include names of all team members. An individual can only be part of one entry. Entries are asked to provide the school they are enrolled in but do not have to represent their respective schools. Places are strictly limited to the first 20 applications received.

What can I win?

First place in each category will receive $500 cash to support the progression of their idea. The school of the winning applicant/ team will have the opportunity to host a successful Australian startup business speak at their school.

Second and third place in each category will receive a collection of digital and hard copy resources to support the development of their idea.

What is the application process?

To submit an application, you must first register to apply by emailing [email protected] with your name and email.

Once you have registered to apply, we will send you the list of questions for you to copy to a text editor to answer in your own time. Please ensure you have included all relevant information in your application form. Then copy and paste your final answers into the form before submitting.

As part of your application you must:

• Submit an A0 size digital poster including the following information:
  • A real-life problem or opportunity you want to address
  • Your innovative solution for solving that problem/ opportunity, and
  • Who would buy or use your innovative solution (the customer).
• Submit a short (approx. 90 second) video explaining this, uploaded onto a public domain media platform such as YouTube [include the URL address in your entry submission].

You must submit your application by 5.00pm Wednesday 19 May 2021. Places are strictly limited to the first 20 applications received.

How are applications assessed?

After applications close on 5.00pm Wednesday 19 May 2021, applications are screened for eligibility. The assessment panel will look for the strongest applications that can demonstrate strong rationale for the problem/ opportunity and the solution.

What if students need assistance with their application?

Startup Tasmania can provide preliminary feedback on applications.

Startup Tasmania will also offer free workshops for schools on topics including:

• The Business Model Canvas (a framework widely used for developing new business models)
• How to ‘pitch’ (i.e. how to present your concept)
• How to develop a digital poster
• The opportunity to learn from and engage with successful Australian startup businesses

To register your school’s interest for any of the above topics, please contact [email protected]

What does it cost?

There is no cost to participate.

What happens if I am not selected as a finalist?

The objective of the Tasmanian Innovation Expo is not to pick winners but to grow the pool of startups and scaleups in Tasmania. Of those not selected as finalists, we recommend you connect with Enterprize [[email protected], 1300 82 1115] and Startup Tasmania for free advice and support to continue to develop and progress your idea.

My question is not answered here, how do I get in touch?

If your question isn’t answered here, please email us at [email protected]