<h1>Internet Infrastructure Grant program</h1>
<p><a href="http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/news-events/global-events/internet-infrastructure-grant-symposium/index.xhtml?loc=en_US&cmp=tw">http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/news-events/global-events/internet-infrastructure-grant-symposium/index.xhtml?loc=en_US&cmp=tw</a></p>
<p>Without vision, hard work and creativity, the Internet
would not have evolved into the global resource we know and use today.
More than 25 years ago the first-ever .com was registered and has since
altered the course of history to put the world at our fingertips. The
Internet has changed the very fabric of how we interact, inform, conduct
business, donate, educate, communicate, connect, and share stories with
others across the country, continent, and all over the world.</p>
<p>The Verisign infrastructure grant program, launched
during the 2010 “25 Years of .com” commemoration, reflects Verisign’s
commitment to sponsoring research that supports the Internet’s robust
growth and development. Verisign is expanding this program in 2012 to
foster new research which advances security and stability, encourages
Internet deployment, and improves the Internet infrastructure overall.</p>
<div class="tab_nav"><a class="active"><span>Award Application</span></a><a><span>Past Events</span></a><a><span>2011 Grants</span></a><a><span>History</span></a></div>
<p>Verisign is pleased to declare that it will
announce two $200,000 research awards on May 2012 to support research
that has the potential to improve the availability and security of
Internet access in all parts of the world. We are seeking proposals for
research topics focused on an Internet that is available and secure in
all countries, supporting a range of infrastructures, given the reality
that people and organizations are relying to a growing extent on mobile
devices of all kinds for their connectivity. The research funding is
intended to support two graduate students or equivalent for one year,
plus institutional overhead.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/news-events/global-events/internet-infrastructure-grant-symposium/grant-application.xhtml">Applications</a>
will be accepted from teams composed of researchers from accredited
academic institutions, industry research labs, non-profit organizations,
for-profit corporations, and governmental agencies. Applications from
teams representing institutions in multiple countries are encouraged.
All research outputs will be required to be released to the public
domain for free and unrestricted use.</p>
<p>Applications will be evaluated against the following criteria:</p>
<ul><li><strong>Relevance:</strong> The applicant(s)
should propose research that supports the stated goal of the program,
with a specific focus on global accessibility and/or infrastructural
improvements that will benefit the developing world.</li><li><strong>Innovation:</strong> The
applicant(s) should propose research that is innovative, novel and
important. Applications will be judged based on the innovative nature of
their proposed research foci and goals.</li><li><strong>Feasibility:</strong> The
applicant(s) should demonstrate that their proposed research plan is
feasible and can be fully realized within the timeframe (May 2012 – fall
2013) allowed by the program. </li><li><strong>Overall Quality:</strong> Judges are
asked to provide their overall impressions of the grant proposals,
encompassing all of the aforementioned criteria, as well as any other
criteria deemed relevant based on their knowledge and experience in the
field.</li></ul>
<p>Grant submissions will be judged by:</p>
<ul><li><strong>Rick Boucher</strong>, former chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Communications and the Internet and co-founder of the <a href="http://www.netcaucus.org/" target="_blank">Congressional Internet Caucus</a></li>
<li><strong>Dr. Stephen Crocker</strong>, CEO of <a href="http://www.shinkuro.com/" target="_blank">Shinkuro</a> and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the <a href="http://www.icann.org/" target="_blank">Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)</a></li>
<li><strong>Dr. James Lewis</strong>, Senior Fellow and Director of the Technology and Public Policy Program at the <a href="http://csis.org/" target="_blank">Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)</a></li>
<li><strong>Ndéye Maimouna Diop Diagne</strong>,
ICT Director at Senegal’s Ministry of Post, Telecommunications and ICT
and the current chair of the Board of Directors of AfriNIC</li><li><strong><a href="http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/why-verisign/innovation-initiatives/labs/people/index.xhtml?target=danny-mcpherson">Danny McPherson</a></strong>, Vice President and Chief Security Officer, <a href="http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US">Verisign</a></li>
<li><strong>Alice Munyua</strong>, Vice Chair of
the Governmental Advisory Committee and Project Coordinator for
Catalyzing Access to Information and Communications Technologies in
Africa (CATIA)</li></ul>
<p>Check back for updates as additional judges may be added to the panel as the program continues to develop.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/news-events/global-events/internet-infrastructure-grant-symposium/grant-application.xhtml">Applications</a>
will be due by April 5, 2012 and award decisions will be announced May
2012. The grants are intended to support research performed during the
2012-13 academic year. Awardees will present their results at a
symposium in Washington, DC in fall 2013. </p>
<h3>Key Dates:</h3>
<p><strong>January 17, 2012:</strong> Research Grant Submission Process Open<br><strong>April 5, 2012:</strong> Research Grant Submissions Due<br><strong>May 2012:</strong> Announce Research Awards<br>
<strong>May 22, 2013:</strong> Research Due<br><strong>Fall 2013:</strong> Research Presented at DC Symposium</p>