{"id":1950,"date":"2026-02-27T15:46:42","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T20:46:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/r5conferences.org\/2026\/?page_id=1950"},"modified":"2026-02-27T15:46:42","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T20:46:42","slug":"spark-tank","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/r5conferences.org\/2026\/spark-tank\/","title":{"rendered":"Spark Tank"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Ignite the Future: SparkTank 2026<\/h1>\n<p>Do you have the <strong>spark<\/strong> to improve IEEE? As the pinnacle event of the <strong>Region 5 Catalyst program<\/strong>, we are launching the all-new <strong>ONE IEEE SYNERGY<\/strong>. We invite all Region 5 Section, Student, Chapter, and Affinity Group volunteers to pitch new ideas that drive focused, inter-generational leadership across our great region.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"cta-button\" href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/e\/1FAIpQLSdnHFvigCPUdS2HG5EsRL8XEzDgmf8SQX5JoEjCCAqWBUa4cw\/viewform?usp=header\">Submit Your Pitch Here<\/a><\/div>\n<h2>The Opportunity<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"opportunity-list\">\n<li><strong>Pitch Live:<\/strong> The Top 5 entries will be invited to present LIVE at the Region 5 Congress in Boulder on March 28th, 2026.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Global Panel:<\/strong> Present your idea to a panel of global engineering leaders, including including IEEE Presidents and other top Industry executives.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Total Grant Pool:<\/strong> Winners will be awarded program grants from a <strong>$3,000 total pool<\/strong>, with specific amounts decided by the judging panel.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Scale Your Vision:<\/strong> Entrants are highly encouraged to pursue their ideas further through the <a href=\"https:\/\/innovation-portal.ieee.org\/\">IEEE Innovation Portal<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Rules &amp; Deadlines<\/h2>\n<ul class=\"rules-list\">\n<li><strong>Deadline:<\/strong> Entries must be submitted via the Google Form by <strong>Friday, March 20th, 2026, at 11:59 PM CST<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Eligibility:<\/strong> Open to all IEEE volunteer members in Region 5. (Region 5 Executive Committee voting members are ineligible).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Attendance:<\/strong> Finalists must present in-person in Boulder. Participants are responsible for their own travel costs if not otherwise covered by IEEE.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Judging &amp; Compliance:<\/strong> Initial screening and grant reimbursements are coordinated by the <strong>Region 5 Professional Activities Chair (PACE)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"links-section\">\n<p><strong>Resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>An <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/cdDkqnv0mH8\">example pitch to view is available here<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>An <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/presentation\/d\/14YW_V8EH6tgEEfzy8-eiUX1FPjS6kY_Q?rtpof=true&amp;usp=drive_fs\">example template for entries is here<\/a> (you are not required to use the template).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"footer\">\n<p>Initial screening and grants are coordinated by the <b>Region 5 Professional Activities Chair (PACE).<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ignite the Future: SparkTank 2026 Do you have the spark  [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1950","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - 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