The open challenge was issued through his philanthropic Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, who work “to help all people lead healthy, productive lives” through global health, technology and education development. The Foundation is promising a $100,000 grant for the best proposal they receive, with the potential to increase the funding to $1,000,000 following the initial start-up award.
In a blog post, members of the foundation explain the reasons behind the challenge. The bloggers argue that “the undeniable, and unsurprising, truth is that most men prefer sex without a condom”. While currently prevalent latex condoms are safe and effective, for many they are uncomfortable and awkward. This is despite of an industry that produces 15 billion condoms a year for a consumer base of three quarters of a billion men.
The new proposal is searching for new designs that not only encompass the existing benefits of the contraceptives but are also pleasurable to use – perhaps even enhancing the sexual experience for the wearer and his partner. The end goal is to encourage consistent use, helping alleviate the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and further minimize unplanned pregnancies, especially for at risk groups such as sex workers.
The Grand Challenges
The initiative is part of a subsection of the Foundation’s long-term scheme called The Grand Challenges – a set of sixteen challenges that aim to directly confront some of the prevalent issues and problems facing global health. Some of these include the development of needle-free medicinal delivery systems, developing strategies to deplete or incapacitate disease-carrying insect populations, and the preparation of vaccines that do not rely on refrigeration for storage.
The Grand Challenges were introduced in 2008, and the Gates Foundation has since provided 45 grants worth over $450 million over multiple disciplines. The Grand Challenges Explorations initiative, to which the current search for the next-gen condom belongs to, is a $100 million sub-programme launched in 2008.
The Explorations programme aims to promote more unorthodox solutions to issues related to the more general Grand Challenges. Now in its eleventh round, Explorations is also currently asking researchers of all disciplines to try and confront exploratory concepts such as ‘Labor Saving Strategies and Innovations for Women Smallholder Farmers’ and’ New Approaches for Detection, Treatment, and Control of Selected Neglected Tropical Diseases.’
Fortune to charity
Bill Gates, listed by Forbes as the world’s second wealthiest man, is currently the chairperson of Microsoft after resigning as CEO. He now devotes much of his time to philanthropic activities, and together with wife Melinda eventually intends on donating 95% of his vast fortune – estimated at $67 billion – to charitable causes.
Despite the Gates Foundation’s successful work in many areas, the group has also attracted criticism for several of its policies, including a commitment to investing unused assets with a goal to achieve a maximum return on investment. The Foundation has been accused of investing in companies that have had a negative impact on poverty in the developing world at the same time as the Foundation uses their funds to confront such issues.
