Rules for the 2020 Canadian Edition of  Cooperathon

COOPERATHON PERIOD

The Coopérathon is organized by Desjardins Group (“Desjardins”) and is held from May 25th to November 18, 2020 in Canada (hereinafter “the Coopérathon Period”). 

• From May 25th to October 17th: Registration period
• September 30th:The Coopérathon launch conference
• October 1st to October 29th: The training and mentoring program
• From October 31st to November 1st: the Semi-final of the Coopérathon competition
• November 18th: The Final of the Coopérathon competition
• November 18th: Awards ceremony

ELIGIBILITY

The Coopérathon is open to all persons who meet the following criteria (hereinafter the “eligible participants”): 

• Residents of Canada who are 18 at the time of registration;
• With or without a team;
• With or without an initial idea. If the initial idea is being proposed, the solution must be still in the pre-incubation phase (having, at the most, the prototype of the solution);
• With or without a project underway. If the project is underway, then the solution must be in the pre-sales phase; (having, at the most, the MVP ‘minimum viable product’ )
• For participants responding to the Open Innovation Challenges, other conditions may apply to allow you to meet the challenge, as described in the challenge page, https://cooperathon.ca/?lang=en#defis

Are not eligible as participants: Desjardins officers, jury members and persons with whom they are domiciled, mentors and persons with whom they are domiciled, and members of Desjardins’ Open Innovation Department and persons with whom they are domiciled.

HOW TO ENTER

To participate, eligible persons must: 

1. Join the Coopèrathon site (https://cooperathon.ca/) and click the registration button.
2. Create your user profile and join the section reserved for competition on the Cooperathon collaboration platform, a platform called “Global” (https://cooperathon.global/);
3. Develop a prototype (design, code, prototyping plan, etc.) in connection with one of the proposed challenges or your own citizen idea with positive socio-economic and environmental impact;
4. Certify that you have read the Coopérathon 2020 Regulations, once the Regulations are made available on the Coopérathon collaboration platform (platform called ‘Global’)

It is not mandatory to be part of a team at the time of registration. However, the participant will have to be a member of a team for his project to be considered for the semi-finals of the 2020 Cooperathon. Individuals without a team will not be able to participate in the Semi-Final. A team must have between 2 and 7 members.

AGENDA

1. 1. Registration will be open on May 25, 2020 at https://cooperathon.ca/. Each person registered for the Coopérathon must create their user profile on the Coopérathon collaboration platform, a platform called “Global” (cooperathon.global).
   2. The virtual launch of the Coopérathon will take place on September 30, 2020. By this date, teams with projects underway must be at most in the Prototyping Minimum Viable Product (MVP) phase¹, and the incorporated entities² must be in the pre-marketing phase.
   3. From September 30 to October 29, 2020 it’s the training and mentorship period. During this period, the teams must develop their prototype. Optional workshops will be offered throughout the Coopérathon. They will allow the teams to develop their prototype and to seek specific skills from the experts who will lead these workshops. 
   4. October 29, 2020 is the date for submitting documents for the first phase of the Coopérathon competition, the Semi-final. The documents that must be submitted to participate in the Semi-Final are: presentation for the semi-final pitch, in pdf format, and a description of the prototype, according to the template provided on the Coopérathon platform. Both documents must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. (EDT) on October 29.
   5. On October 31 and November 1, all registered teams must be available (in whole or in part) to present their prototype over a total of 4 minutes 30 including 3 minutes of pitch + 1 minute 30 questions, during the Semi-final. The semi-final pitch deck presentation, as submitted by each team, will be available for on-screen display during each team’s pitch. The presentations will be video recorded.
   6. The selection of the finalists, for the Coopérathon prizes, by the semi-final jury will be based on the pitch, the question period and the prototype description.
   7. The Semi-Final juries are recognized experts in the Quebec and Canadian startup ecosystem. Their selection is the responsibility of the Coopérathon organizing team (Open Innovation Department, Desjardins).
   8. The selection of the winners of the Open Innovation Challenges will be made by the jury of each partner organization that launched the challenge. The decision will be based on the pitch, the question period and the prototype description.
   9. The finalists for the Coopérathon prizes will be announced on November 6, 2020 at 12p.m.(EDT) with a video broadcast on Facebook (https://fr-ca.facebook.com/thecooperathon/).
   10. The winners of the Open Innovation Challenge grants will be announced at the same time as the winners of the Coopérathon prizes on November 18th.
   11. November 15th is the date for submitting documents for the second phase of the Coopérathon competition, the Final. The documents that must be submitted to participate in the Final are: the presentation for the final pitch, in pdf format. The submission of this document must be made no later than November 15 at 11:59 p.m. (EDT).
   12. On November 18th, all the finalist teams must be available (in whole or in part) to present their pitch remotely over a total period of 5 minutes 30 including 4 minutes of pitch + 1 minute 30 seconds of questions, during the Final. The deck presentation of the final pitch, as submitted by each team, will be available for display on screen during the pitch of each team. The presentations will be video recorded.
   13. The selection of the winners of the Coopérathon prizes by the jury of the final will be based on the pitch, the question period and the prototype description. The Final jury will be invited to a special session to evaluate the finalist projects and select the winning teams.
   14. The juries of the Final are recognized experts in the Quebec and Canadian startup ecosystem and experts from the Coopérathon partners. Their selection is under the responsibility of the organizing team of the Coopérathon (Open Innovation Department, Desjardins).
   15. On November 18th, the date of the unveiling of the winners of the Coopérathon prizes and the winners of the Open Innovation Challenge grants, all the prizes and grants will be awarded to the recipient teams.
   16. The cash amount of the Coopérathon prizes will be paid by Desjardins to the winning teams, within 30 days, after November 18th. The amount of each prize will be distributed equally among the members of the winning team, as indicated in the list of team members.
   17. The cash amount of the grants for each Open Innovation challenge will be paid directly to the winning team, by the partner who initiated the challenge. Payment of the grant must be made within 30 days, after November 18th. The amount of each grant will be distributed equally among the members of the winning team, as indicated in the list of team members.

PRIZES

The Coopérathon offers four prizes.

1. 1. • The Coopérathon Grand Prize for the best solution (value of $ 30,000)
      • The most environmentally responsible solution award (value of $ 10,000)
      • Best solution with socio-economic impact (value of $ 10,000)
      • The Best Technology Solution Award (value of $ 10,000)

A team can win only one of these prizes.

Each Open Innovation Challenge partner offers:

1. 1. • A grant for the winning team of its challenge (minimum value of $ 5,000)

This scholarship can be awarded to a team that has won a Coopérathon prize or not.

All prizes will be available on the Coopérathon site (https://cooperathon.ca/?lang=en).

EVALUATION

The evaluation criteria will be communicated to the participants after their registration for Coopérathon competition. A project evaluation grid will be available on October 17, the start of Sprint 3 – Prototyping. This evaluation grid will be used by the judges to evaluate the projects during the Coopérathon’s  Semi-Final and Final competition.

Members of the open innovation challenge jury may use additional criteria to choose the winning team for their scholarship.

GENERAL CONDITIONS

1. 1. 1. To be declared a winner for a Coopérathon prize, the selected winning team must meet the following conditions: 
         1. Meet the eligibility criteria and other requirements set out in these rules;
         2. Attend the final.

Failure to comply with any of the conditions mentioned above or any other condition mentioned in these rules will result in the selected team being disqualified and at the discretion of the organizers, the prize will be cancelled or the prize awarded to another team in accordance with these rules. The same conditions will apply, subject to adaptations as necessary.

1. 1. 1. To be declared a winner of an Open Innovation Challenge, the selected winning team must meet the following conditions: 
         1. Meet the eligibility criteria and other requirements set out in these rules;
         2. Confirm that he/she meets the eligibility conditions for the Open Innovation Challenge, as defined by the partner for each challenge;
         3. Be selected by the Open Innovation Challenge partner as a winning team;
         4. Attend the final.

Failure to comply with any of the conditions mentioned above or any other condition mentioned in these rules will result in the selected team being disqualified and at the discretion of the organizers, the prize will be cancelled or the prize awarded to another team in accordance with these rules. The same conditions will apply, subject to adaptations as necessary.

1. 1. 1. Awarding of the prize. If the winner refuses to claim the prize, the Organizer shall be released from any and all obligations regarding the awarding of the prize and may, at its discretion, cancel the prize or proceed with a new draw in the manner described in the previous section (General Conditions, paragraphe 1). The prize will be awarded to the team, according to a mechanism defined between the winners and the Coopérathon organization. 
      2. Award of the Open Innovation Challenge grants. In the event that the selected participant refuses to receive their scholarship, Desjardins and the partner organization that launched the Open Innovation Challenge will be released from all obligations relating to the awarding of this scholarship and may proceed, at its discretion, to the cancellation of this grant or a new award as described in paragraph (2) General Conditions. The grant will be awarded to the team, according to a mechanism defined between the winners and the organizers of the Coopérathon.
      3. Verification. All entries and Declaration Forms may be subject to verification by the Organizer. Those that are incomplete, inaccurate, illegible, mechanically reproduced, defaced, fraudulent, submitted or mailed after the entry deadline, contain an invalid telephone number or are otherwise ineligible may be rejected and will not entitle the entrant to the prize. 
      4. Disqualification. Any person who enters or attempts to enter this contest by any means that do not comply with these rules and are unfair to other entrants (such as hacking, using a voting group or false name) will automatically be disqualified and possibly reported to the appropriate legal authorities. Similarly, projects that did not comply with the pre-incubation (prototyping) and pre-sales (MVP) status will be disqualified.
      5. Intellectual property. Participants agreed that the intellectual property of the prototype and pitches produced during the Coopérathon belong to the entire team. It is the responsibility of the teams to plan how to allocate this intellectual property. If the team uses pre-existing intellectual property elements and/or third parties, the team must ensure that it has obtained all the necessary rights before using them as part of the Coopérathon. In the event that team members work at a member institution of Quebec Health and Social Services, such as CHUM or CHU Ste-Justine, the teams must accept that intellectual property be governed by the policies in effect at these institutions. The members of the various teams concerned must inform their teammates that this clause applies and that they work at an institution that is a member of the Services de Santé et de Services sociaux du Québec. The same applies to employees of other organizations wishing to use intellectual property elements resulting from their work: first, they must ensure that their participation and use of these elements are authorized with their employer.
      6. Operation of the contest. Any attempt to sabotage the legitimate operation of the contest constitutes a violation of civil and criminal laws. In the event of such attempts, the Organizer reserves the right to reject the participant’s entries and seek redress under the law.
      7. Acceptance of the prize. Prizes must be accepted as described in these rules and cannot, under any circumstances, be transferred, in whole or in part, to another person, replaced by another prize or exchanged for cash, subject to what the Organizer may, at its sole discretion, decide.
      8. Survey. Finalist and/or winner participants agree to participate in surveys and interviews to inform Desjardins about the progress of their project.
      9. Limitation of liability. If the Organizer is unable to award the prize as described herein, it reserves the right to award a prize of the same type and equivalent value or, at its sole discretion, award the monetary value of the prize indicated herein.
         1. Limitation of liability: use of prize. The winner releases Desjardins from any liability for any damages that may result from participating in the competition, accepting and using the prize. The winner acknowledges that, upon receipt of the prize or the letter confirming their prize, the execution of obligations in connection with the prize becomes the sole and exclusive responsibility of the various suppliers of products and services. The winner undertakes to sign a Declaration and Liability Waiver form for this purpose. The winner of a prize acknowledges that the only warranty applicable to it is the manufacturer’s usual warranty. 
         2. b.Limitation of liability: uncontrollable circumstances. The Organizer and persons on whose behalf the contest is being held shall not be held liable in any manner whatsoever for any situation in which their inability to act is the result of an event or circumstance that is beyond their control, or of a strike, lockout or any other labour dispute within the organizations or firms whose services are being used to hold this contest.
         3. Limitation of liability: participation in the contest. Desjardins will not be responsible for any lost entries or any failure for any reason whatsoever on the website during the course of this contest, including any damage caused to a participant’s computer or mobile device.
      10. Contest modification. The Organizer reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend this competition, in whole or in part, should human intervention or an event occur that could alter or affect the administration, security, impartiality or conduct of the competition as provided for in these rules.
      11. Termination of participation in the contest. If participation in the contest must be terminated, in whole or in part, for any reason whatsoever, before the closing date provided for in these contest rules, the Organizer may proceed, at its sole discretion, to award the prize among the entries duly registered and received up to the date of the event ending participation in the contest. 
      12. Limitation of liability: participation in the contest. Persons who participate or attempt to participate in this contest release the Organizer and the persons on whose behalf the contest is held from any and all liability for damages these persons may incur as a result of their participation or attempted participation in the contest.
      13. By accepting a prize, all winners authorize the Organizer to use, if required, their name, photo, image, voice, place of residence and/or statement regarding the prize for publicity purposes, without any form of compensation.
      14. If a section of the contest rules is declared or deemed illegal, unenforceable or invalid by a competent court, that section will be considered invalid, but all other sections will be applied within the limits of the law.
      15. These regulations are available on the website www.cooperathon.com and on the Coopérathon collaboration platform, a platform called ‘Global’ (https://cooperathon.global/);
      16. In case of any discrepancy between the French and English versions of these rules, the French version shall prevail.  
      17. The contest is subject to all applicable legislation.
      18. Personal information. The personal information gathered on participants will be used in accordance with the privacy policy found here. 
      19. Decisions. All entrants must comply with these contest rules and with any decisions made by the Organizer, which are final and binding. 

N.B. The masculine gender is used herein merely for the sake of brevity; no discrimination is intended.

1. Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is a functional solution, but incomplete. It  is used to validate certain operating hypotheses of the solution, during the period of user tests (called beta-testing).
2.Incorporated Entities are organizations that have taken the legal steps to incorporate a business at the provincial or federal level.