FAQ

The RHD Innovation Spark Tank is a competitive innovation and pitch initiative designed to support bold, early-stage ideas that address critical gaps in Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) research, policy, advocacy, and implementation.

Selected finalists will receive mentorship and communications support before pitching their ideas live at the World Congress on Rheumatic Heart Disease.

Applicants maintain ownership of their original ideas, intellectual property, and project concepts submitted as part of the RHD Innovation Spark Tank application and live pitch.

Applicants should note that:

• Applications and pitches will be reviewed by panel members and mentors for assessment and mentoring purposes only

• Finalists will present their ideas in a public forum during the Congress

• Applicants are encouraged to consider confidentiality, intellectual property protection, and publication strategies appropriate to their project prior to public presentation.

Where relevant, successful applicants are encouraged to work with their organisation or collaborators regarding intellectual property management, ethics, governance, and commercialisation considerations.

Applicants may include:

• Early–Mid Career Researchers (within 10 years relative to opportunity)

• Clinicians

• Policymakers

• Advocates

• Consumer representatives or people with lived experience (lived experience refers to the firsthand knowledge, perspectives and everyday realities of people who are or have been directly affected by the condition, including individuals living with RHD, families, carers and communities).

Applicants do not need to have a strong established funding track record.

Yes. International applications are welcome, particularly from regions disproportionately affected by RHD.

Yes. Applications may be submitted by individuals or teams. Multidisciplinary and collaborative applications are encouraged.

No. However, applicants should demonstrate appropriate support, partnerships, mentorship, or governance structures relevant to the proposed project.

Travel support may be available through the World Congress on Rheumatic Heart Disease 2026 travel grant program for delegates from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Applicants are encouraged to review the official Congress travel grant information and eligibility criteria here:

World Congress on Rheumatic Heart Disease 2026 – Registration & Travel Grants

Please note that travel grant applications are assessed separately from the Spark Tank selection process.

No. A detailed budget is not required at the application stage. However, applicants should briefly outline how seed funding will support their proposed project.

Shortlisted finalists may be asked to provide additional budget information prior to award allocation.

Ethics approval is not required at the application stage.

However, projects involving human participants, data collection, or related research activities may require ethics approval before project commencement. Successful applicants will be responsible for obtaining all relevant approvals.

Applications will be assessed by a multidisciplinary review panel based on:

• Innovation and originality

• Potential impact

• Scalability and Sustainability

• Strength of team and collaboration

• Application readiness

Up to 10 finalists will be selected to participate in the live Spark Tank pitch session.

Finalists will receive:

• 1:1 mentor support

• Communications and pitch coaching

• Feedback on presentation and project development

The mentorship program will run for approximately two months prior to the Congress.

Winners will be selected through panel assessment during the live pitch session.

A separate People’s Choice Award may also be determined through audience voting.

Yes. Successful recipients will be asked to provide a 12-month progress update and a final summary report at end of project (year 2) outlining activities, achievements, and outcomes arising from the seed funding.