Asia and the Pacific Youth
Virtual Challenge 2024

Rules

1. Description

   The Asia and the Pacific Youth Virtual Challenge 2024 (the “Competition”) is provided by the IAEA (the “Organizer”) to encourage students to tap into their creativity by designing and constructing virtual worlds and structures within the Minecraft Education Platform, with a focus on applying innovative nuclear techniques and applications to address UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

   The Competition aims to challenge participants to enhance their critical thinking and problem-solving skills while fostering teamwork and collaboration among students. Additionally, it seeks to enrich educational experiences by aligning Competition themes with subjects like mathematics, science, history, and art, infused with essential nuclear science elements. Moreover, the Competition offers students an opportunity to develop digital literacy and proficiency in using technology as a tool for both learning and creative expression.

   The Competition is open to participations from Asia and the Pacific region, with one (1) winning student teams for each category (high school and university). The winning teams will be notified via the email address(es) provided in the entry form. All qualified submissions will undergo evaluation based on the criteria outlined in the judging criteria.

2. Entry Period

   The Competition submission period starts from 14 June 2024 to 31 August 2024 (11:59 PM Vienna time). Entries must be received during the entry period to be eligible.

3. Eligibility

   The Competition is open to all high-school (age minimum 17 years old as of end of May 2024) and university level students, from any educational institutions within the Asia and the Pacific region. The participants must provide an official letter from school confirming the enrolment.

   The students must form a team, that consists of a minimum of two (2) students and maximum of four (4) students. Students may collaborate with peers from their own educational institution or partner with individuals from different educational institutions. A student may only be a member of one (1) team.

   The Organizer reserves the right to verify eligibility and to adjudicate on any dispute at any time.

4. Criteria

   1. Submission

      1. Each team needs to submit a game recording video file (preferably in .mp4 format) of the project that is 3 to 5 minutes in length and maximum file size of 300 Mb. Submission is free of charge.
      2. Only one (1) unique entry per team will be accepted. Any revision will not be possible after the game recording is officially submitted. Please carefully check the requirements before making the submission.
      3. The entry must be an original work, and any video submission must be solely the work of the team members, including but not limited to, the actual filming, editing, graphic design, etc. of the game recording. Any content identified as plagiarism or AI generated will immediately be disqualified.
      4. The team must complete the official entry form located at: https://www.nsteduchallenge.com/ and upload their file according to the stated format.
      5. The Organizer is not responsible for entries which are not received during the entry submission period, regardless of the reason or technical issues, or for entries that are received but are unreadable for any technical reason.
      6. The Organizer has the right to automatically disqualify any entries submitted which are incomplete or illegible or are deem inappropriate in its sole and absolute discretion.

   2. Technical Requirements

      1. The game recording video file should contain no personal information or identifying content (e.g., people’s faces, name, age, personal location) as part of the video, sharing only the team’s name and country.
      2. The file should briefly describe the NST technology and how it is related to the UN SDGs, the importance/impact of the NST technology and what the Team has learnt from their engagement in the endeavour; either within the video as a voice-over, on-screen text or attached as a supplementary text file.
      3. Video submission, build descriptions and supporting materials need to be made in the English language. All communications between Organizer and participants will be in English.
      4. The submission should demonstrate a concise knowledge and understanding of the nuclear science and technology and its applications. The information should be presented accurately, with some innovative or creative solutions explored.
      5. The team can design, and build based on the themes related to significant IAEA strategic initiatives to be represented in Minecraft as below:
         • University category: Sustainable radioactive waste management (RWM) for the aspirational effort to Net Zero Emission by 2050
         • High-school category: Nuclear Technology for Controlling Plastic Pollution (NUTEC Plastics) for Sustainable Plastic Solutions

5. General Conditions &
   Release of Liability

   1. As a condition of participating in the Competition and by submitting a Submission, a Participant warrants to the Organizer that your Submission:
      • Does not include any unsuitable or offensive content, including nudity, sexually explicit, disparaging, libelous or other inappropriate content.
      • Does not include any content that is in violation of or infringes third party intellectual property rights including plagiarism, infringement, unauthorized music and sound effects and etc.
      • Has not been entered in previous contests, or won previous awards, and has not been published or distributed previously in any media.
      • Is suitable for a general audience and does not contain any unsubstantiated, false and/or misleading claims.
   2. By registering and uploading content, the participants agree to release and hold harmless the Organizer from any and all liability or any injury, loss, or damage of any kind arising in connection with this Competition, or any prize won.
   3. By registering and uploading content, each participant affirms that their content does not violate any rights of third parties and that they have secured all required permissions and licenses from third parties for the utilization of any materials. The Organizer is not liable for any disputes that may arise among individuals asserting copyright claims over the content.
   4. You acknowledge that other participants may have used ideas and/or concepts in their submission that may be similar in idea or concept to what is included in your Submission. You understand and agree that you shall not have any claim against any other participants, or the Organizer arising out of any such similarity or be entitled to any compensation because of any such similarity.
   5. By registering and uploading content, each participant grants the right to review, assess, and otherwise analyze the entry and all its content in connection with this Competition. Further, the participant grants the IAEA an irrevocable, royalty-free, worldwide right and license to use, including, but not limited to the right to publish, transmit, sell, distribute, modify, create derivative works and otherwise use the game recording throughout the world, in all languages and in all media of expression now known or later developed, for any non-commercial, educational and promotional purpose, without further permission from you and to licence or permit others to do so; and the participant certifies that no other rights have been granted which could conflict with the right hereby given to the IAEA. Participants will not receive any compensation or credit for use of your entry, other than what is described in these Terms and Conditions and you agree to sign any necessary documentation that may be required for the IAEA and its designees to make use of the rights you granted above.
   6. By registering and uploading content, you acknowledge that providing your personal information (such as name, surname, email, phone, address, organization, school name, and country) implies your consent to the processing of your personal data as outlined in the description above and in accordance with the IAEA’s Personal Data Privacy Policy available here.
   7. Nothing in these terms and conditions shall be construed as a waiver, either express or implied, of any of the privileges and immunities accorded to the IAEA by its Member States.