C5 Alliance shortlisted for National Technology Award

The Channel Islands’ largest technology solutions provider, C5 Alliance, has been shortlisted for the National Technology Awards in the ‘Tech for Good’ category.

The awards recognise companies and individuals that drive the technology industry forward with innovative services and products. The ‘Tech for Good’ award celebrates those using digital solutions to benefit others through corporate social responsibility schemes or sustainable initiatives.

It was C5 Alliance’s pioneering ‘Coastal Cleanup’ mobile application that secured its place on the shortlist. The app was the winning idea of the 2018 Guernsey Idea-athon, created by a team led by bursary student Dan Wainwright. The annual Idea-athon poses challenges to teams to find technological solutions to community issues. The app was then developed by a team of C5 Alliance bursary students, with help from the company’s experts. It tracks the distribution of marine plastic along the coastline then engages people by ‘gamifying’ the collection of litter.

Chief Executive Officer of C5 Alliance, Scott Workman, said: “We’re very proud to be shortlisted for this award which celebrates how technology can be used for good. This is an integral part of our vision and mission; it’s a huge achievement to be recognised nationally for our work.”

Laura Bampton, Marine Biology Section at La Société Guernesiaise, said: “La Société’s marine biology section is so excited by the potential impact of the Coastal Cleanup app both here in the Channel Islands and further afield. It is simple to use and allows the collection of high-quality data that can inform local decision-making as well as feeding into nationwide and worldwide datasets. The gamification built into the app adds a unique dimension to tackling the problem of marine litter and will encourage a wider cross section of the community to participate in cleaning up our coastlines. This is a really well-deserved nomination for the team at C5 Alliance”

To see the full shortlist for the awards, click this here.

The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on 7 May 2020.

The Coastal Cleanup app will soon be publicly released for potential use by local governments, environmental conservation groups and businesses as part of their CSR initiatives.