I. ELIGIBLE SUBJECT MATTERS FOR RECOGNITION AS INITIATIVES

Subject matters eligible for initiative recognition include: a) technical solutions, b) management solutions, c) operational solutions, or d) solutions applying technical advances.

• a) Technical solutions: Technical methods or means aimed at solving a specific task or problem:

  • Products, under the forms of: physical objects (e.g., tools, machinery, equipment, components); substances (e.g., materials, ingredients, food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics); biological materials (e.g., microbial strains, biological preparations, genes, genetically modified plants or animals); or plant varieties and animal breeds;

  • Processes (e.g., technological processes; processes for diagnosis, forecasting, testing, processing, livestock farming or cultivation techniques; processes for medical diagnosis and treatment in humans, animals, or plants...).

• b) Management solutions: Methods of organizing and managing work in any field of activity:

  • Work organization methods (e.g., deployment of human resources, machinery, equipment, tools, raw materials, supplies);

  • Work direction, inspection, and supervision methods.

• c) Operational solutions: Methods for carrying out technical or professional operations in any field of activity:

  • Administrative procedure execution methods (e.g., receipt and processing of dossiers, petitions, and documents);

  • Appraisal, expert evaluation, advisory, and assessment methods;

  • Communication, training, teaching, and instruction methods;

  • Animal training methods, etc.

• d) Solutions applying technical advances: Methods, techniques, or measures for applying an existing technical solution into practical use.

II. CONDITIONS FOR SOLUTION RECOGNITION

1. Institutional / Grassroots Level

Solutions shall be recognized by an institution as initiatives if they fully satisfy the following conditions:

• Possess novelty within the scope of the institution;

• Have been applied or pilot-applied at the institution with the potential to yield practical benefits. For solutions already applied, the time elapsed from initial application to the request for initiative recognition must not exceed 01 year;

• Do not fall under any of the following excluded categories:

  • Solutions whose publication or application violates public order or social morality;

  • Solutions subject to active intellectual property right protection under law at the time of recognition assessment.

2. City Level

Solutions shall be recognized as City-level initiatives if they fully satisfy the following conditions:

• Have been recognized as initiatives by an institution based within the city; the initiative is applied within Da Nang City;

• The time elapsed from initial application within the city to submission of the request for city-level recognition of impact/influence does not exceed 02 years;

• At the time of recognition assessment, there are no copyright disputes, complaints, or litigations related to the application dossier content.

III. CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION

An initiative is recognized at the city level as having impact and influence across the city if it meets all of the following criteria:

1. Novelty within the scope of the City

An initiative is considered novel within the city if, prior to the filing date of the initiative recognition request at the grassroots level or the date of first application (whichever is earlier), within the city, it meets all of the following conditions:

• Does not duplicate the content of solutions in earlier-filed initiative applications;

• Does not duplicate another author's solution that has been applied, scheduled for application/dissemination, or prepared for application/dissemination;

• Has not been publicly known, and no duplicate solution by another person has been previously described in any document, publication, or accessible media within the city to an extent that enables immediate execution;

• Has not been codified into mandatory standards, procedures, or regulations.

2. Practical economic and social benefits for the City

An initiative is considered to deliver practical economic and social benefits for the city if its application brings:

• Economic efficiency: Increased labor productivity, reduced production costs, enhanced competitiveness, improved product/service quality, and other economic gains;

• Social benefits: Improved living and working conditions, job creation, increased worker income, stabilized social order and safety, environmental protection, sustainable development, and other social gains;

• Other positive impacts: Elevated standing and image of the city, strengthened national unity, heightened community awareness, and other positive influences.

IV. INITIATIVE RECOGNITION PROCEDURE

The implementation order for initiative recognition proceeds as follows:

• Step 1: Organizations or individuals complete the "Application Form for Initiative Recognition" (Form 1) and submit it to the Department of Science Management & Technology Transfer (Phòng QLKH & CGCN) prior to June 15, 2016. (Executed by: Authors submitting solutions for initiative recognition).

• Step 2 (0.5 months): Examine dossier validity and finalize the application. (Executed by: Department of Science Management & Technology Transfer in coordination with the author).

• Step 3 (3 months): Establish the University-level Initiative Council. (Executed by: Department of Science Management & Technology Transfer advising the Board of Rectors on establishing the council).

• Step 4: Conduct evaluation sessions to assess the solutions. (Executed by: University-level Initiative Council).

• Step 5: Issue a Decision to recognize and grant the Grassroots Initiative Certificate to the author if the solution satisfies all conditions in Section II.1. Issue a written refusal if the solution fails to meet conditions in Section II.1. (Executed by: University-level Initiative Council).

• Step 6 (1 month): Finalize the City-level recognition dossier, including:

  • Application for initiative recognition (Form 2a/2b);

  • Initiative description (Form 3);

  • Decision of recognition or Grassroots Initiative Certificate;

  • Evidentiary documents proving novelty, application, scalability, and practical economic/social benefits (if any).

    (Executed by: Department of Science Management & Technology Transfer guiding the author to complete the city-level dossier).

• Step 7: Submit the completed dossier to the Department of Science and Technology of Da Nang City. (Executed by: Department of Science Management & Technology Transfer submitting between November 1 and November 30, 2016).