Nomination, Participation & Award Terms and Conditions

1. Eligibility

• Climate Warriors is open exclusively to students currently enrolled in a recognised school.
• The nominee must be 18 years of age or younger on October 6, 2026.
• The organisers may request proof of date of birth, identity, school enrolment, and other information needed to establish eligibility.
• All nominations are subject to verification. Submission does not guarantee eligibility, shortlisting, selection, participation, or an award.

2. Who Can Nominate?

• An eligible student may nominate themselves.
• A friend, acquaintance, classmate, teacher, mentor, neighbour, relative, or another person familiar with the student’s work may nominate them.
• A school, principal, teacher, coordinator, or authorised school representative may nominate an eligible student.
• A parent or legal guardian may submit a nomination.
• A third-party nomination does not itself constitute consent on behalf of the nominee or their parent or legal guardian.

3. Basis of Nomination

• The work may involve climate action, environmental protection, sustainability, conservation, awareness, education, innovation, advocacy, community mobilisation, behavioural change, resilience, or related action.
• The nomination must clearly explain the nominee’s personal role. Where work involved a wider group, the individual contribution must be distinguished accurately.
• Project scale alone will not determine merit. Age, circumstances, resources, initiative, involvement, and context may be considered.

4. Supporting Evidence

• Relevant evidence may include photographs, videos, project descriptions, reports, certificates, testimonials, media coverage, websites, social posts, impact data, endorsements, and other credible material.
• Quality, credibility, relevance, and authenticity matter more than volume. Original or additional evidence may be requested.

5. Nomination Requirements

• Nominations must be submitted through the official process with complete and accurate nominee and nominator information.
• Incomplete, unverifiable, materially inaccurate, or misleading nominations may be rejected.
• The same student may receive multiple nominations, but this provides no advantage. The organisers may consolidate duplicate profiles.
• A nomination is specific to the named individual and cannot be transferred or substituted.

6. Nomination Deadline

• All nominations must be successfully submitted by 8:00 PM IST on Saturday, September 5, 2026.
• Late or incomplete nominations will not be considered. The organisers are not responsible for connectivity, device, information, submission, or other technical problems outside their reasonable control.

7. Authenticity, Originality & Verification

• All claims must be truthful, accurate, and reasonably verifiable.
• Projects, activities, impact, evidence, awards, media references, and personal contribution may be verified.
• Fabrication, manipulation, plagiarism, impersonation, or material misrepresentation may result in rejection or disqualification.
• Additional information, interviews, references, or evidence may be requested. Failure to respond in time may result in rejection or withdrawal.

8. Evaluation & Selection of the Top 10

• An appointed jury or evaluation panel will consider actual ground-level work, effectiveness and impact, personal contribution, originality, initiative, leadership, community engagement, continuity, commitment, potential for replication, and supporting evidence.
• Age, circumstances, resources, and context may be considered. Greater scale, funding, reach, or presentation quality alone does not guarantee a higher evaluation.
• The Top 10 Climate Warriors progress to the final stage. Top 10 selection is not selection as Champion or Runner-up.

9. Announcement of the Top 10

• The Top 10 will be announced through official Festival social channels at 8:00 PM on Tuesday, September 15, 2026.
• Selected nominees will be notified through the registered email address on September 16, 2026.
• The organisers are not responsible for missed communications caused by incorrect details, inactive or full inboxes, spam filtering, or failure to check messages.

10. Confirmation of Participation

• Every selected nominee must confirm participation by September 20, 2026 and provide requested documents and consent.
• Failure to confirm by the deadline causes automatic withdrawal and cancellation. A cancelled selection cannot be reinstated or transferred.
• Any replacement selection is entirely at the organisers’ discretion and is not guaranteed.

11. Final Stage at Purple Umbrella Festival 2026

• Confirmed Top 10 Climate Warriors will be invited to the Festival on October 6–7, 2026 at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.
• The final stage may include a presentation, jury interaction, interview, showcase, questions, verification, or another communicated assessment format.
• Finalists must follow reporting, venue, safety, security, verification, and participation instructions.

12. Travel, Accommodation & Other Expenses

• Nominees are responsible for their travel, accommodation, local transport, meals not provided by the Festival, and personal expenses.
• Purple Umbrella Foundation and Purple Umbrella Festival will not reimburse these costs or losses arising from travel changes, delays, cancellations, bookings, or rescheduling.

13. Accompaniment & Supervision of Minors

• Every selected nominee under 18 must attend with a parent, legal guardian, or responsible adult guardian.
• The accompanying adult is responsible for supervision, safety, wellbeing, travel, accommodation, and personal requirements. Their expenses are not covered by the organisers.

14. Consent for Minors

• Parent or legal guardian consent will be required before a minor participates in the final stages.
• Consent may cover participation, attendance, photography, recordings, interviews, publication, showcasing work, media coverage, Festival-related use, and emergency contact information.
• Failure to provide required consent or documents in time may cancel participation.

15. Final Evaluation – Champion & Runner-up

• The jury will consider the overall merit, authenticity, effectiveness, impact, personal contribution, initiative, leadership, commitment, evidence, understanding, and ability to explain the work.
• Presentation and jury interaction may be considered, but substance, authenticity, and demonstrated impact remain central.
• The jury may question finalists about motivation, implementation, challenges, outcomes, evidence, learning, continuity, and future plans.
• The jury’s decision is final and binding, except where organisers identify an administrative or computational error.

16. Awards & Recognition

• Champion: ₹10,000 cash prize, Championship Trophy, Winner Medal, and Winner Certificate.
• Runner-up: ₹5,000 cash prize, Runner-up Trophy, Runner-up Medal, and Runner-up Certificate.
• There is no Second Runner-up. Cash prizes remain subject to applicable law and tax requirements.
• Awards depend on successful verification and compliance and may be withheld or withdrawn if material eligibility or authenticity issues emerge.

17. Photography, Videography, Media & Public Recognition

• The Championship and Festival may be photographed, filmed, recorded, livestreamed, or documented.
• Subject to consent requirements, shortlisted and selected nominees may appear in Festival websites, publications, social media, press, interviews, exhibitions, reports, educational material, promotions, and archives.
• Appropriate parent or legal guardian consent will be obtained where required before identifiable material involving a minor is used publicly.

18. Intellectual Property

• Ownership of original projects, ideas, research, innovations, and creative work remains with the lawful creator or rights holder.
• Subject to permission and consent, the organisers may showcase and communicate submitted material for Festival, educational, awareness, reporting, archival, and promotional purposes.
• Submitters must not knowingly infringe third-party intellectual property, privacy, or other rights.

19. Rejection, Disqualification or Withdrawal

• Action may be taken for ineligibility, false or misleading information, unverifiable or manipulated evidence, exaggerated impact, misrepresented contribution, plagiarism, impersonation, missing consent, non-confirmation, non-attendance, serious misconduct, or violations affecting safety, fairness, or integrity.
• Where appropriate, the nominee or nominator may be invited to clarify information before a final determination.

20. Code of Conduct

• Nominees, finalists, nominators, guardians, and accompanying persons must behave respectfully and responsibly.
• Harassment, discrimination, intimidation, abuse, disruption, cheating, misrepresentation, or unsafe conduct may result in removal or disqualification.

21. Changes, Postponement, Cancellation & Force Majeure

• The organisers may reasonably change dates, venue, format, evaluation, jury arrangements, deadlines, or operations.
• Events outside reasonable control may require postponement, relocation, rescheduling, modification, an alternative format, or cancellation.
• The organisers are not responsible for personal travel, accommodation, cancellation, or other expenses arising from such changes.

22. Official Communication

• Submitted contact information must remain accurate and valid.
• Important information may be sent to the registered email or published through official Festival channels. Participants are responsible for monitoring those channels and reporting contact changes.

23. Privacy & Use of Information

• Information may be used for nomination processing, eligibility checks, evaluation, communication, consent, participation, award administration, safety, event management, and directly related legitimate purposes.
• Information may be shared with authorised organisers, jurors, evaluators, and service providers where reasonably necessary.
• Submitted personal information is not automatically public. Identifiable information about minors remains subject to applicable consent requirements.

24. No Guarantee of Selection or Award

• A nomination creates no automatic entitlement to eligibility, shortlisting, Top 10 selection, Festival participation, an award, cash prize, trophy, medal, certificate, or other benefit.

25. Interpretation & Final Authority

• The Organising Committee may interpret these terms and issue reasonable clarifications or additional participation instructions.
• Administrative, eligibility, verification, and participation decisions of the Organising Committee are final. Jury decisions on evaluation and ranking are final and binding.

26. Acceptance of Terms

• Submission constitutes the nominator’s acknowledgement and acceptance of these terms.
• A third-party nominator does not provide legal consent for the student or their guardian merely by submitting a nomination.
• Progression remains subject to confirmation, verification, applicable requirements, required documents, and parent or legal guardian consent where the nominee is under 18.