Royal Philips Electronics announced the eight finalists selected for the Philips Livable Cities Award, a global initiative designed to generate practical, achievable ideas for improving the health and well-being of city-dwellers across the world.

The winners will be revealed on April 27, and will be awarded three grants totaling €125,000 (€75,000 for the overall winner, with two additional winners receiving grants of €25,000 each).

“The Award judging panel had a difficult task selecting the finalists from more than 450 ideas submitted from 29 countries around the world, given the high quality of entries received,” commented Richard Florida, Professor, Author and Chair of the Philips Livable Cities Award expert panel. “Having conducted a rigorous review, the panel is excited by the breadth of thinking displayed by the final eight which demonstrated the innovation necessary to help ensure the future livability and prosperity of our cities.”

The eight finalists represent a truly global picture of the issues faced by city-dwellers across the world, from a proposed street park project in Argentina to a rainwater aggregation scheme in Yemen. The other finalists include a health education initiative for deaf children in Kenya, a neighborhood network scheme in Nigeria, shade stands in Uganda, a digital networking tool in the UK, and two schemes from the USA—a smart grid athletic light and a design-your-own-park project.

Philips is inviting members of the public to assist the Philips Livable Cities Award judging panel in selecting the overall winner by voting for their favorite finalist until March 24. By casting a vote for their favorite entry, there’s also the chance to win a place at the Award ceremony in Amsterdam to join the celebrations.