Here’s a recap of the shorties in Technical.ly DC’s newsletters this week

Reston, Virginia-based Public Interest Registry (PIR), the nonprofit that manages the .org domain used by more than 10 million organizations, is gearing up to host its second annual .ORG Impact Awards virtually next month.

We shared a tidbit about the awards in our newsletter shorties yesterday, but I wanted to dig a little deeper to highlight the upcoming event. The .ORG Impact Awards recognizes organizations and people for their social impact achievements. This week, PIR released the finalists in each of the categories following a call for nominations back in June. These top organizations were chosen by a judging panel comprised of internet, marketing and nonprofit leaders.

Social impact incubator SEED SPOT landed in the top five in the Championing Equality, Equity, Inclusion category. The organization, which moved all of its programming online because of the coronavirus pandemic, has various chapters around the world, including some in the District and Phoenix, Arizona.

Winners will be announced as part of a 10-day virtual experience kicking off on Nov. 30 to honor awardees. Each day will honor the winning organization or individual from each category. Each winner will receive donation amounts of up to $30,000 to put toward an eligible charitable of their choice.

Check out this recap from the annual .ORG Impact Awards last year, which was joined by actor and philanthropist Taye Diggs.

Here’s the rest of the shorties from our newsletters this week:

Thursday, Oct. 15

• Downtown D.C.-based GetUpside has launched a $25 million marketing campaign to help its participating sites boost sales during the pandemic. The campaign includes expanding paid marketing in more than 50 markets, peer-to-peer referrals and new partnerships.
• Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Altimmune is preparing to start clinical trials for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate after collecting some positive preliminary data. The biopharma company plans to file an investigational new drug application with the Food and Drug Administration ahead of the planned phase 1 study this quarter.

Wednesday, Oct. 14

• Bird expanded its community pricing program in D.C. along with other markets. Low-income riders will receive a 50% discount to rent the company’s electric scooters. Those interested must show proof of eligibility.
• Northern Virginia Community College is hosting a webinar on Oct.15 at 1:30 p.m. featuring Eric Holder, the first African American to hold the position of U.S. Attorney General from 2009 to 2015 under President Barack Obama. He will be discussing race relations in America. Register for the webinar here.

Tuesday, Oct. 13

• Georgetown University’s business school announced a new scholarship that is looking to support international MBA students and to further develop the workforce in Latin America. The merit-based award is sponsored by Reston, Virginia-based Modus Create.
• Grab your virtual tickets to attend SEED SPOT’s Impact Accelerator Kickoff event on Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. Attendees will meet the social impact organization’s next cohort of entrepreneurs accepted into its program.
• Bethesda, Maryland-based Octopus Interactive, a rideshare screen provider, has expanded its products to Canadian markets through a partnership with international media planning and buying agency Novus Media.

Monday, Oct. 12

• Ernst & Young awarded a few local leaders with its Entrepreneur Of The Year 2020 Mid-Atlantic Awards. Some of the honorees include David DeWolf, CEO of 3Pillar Global; Jeff Grass and Shy Pahlevani, founders of HUNGRY; and James Foster, CEO of ZeroFOX.
• Four executives from Gaithersburg, Maryland-based biotech company Novavax sold 174,622 shares of stock valued at about $18.89 million, Washington Business Journal reports. This comes after the company moved its COVID-19 vaccine candidate into phase three of testing.
• Check out this demonstration from Clarksburg, Maryland-based Robotic Research that shows a platoon of trucks with trailers using the company’s tech to navigate in reverse. This is another major step for Robotic Research as it continues to advance its autonomous and robotic tech capabilities.