July 22, 2024, by aczht

Enactus Tri-campus smart Sustainable Challenge 2024 

Enactus Nottingham is a student-led, not-for-profit organisation at the University of Nottingham, dedicated to transforming lives through business. Enactus Nottingham runs social enterprises that provide employment while benefiting society and the environment. With over 115 students, it operates both in the UK and internationally, identifying and solving real-world problems through strong community and corporate partnerships.  

Enactus Tri-campus smart Sustainable Challenge 2024 

A sustainability challenge wa s set by the car company smart which has headquarters in Ningbo. This was a great opportunity for students to collaborate with their peers from our three campuses, or work in team with friends from their local university. This year,144 students signed up across the three campuses with six cross-campus teams created. Students were given a brief from smart and invited to visit one of their local showrooms. They were divided into 35 teams and collaborated to create a presentation to share with the judges who selected six finalists, including one UK only team and one cross-campus team. 

Student Alex Veitch talks about his transformative experience

Hear from student Alex Veitch, a recent geography graduate, about his experience taking part and travelling to China: 

Throughout my degree, I developed a strong passion for the promotion of sustainable practices which drove me to participate in several University competitions. The Tri-campus smart Sustainability Challenge was an amazing opportunity for students from different career and geographic backgrounds to collaborate and make a difference.  

I decided to work within a cross-campus group, which meant I had two teammates in China, one in Malaysia and the other from the UK. Although this can create some difficulties in communication due to working online, we used it to our advantage and excelled by incorporating the local knowledge from all three countries, as well as identifying everyone’s strong points and harnessing our unique skills. This aspect not only provided a real-life example of working within global businesses, but also the importance of online services. We were selected as one of the final six teams and invited to visit the University of Nottingham in Ningbo for the presentation and the awarding ceremony. This exciting opportunity was one which I could not miss, so I packed my bags and got on the flight.  

Arriving in China was surreal, it was a place which I had always wanted to visit but didn’t know if I would ever get an opportunity. Although there are many differences between the UK and China, on arrival to Ningbo it was nice to see all the similarities such as green spaces, vibrant community and of course, the Trent building. Although I wanted to explore as much of China as possible, this wasn’t just any holiday, as there was important work to do. I spent the first day in China excited about the week to come but nervous about the pitch. When I walked through the door of the International Conference Centre, I was shocked, it felt as though I was a part of a UN conference. I soon realised that this was a huge privilege to work with brilliant student minds from across the world, as well as present to influential practitioners in the sustainable, education and business sectors.  

Taking part in this competition has been a whirlwind of emotions and it has not only aided my knowledge in sustainable business management, but also allowed me to develop new connections with likeminded people. Alongside bringing essential skills and networking, I was also given the trip of a lifetime. Being able to explore cities like Ningbo and Shanghai and experience the local nature and culture is something I will always remember. It has opened my eyes up to new sectors of employment and highlighted the importance of always taking opportunities which present themselves. I would like to thank everyone who made this trip possible and encourage any future students to make the most of their time at the University of Nottingham and involve themselves in these amazing opportunities. 

Other winners: 

Two other UK students, Daniel Mansi and Antonina Henryng, won second place with a prize of $2,500. Due to final exams, they were unable to travel, but presented a recording of their pitch which impressed the judges.  

This was a fantastic experience to collaborate with colleagues and students from University of Nottingham globally. We are already looking at ways to build on our unique tri-campus Enactus teams’ situation and find ways of working in partnership. 

 Find out more about Enactus Nottingham

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Google+
• Share on LinkedIn