NZ Team Reaches Global Green Solutions Finals in Paris

New Zealand team reaches global green solutions contest finals in Paris

Two University of Canterbury MBA students are heading to Paris as the only New Zealand team to compete in the finals of the Schneider Electric global competition Go Green in the City 2017.

Joyce Chen and Selva Ganapathy Ramasamy will compete in the finals in Paris, France, from October 9-13.

Every year, Schneider Electric conducts the global competition to find sustainable and green energy solutions. They also invite green ideas for building sustainable cities.

Selva and Joyce submitted a proposal to harvest fog water through an integrated wind energy-generating tower. They won the New Zealand competition and presented at the Asia-Pacific regional finals. They were pipped in the regional finals by a team from Thailand, but their proposal was selected for the Paris finals.

They are both excited about the achievement, even though it means more work on top of their MBA studies.

“I am glad to be a part of the final at the Paris for this particular event because of the common interest I share with the company and this event which is sustainability,” says Selva, who earlier this month received a 2017 New Zealand Excellence Award scholarship from Education New Zealand.

Joyce says she is thrilled to have reached the finals and to be able to take their idea to Paris.

“When I enrolled in the MBA, I couldn’t have dreamed of representing the University and New Zealand at an international competition.”

She credits the UC MBA programme for giving her the confidence and knowledge to: “Be creative, go boundary-less, stay sustainable, and make this a better world.”

They will continue to work with UC Management, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship Associate Professor Michaela (Misha) Balzarova, who is an expert in the interface between business and the natural environment, to prepare their presentation.

“We are thankful to the Executive Development Programmes for its support and Misha for her guidance and the University of Canterbury for backing us up. We look forward to doing well in the finals and bringing more laurels to UC and New Zealand,” Selva says.

ENDS

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