$32,000 in prizes for innovative solutions

$32,000 in prizes for innovative solutions

Livestreaming mussel beds in the Hauraki Gulf to individual sponsors, and converting broken vineyard posts to a biofuel are two of the winning ideas that Auckland students have generated in an innovation challenge with a total $32,000 prize pool.

The Solve It challenge, run by the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Auckland Business School, sought innovative solutions to environmental and social problems posed by four sponsors.

Foundation North asked for ways to improve the health of the Hauraki Gulf – specifically, solutions for high sediment and nutrient levels, overfishing and plant and animal welfare. Yealands Family Wines sought ideas for sustainably disposing of the three percent of posts that break in their vineyards every year. Fonterra invited sustainable packaging ideas. Teach First New Zealand invited ideas for building their brand awareness to eligible students.

Twenty teams of University of Auckland students entered the challenge, five for each problem. Under the guidance of mentors and advisers, the teams tested and developed their ideas over a two-week semester break. Sponsors picked winners and second-place-getters based on a final pitch, with a first prize of $5000 per team, and second prize of $3000 per team.

The team picked by Foundation North pitched the idea of enabling Aucklanders to sponsor mussel beds in the Hauraki Gulf, and livestreaming the beds to sponsors so they can watch “their” mussels grow.

“Livestreams are an engaging and popular way for people to stay in touch with nature,” says Tiger Chen, a Bachelor of Commerce student.

The winning team for Yealands claim its idea could make the vineyard, already a pioneer in innovation and sustainability, the first carbon-negative winery in the world.

It involves converting broken vineyard posts into a biofuel called biochar through a process known as pyrolysis. Biochar – charcoal from agricultural waste - acts as a carbon sink, removing carbon emissions, as well as improving soil quality to increase productivity.

Team member Ray Cai says the students sought advice from Professor Ajit Sarmah at the University of Auckland, who has extensive experience in the field of turning biomass into biofuel, and holds related intellectual property.

“We hope to establish a small-scale pyrolysis plant on Yealands,” says Cai, who is studying towards a Masters in Biomedical Engineering.

Fonterra chose as winners a proposal to make 100 percent biodegradable boxes lined with wool for transporting dairy products.

“The wool lining traps air, which then acts as an insulator,” says Anita Labane, a student of biomedical science.

“The use of insulation makes the packaging suitable for both warm and cold products, as it prevents the movement of heat into or out of the box.”

The team picked by Teach First New Zealand had an idea to tap into future teachers while they are still at school. The programme it pitched would target Year 13 students with leadership potential in low decile secondary schools. Students would receive mentoring in teaching from Teach First New Zealand, a not-for-profit accelerated teacher training scheme. Then, the students would spend two weeks in a Year 7 or 8 classroom at their school, observing the teacher and teaching a topic themselves.

“Students will be awarded NZQA unit standards upon completion, and we hope they’ll leave having been inspired to follow through with teaching in the future,” says Piyawat Khanthee, a marketing and management student.

Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship director Wendy Kerr says the challenge reflects the fact that all organisations across all fields need innovative problem-solving.

“Innovation is about coming up with novel solutions to old and new problems, and entrepreneurship is how you turn those ideas into action,” she says. “Whether you’re established or a start-up, for-profit or not-for-profit, you need innovative people in your organisation. We look forward to seeing how these teams’ ideas are developed.”

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