We have a winner!

An Applied Reasearch Competition was organized in the frame of SECOVE project. First the Innovation Hubs organized a national competition, inviting students to develop innovative solutions in the energy sector. They had a chance to broaden their cognitive horizons, having access to state-of-the-art technology of the Hub and benefiting from the expertise of their mentors. A networking opportunity with SMEs and companies holding a leading position in the field of Sustainability was offered, and the students had a perspective on the trends of the industry, broadening prospects for synergies and professional development.

This concept attracted inspired students to deliver innovative exceptional projects. The national winning projects were:

• Design and Development of a MOOC on Sustainable Energy Topics, from the Technology-Driven Education Innovation Hub of Portugal
• A Scalable Model for Climate-Resilient and Energy-Independent Buildings, from the Smart & Green Infrastructure Innovation Hub of Slovakia
• Solar Bus Stand with Digital Update, WiFi and Device Charging, from the HUB of Flexible Solar Energy Application Lab of Greece
• IOT platforms, from the Digital Transformation – Internet of Things HUB of Spain
• Solar Operational Vest with Integrated CIGS Technology for First Responders, from the HUB of Flexible Solar Energy Application Lab of Greece, and
• Sustainable construction: Tuko Pamoja: a climate-responsive school in rural Kenya, from the IHE2B—Innovation Hub on Energy Efficiency of Buildings of Italy.

The national winners proceeded to SECOVE’s International Competition in Applied Research and Innovation in the Energy Sector! A three- member Award Committee was formed, combining experts from academia, industry, and stakeholder’s institutions, aiming to provide a holistic assessment of the projects- who worked individually and evaluated:

• the Excellence of the projects- it is examined whether the project constitutes a comprehensive, integrated submission and a concrete approach, is well-documented and well-presented (with a weighting factor of 30%),
• their Impact –the environmental, educational and societa impact is evaluated as well as the innovation of the project (with a weighting factor of 40%),
• their Applicability –the proposed ideas are projected in the real world and their applicability is evaluated, including if they are scalable and adaptable (with a weighting factor of 30%).

The committee had a difficult task, since, according to their testimonials, all projects consisted of rather innovative ideas/concepts, of high-quality presentations and documentation. Indeed, the projects received exceptionally outstanding ratings and achieved very close scores from 7,5 to 8,22/10. The winner was determined by the narrowest of margins and was the:

Solar Operational Vest with Integrated CIGS Technology for First Responders from the HUB of Flexible Solar Energy Application Lab of Greece!

The innovative idea, the applicability of the project, its industrial relevance, and significant social and environmental impact were the key factors that propelled it to first place in a photo finish. Nevertheless, all projects have a significant contribution to the SECOVE’s targets, as identified from the Commitee:

• Design and Development of a MOOC on Sustainable Energy Topics: has a strong pedagogical structure and high scalability; delivers broad educational impact, though indirect in emissions reduction
• A Scalable Model for Climate-Resilient and Energy-Independent Buildings: provides a well-integrated, systemic approach to resilient and energy-independent buildings; has a high potential impact and replicability across regions
• Solar Bus Stand with Digital Update, WiFi and Device Charging: suggests a functionally solid solution using mature technologies; has moderate innovation but high feasibility for urban deployment
• IOT platforms: proposes an effective use of IoT for energy/data management; is scalable and adaptable across sectors, with moderate differentiation
• Sustainable construction: Tuko Pamoja: a climate-responsive school in rural Kenya structures a comprehensive approach to sustainable construction, resulting in a very high environmental impact and strong applicability, especially in emerging contexts.

Congratulations to all participants, and wishing them all the best for their achievements!