Calls

CESAER Student Challenge

PURPOSE AND GOALS
Do you have an innovative idea about how science and technology can support society toward sustainable development?
The CESAER network of European Universities of Science and Technology has launched the CESAER Student Challenge 2023: an opportunity for teams of male and female students and PhD students to present their innovative and sustainable ideas. A panel of experts will evaluate innovative ideas that demonstrate scientific and technological excellence with the goal of having an impact on sustainability.

THE TOPIC
This year's theme is "The Contribution of Technical Universities to Sustainability," and proposals will be evaluated on (i) innovation, (ii) scientific and technological excellence, and (iii) sustainability and impact.

THE AWARD
The top three proposals will be presented at the CESAER Annual Meeting (CAM) in October 2023, and the leaders of the winning teams will be invited to attend the CAM, during which the final prize winners of €20,000 will be announced.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE
Only one project can be submitted by each CESAER member university. For this reason, the selection process is organized in 2 steps: 1. internal selection at the Politecnico di Torino and 2. application of the selected proposal to the CESAER Student Challenge.

Step 1 - Internal Selection
To select the project from the Politecnico di Torino, interested teams should submit their idea by filling out the following online form by June 7, 2023: https://forms.office.com/e/LXYWFmuvbD

The form should include:
  • First and last names of team members
  • Contact information for a contact person in the group
  • A brief abstract presenting the idea (500 words max in English)
  • Possible sustainability impact (200 words max in English)
Students regularly enrolled at the Politecnico (Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees) and students from other universities can participate in the team. In particular, CESAER encourages the formation of interdisciplinary and inter-institutional teams. In this regard, Politecnico di Torino is part of the European University Alliance UNITE!, here you can find the list of partner universities to enrich your team (Partners UNITE!).

Step 2 - Application to the CESAER Student Challenge 2023.
The internally selected Polytechnic project may apply for the CESAER call by July 31, 2023, by submitting the required materials in English:
  • an abstract,
  • a short video
  • the endorsement of its Institutional Liaison for CESAER.
Any applications that do not follow the internal selection process of the Politecnico di Torino will not be considered. Projects not selected to participate in the CESAER Student Challenge 2023 may receive other awards and represent a collection of implementable ideas at the Politecnico di Torino.

MORE INFORMATION
An online webinar has been organized on May 5 at 5:30 pm to provide more details about the call. To participate, you must register by May 2 at the following link https://forms.office.com/e/sAzNMdGrLZ

Additionally, we would like to inform you about the Innovation Talk for students on 4 May 16:00-18:00, organized by CESAER in collaboration with Start up Academy on how to develop an innovative idea and present it. More information on the talk can be found here

Important dates:
  • April 21: Call launch
  • May 4: Innovation talk for Students - organized by CESAER in collaboration with Start up Academy
  • June 7: Informative webinar about the call and Q&A - organized by Politecnico di Torino
  • May 31: Deadline for submission of applications for the internal PoliTO call
  • June : Publication of results and closing of the internal PoliTO call
  • June/July: mentoring for the winning team of the internal PoliTO call
  • July 31: Application deadline for the CESAER Student Challenge 2023
  • Oct. 19, 2023: Awarding of the winners at the CESAER Annual Meeting in Madrid
Mail: sostenibilita@polito.it