All India Student Ideathon on “Becoming EcoInnovators for a Greener Future” held at Bengaluru

Bengaluru
hosted
a
pan-India
college-student
ideathon,
the
EcoInnovators
Challenge,
focused
on
creating
sustainability
related
solutions
leveraging
emerging
technologies
such
as
AI,
IoT,
and
other
science-based
innovations.
The
ideathon
was
a
collaborative
effort
between Global
Learning
Council (hosted
by
the Villars
Institute,
Switzerland),
in
partnership
with Axilor
Ventures and Pratithi
Investments.
A
similar
ideathon,
in
partnership
with
School
Net,
was
held
last
week
in
New
Delhi
for
high
school
students. 

GLC
Ideathon
event
–
Winners
with
key
dignitaries

The
initial
phase
of
the
GLC
EcoInnovators
Challenge
was
launched
in
October
2024,
attracting
over
2600
registrations
and
resulting
in
the
submission
of
more
than
250
ideas.
From
this
initial
pool,
13
teams
were
selected
and
invited
to
submit
their
solution
demonstrations.
Demonstrating
strong
inclusivity,
this
competition
saw
participation
of
top-tier
colleges
in
India
including
the
IITs,
NITs,
VIT,
as
well
as
colleges
from
non-metropolitan
areas
such
as
Dehradun
(Uttarakhand),
Raipur
(Chhattisgarh),
Sasaram
(Bihar),
and
Tiruchengode
(Tamil
Nadu). 

In
the
Ideathon’s
second
phase,
a
Demo
Day
was
held
yesterday
at
the
Infosys
Science
Foundation,
with
around
100
additional
students
specially
invited
from
selected
colleges
in
Bengaluru.
The
finalists
presented
a
variety
of
ideas
and
solutions
related
to
areas
such
as
biodiversity,
water
pollution,
circular
economy
business
model,
air
pollution,
and
energy
management.
A
masterclass
on
“Towards
Sustainable
Development:
Planetary
Boundaries
and
the
Potential
of
AI”
was
also
conducted.

Team
Navachar,
Navya
Tiwari
and
Navjivan
Kumar
Mehta
from
O.P.
Jindal
University
(Raigarh,
Chhattisgarh) secured
the
top
prize.
As
a
recognition
of
their
achievement,
the
team
members
have
received
an
invitation
to
attend
the
Global
Learning
Conference
organized
by
GLC
in
Switzerland
scheduled
in
June
2025.

Kris
Gopalakrishnan,
Co-founder
of
Infosys,
Chairman
of
Axilor
Ventures,
and Advisory
Board
Member
of
GLC,
said,
“In
its
second
edition,
I
am
glad
that
the
GLC
ideathon
has
expanded
in
scope
and
reached
more
students
across
India.
I
am
glad
that
the
jury
/
evaluation
process
has
learned
from
the
first
year
and
become
more
robust.
I
encourage
students
to
use
their
own
creativity
and
ideation
rather
than
just
rely
on
technologies
such
as
generative
AI.” 

Subra
Suresh,
Founder
and
President
of
the
Global
Learning
Council,
added,
“This
Ideathon
fulfils
the
key
objectives
of
both
GLC
and
Villars
Institute
–
nurturing
the
creativity
of
young
people
in
solving
inter-generational
challenges,
improving
the
learning
outcomes
of
students,
and
encouraging
the
use
of
science
and
technology
to
ensure
our
planet’s
vibrant
ecosystems.
I
am
delighted
that
student
teams
chosen
from
the
Bengaluru
and
New
Delhi
Ideathons
will
join
us
in 
Switzerland
and
interact
with
other
students
and
global
leaders.” 

Other
distinguished
guests
who
attended
the
event
include
S.D.
Shibulal,
Co-founder
Infosys,
Anna
Celner,
a
global
business
leader,
Indumathi
Nambi,
Professor
at
the
School
of
Sustainability,
IIT
Madras,
and
V.
Ganapathy,
Co-founder
and
CEO
of
Axilor
Ventures.