Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Pitch Competition: International Challenge Question

The second annual McMaster SDG pitch competition took place on March 13, 2024, and focused on sustainable transportation within McMaster’s campus, the City of Hamilton, and through international travel. This event was a part of SDG Week across Canada and highlighted the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The competition was facilitated by McMaster’s Academic Sustainability Programs Office and Office of International Affairs (for the International Challenge portion) in collaboration with financial support from the Office of International Affairs, the Office of the Provost, and the Office of Sustainability. Dr. Bonny Ibhawoh, in his keynote address, acknowledged that “sustainability challenges are complex and interconnected, as are their solutions.”

Read more about the event on the Daily News.

The International Teams:

As part of this competition, the Office of international Affairs led the international portion of the SDG competition which challenged students to come up with creative ideas to address the question: “How do we enhance international collaboration and global engagement in a sustainable and equitable way?”

To this challenge call, five student teams responded with the following creative ideas:

• Team: Michelle Wan (Health Sciences) and Samy Cheng (Health Sciences)

Project Name: EcoScholar

In academia, conference attendance significantly contributes to carbon emissions. EcoScholar is an innovative app designed to tackle this issue, employing the ACE model: Assess, Coordinate, and Engage. It prompts users to evaluate travel necessity, encourages eco-conscious event planning, and facilitates community engagement to offset environmental impact. Implementation involves collaboration among experts, iterative testing, and scaling up from local to global levels. Ultimately, EcoScholar aims to foster sustainable international collaboration while addressing environmental and social concerns.

• Team: Shlok Panchal (Engineering and Health Sciences) and Ameen Neami (Engineering and Health Sciences)

Project Name: Project Bridge

In the pursuit of connecting innovators and protecting our planet, we created Project Bridge: a virtual hub designed to foster sustainable and equitable global collaboration and innovation. Project Bridge uses GatherTown’s interactive technology to create engaging and accessible spaces for discussions, workshops, and innovative pitches. Our team identified four key pillars to target: accessibility and equity, engagement and innovation, the environmental impact of travel, and funding and support. To achieve this, we bridge the gap of international exchange by seamlessly and sustainably connecting innovators across the globe to foster academic collaboration worldwide!

• Team: Linta Chatha (Health Sciences) and Harini Bhoopla (Science)

Project Name: Mac eGlobal Education Program

Mac eGlobal is an online learning platform that allows students worldwide to engage in a global education experience from the comfort of their own home. Through Mac eGlobal,  students have the opportunity to take courses from a variety of disciplines alongside other international students, and be instructed by professors and TAs from around the world. Through collaborative learning methods like group projects and virtual labs, students can engage with their peers and make meaningful connections and friendships across the globe. Mac eGlobal aims to address environmental and financial barriers associated with international travel, offering a sustainable and accessible alternative for student exchange programs.

• Team: Amber Siddiqui (Social Sciences) and Kiya Patel (Social Sciences)

Project Name: Global Greenprints: Cultivating Sustainable Futures Through International Exchange

• WINNING Team: Daniel Maestre, Mercy Budu, and Matt Player, (Mechanical Engineering)

Project Name: Collaborative Sustainability: A Global Perspective

On average, nearly 15 tonnes of carbon dioxide are released due to international academic travel. The solution proposed is intended to reduce the carbon emissions related to academic collaborative events whilst enhancing their quality. Our team found inspiration from the LEED building certification program which has proven to foster greener building construction successfully. Our solution is a framework of sustainable practices easily adapted to international collaborative events of any size. Points are awarded for implementing different sustainable practices and their prospective impact. The implementation of this proposal is expected to encourage collaboration between conference organizers, centralization, and easy dissemination of knowledge.

We would like to thank all the teams for participating and taking part in this challenging and competitive process.

McMaster International Winning Challenge team members Daniel Maestre, Mercy Budu, and Matt Player, all graduate students in Mechanical Engineering program, met with Dr. Bonny Ibhawoh, Vice Provost International, and Dr. Amira El Masri on April 2. The meeting aimed to discuss and explore ways in which their project titled “Collaborative Sustainability: A Global Perspective” can be further explored and potentially put into practice. This project puts in place a framework of sustainable practices which can easily be adapted to international collaborative events of any size. Points are awarded for implementing different sustainable practices and their prospective impact.

The Office of International Affairs offers its congratulations to the winning team and looks forward to offering its support to advance this project.