TU Dublin President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge

02 & 03 November 2023

What is the TU Dublin President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge?

• TU Dublin President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge is an invitation to TU Dublin students across all faculties and campuses to come together at the TU Dublin Grangegorman campus on 02 and 03 November 2023 to a hackathon event where they brainstorm ideas to positively impact on a global problem. 
• This year the focus of the Innovation Challenge is on the challenge of fast fashion. The world’s consumers are buying more clothes and wearing them for less time than ever before, discarding garments as fast as trends shift.  Meanwhile, the problems of plastic fibres polluting the oceans, wastewater, toxic dyes and the exploitation of underpaid workers increase.  
• BE PART OF THE SOLUTION BY CREATING SOLUTIONS!

Why is Fast Fashion the 2023 Sustainability Innovation Challenge?  

Why this challenge? There are lots of important reasons for focusing on the sustainability challenges in fashion clothing production and consumption, and particularly those challenges arising from fast fashion trends …  here are a few big ones reported by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation…

• The clothing industry produces an estimated 92 million tonnes of textiles waste annually, much of which is burnt or finds its way to landfill while less than 1% of used clothing is recycled into new garments.
• It is estimated that people are buying 60 per cent more clothes and wearing them for half as long. Meanwhile, it is estimated that a truckload of abandoned textiles is dumped in landfill or incinerated every second.
• The United Nations Environment Programme reports that every year the fashion industry uses 93 billion cubic meters of water — enough to meet the consumption needs of five million people.

In summary, more sustainable clothing production and consumption:

• saves money, and
• protects the environment. 

At the President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge, we plan to develop a wide range of ideas to address these problems.

Who is eligible to get involved?

• The invitation is open to ALL TU Dublin students – including full time and part time students and across ALL programmes including research degrees and apprenticeships.

• Faculty and staff are welcome to join as mentors.

Prize Fund:

• €2,000 Prize Fund kindly provided by www.workday.com

What is the format?

• On 02 and 03 November 2023, TU Dublin students will come together to work in teams to generate and develop ideas that address the sustainability challenges of fast fashion.
• All you need to do is sign up to participate in the TU Dublin President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge.
• You can bring your own team to the hackathon, or you can join a team.
• You will be given direction on how to form your team, brainstorm ideas, and pitch your ideas with confidence. Advisors and mentors will be available throughout to help you and your team.
• Towards the end of the day, our panel of judges will select from the best ideas proposed with the winning team or teams receiving a cash prize kindly supported by Workday. The total prize fund is €2,000.
• All participants will be issued with the STLR (Student Transformative Learning Record) credit award, providing participant with formal recognition for this learning experience.
• Food and beverages will be provided.

I don’t have a team

• You can easily sign up as an individual and join a team.

• On the afternoon of 02 November 2023, the day before the main hackathon, students who have signed up as individuals will be invited to meet and be facilitated to form teams.

I don't have an idea

• You don’t have to have ideas for the solution already but it is no problem if you do, and want to use the hackathon to build on your proposed solution. 

• We don’t expect teams to come up with solutions that will solve the entire challenge of unsustainable fashion production and consumption.  

• We hope to develop a diverse range of ideas. 

• Some ideas might address how we encourage consumers to change their consumption behaviour, other ideas might seek to increase recycling , enable circularity in the textile value chain, or change production processes. 

• The solutions may be simple and smart, or highly technological.  

• As with most sustainability challenges, the overall solution for reducing the impact of fast fashion will be found in many small solutions and ideas – one of which might be yours!

   

Key Dates & Schedule:

• 20 October 2023: Application closing date.

• 02 November 2023: Day 1 of the Challenge – Everyone comes together to build their teams and create the start of a good idea.  Kick-off 2.00 pm. Finish 4.00pm.

• 03 November 2023: Day 2 of the Challenge – the Hackathon Day!  Solution ideation, selection and development before pitching to a judging panel. Kick-off 9.00 am. Finish 4.00pm.

How do I sign up?

• You can sign up as an individual or as a team to take part in the TU Dublin President’s Sustainability Innovation Challenge here.
• For further information check www.tudublin.ie/growthhub/hackathon or contact growthhub@tudublin.ie.
• Here you can find out about last year's challenge. Watch John talking about his experience with the hackathon.

Funded by: