Competition Structure
Have a brilliant CleanTech idea, or do you want to join an interdisciplinary team?
The CleanTech Challenge is a student competition where business and science/engineering students from top business and engineering schools compete in cross-functional teams. The challenge is to develop innovative clean technology ideas from the concept phase to a stage in which they would attract Series A funding or otherwise be self-sustainable.
CleanTech is new technology and related business models that offer competitive returns for investors and customers while providing solutions to global challenges.
Eligibility - Any Postgraduate student registered on any Postgraduate degree programme (Masters or Doctoral) at a recognised School or College during the academic year 2011-2012 can participate.
Key Dates and Competition Structure
This page provides a summary introduction of the competition structure. For details and formal rules of the competition , please see the Competition Rules for more information.
Stage |
Definition |
Date |
Stage 1 Call for Ideas |
Official launch of the event, call to submit your business idea online in less than 200 words as an individual or as a team. |
November 2011 to mid- January 2012 |
Ideas Submission |
Deadline for receiving ideas |
January, 2012 |
Selection for Stage 2 |
Successful Stage 1 entrants are informed by email and advance to Stage 2. They will be invited to complete their multidisciplinary teams, to further elaborate and present their ideas and answer real business questions during Stage 2. The exact format of the Stage 2 submission will be disclosed to Stage 1 winners. |
March, 2012 |
Stage 2 Final idea and team submission deadline |
Submission of a detailed version of the idea and the team details (including CV’s of individual team members) for Stage 2 teams. |
March , 2012 |
Selection for Stage 3 (finals) |
Successful Stage 2 teams (~10 teams) are informed by email. They will be required to participate in the two day Boot Camp held at London Business School. |
March , 2012 |
Stage 3 Boot camp finals |
Stage 3 teams are required to attend the Boot Camp as finalists. The teams will be mentored by industry experts. The team must present a response to challenge question on the 2nd day. |
April , 2012 |
Stage 1: Announce and invite ideas
November 2011 - January 2012
This phase is designed to stimulate as many 'ideas' as possible.
Business students may have insights into great potential products but may be on far shakier ground when it comes to sourcing and developing the technology needed to make them happen. "Tech"-students may have the opposite problem. They may feel sure that they've spotted a technology that could somehow be used to huge environmental benefit - but may have no idea how best to take it forward in business.
By mid-February , you need to submit (online) a no more than two hundred (200) word summary and complete the online application to tell us your idea in the field of CleanTech industries. The idea may come from an individual or from a small team. We will then filter the ideas-selecting the most viable and innovative ideas and taking out those submissions failing to meet the judging criteria.
Stage 2: Finalise your idea & complete your multidisciplinary team
March 2012
The proposers of the successful ideas will be invited to form interdisciplinary teams that will work together on the idea. Teams must consist of two up to five persons (with an optimum of four), with at least one student (currently) pursuing a technical or scientific degree, and at least one student pursuing a business-related degree in the 2011/2012 academic year.
Through an online competition platform , participants will be able to interact and networking with other business and engineering students around the world with the intention of forming teams for the finals. These other students have to be registered on the CTC website but need not necessarily have participated in Stage 1.
The Stage 2 teams will be required to answer real business questions in a slide presentation. The presentation will be part of the evaluation for the finals.
Stage 3: Boot Camp finals
April 2012
The Top 10 Stage 2 Teams, including regional finalist teams, will be invited to attend a two day Boot Camp and participate in the final challenge at London Business School. They will attend sessions led by leading CleanTech specialists, and they will be mentored by entrepreneurs and venture capital investors to receive first hand knowledge in real business operation. The will also have the unique opportunities to networking with the experts in the fields of cleantech industries.
The teams are required to present their response to a challenge questions on the 2nd day of the Boot Camp. The judges of Stage 3 will choose the best team which wins the prize.
