You could earn thousands of pounds to help turn your ideas for change into businesses that create a real impact on society and the environment.
The University is partnering with the Ingenuity Programme, a UK enterprise programme run by the University of Nottingham that has taken place every year since 2016. The programme invests more than £400,000 in new ground-breaking business ideas that affect different areas of our lives - such as community, health and climate change.
Funding great ideas
Last year, three entries from Portsmouth (from five that were shortlisted) were chosen as award winners. They received in total £8,000 worth of funding as well as specialist mentoring support to make their ideas a reality.
Ideas from both staff and student teams included:
- using image and audio recognition to help farmers measure the positive and negative influence of their actions on ecosystems
- virtual personalised group exercise to inspire older adults to move more and help tackle social isolation
- an app that 'talks' to patients with deep vein thrombosis to help them manage their condition.
Robert Ball, second-year Innovation Engineering student and Chief Operating Officer of one of the teams, said: "The award will let us advance our prototyping and build more devices to test in the field. This will hopefully let us test our project with some interested parties such as the Knepp estate or Portsmouth City Council."
What does the programme involve?
This year the programme is being co-hosted by the University of Portsmouth. It will include a national summit, taking place in December, online learning, and a business plan competition supported by industry and community mentors. You'll hear from industry experts, think tanks, and charity leaders, as well as those with lived or professional experience of the biggest social and environmental challenges facing the UK today.
Teams or individuals with the most viable ideas will also be partnered with a mentor to develop their business plan and pitch, with the prize winners announced in May.
How do I apply?
The programme is open to everyone, no matter your background or experience, and you can find out more at ingenuityimpact.org.
If you have an idea or are motivated to see change, Ingenuity is ready to help you get off to the best start. Join us today to start creating sustainable impact across the UK!
