This year’s LEC.201 module, which introduces students to the concept of Eco-Innovation, recently concluded with one team receiving a prize. Over the 10-week course, led by Professor Nigel Watson, students collaborated in small teams to develop business plans for their own eco-innovative products or services. The resulting ideas covered a broad spectrum of sectors, addressing key everyday environmental issues such as food waste, agriculture, packaging, textiles, water, and disaster relief.

As part of the course assessment, teams presented their business pitches to a panel of experts in sustainability, entrepreneurship, and business development, following a “Dragon’s Den” style format. Each team identified key environmental challenges and introduced their eco-innovation, explaining how it addresses specific issues related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The winning team - Ben Flint, Emily Fryer, Robin Furber and Beril Geveci - impressed the panel with their innovative business focused on the production of biochar. Each member of the team received a prize generously donated by Colin Curtis, Managing Director of TBL Services.

TBL Services, a resident company at the Lancaster Environment Centre, supports organisations in understanding and tackling sustainability challenges across their supply chains and operations. Dr. Chris Holroyd, Business Partnerships Manager and the University's relationship manager for TBL, highlighted the mutual value of this partnership: “In addition to offering a business perspective in this module, having TBL Services—and other companies—based in the building creates real opportunities for collaboration. It supports the development of joint R&D projects and offers our students valuable hands-on experience through dissertation work or shorter, desk-based internships.”

Colin Curtis, the Managing Director of TBL Services said: “I've been a "dragon" on the LEC201 eco-innovation module for four years now, and every year I'm blown away by the passion, effort, and sheer brilliance of the students. Watching young people work together to come up with fully costed solutions and business plans to tackle major sustainable development issues is brilliant to see. The future is in good hands!”

Winning student Beril Geveci noted: “It was a great experience to work as a team to identify relevant global issues and discover environmentally friendly and financially sustainable ways to solve the problem while targeting the Sustainable Development Goals. It was very different to other modules as we got to have hands-on experience seeing what it is like to be part of a team and solve a 'real life' problem; it was very rewarding at the end to see our efforts pay off.”

Ben Flint, another winning student, said “I have walked away from this process gaining practical skills in collaboration, problem solving and entrepreneurship, which I may have not gained otherwise, benefitting my future projects going forward.”

Image (from left to right) Colin Curtis, Managing Director of TBL Services, Robin Furber – 2^nd year BSc Physical Geography (Placement Year), Beril Geveci – 2^nd year BSc Environmental Science (Study Abroad), Ben Flint – 2^nd year BA Geography, Dr Chris Holroyd, Business Partnerships Manager, LEC