Global Sustainability

Challenges

OpenInnovation September 2026

Challenge 1

Circular Futures – Waste to Worth for Families in Kibera

child wellbeing, Circular economy, community-led innovation, family resilience, informal settlements, local ownership, waste-to-value, women’s entrepreneurship

100% for the Children is an international NGO working with local communities in Kenya to improve education, child protection, health and climate resilience. In Kibera, many families rely on irregular, low-paid work, making it difficult to build financial stability and provide secure futures for their children.

The challenge explores how waste can be transformed into products, services and local businesses that create more stable incomes and greater financial independence for caregivers, while supporting a cleaner and more climate-resilient community.

Challenge track winner: Team Phoenix

Student teams’ solutions to the challenge:

From Scraps to School Plates

Team Phoenix

Emma, Lanelle, Leo and Mai.

The BLUE ZONE Project

Team Wone

Sára Júlia Eszik, Mia Blackwell Gonzalez, Anmol Agarwal and Letícia Nakada.

Waste to Wealth

Team Waste to Wealth

Augustina, Sebastian, Julius, Mohd. Mahdiussaman, Johanna and Shetu.

Connecting Kibera – One Bead at a Time

Team Kibera ReBeads

Nityapriya Hari Krishnan, Hanna Larios, Ashraf Mahmoud and Alicia Kelpert

FoodNet

Team Waste for Taste

Jose Manuel Martinez Soriano, Maria Gaito, Mona Hein Larsen and Dumitru.

Plastaka: Building modules

Team Plastaka

Pamela Roldan, Sama Lasheen, Natalia Rojas C., Sourav Dehury and Lourdes Salazar.
Challenge 2

Reducing Floodings through River Waste Management in Sierra Leone

Climate Adaptation, Community Engagement, Flooding Resilience, local ownership, Plastic Pollution, Sustainable Maintenance, Urban Resilience, Waste Management

Sierra Leone is highly exposed to the impacts of climate change, particularly in rapidly growing urban areas such as Freetown. During the rainy season, blocked drainage systems and polluted waterways contribute to frequent flooding, damaging homes, disrupting access to essential services, and increasing the risk of disease outbreaks.

The goal: Develop a solution that continuously engages local communities in running river-waste collection initiatives and strengthens resilience to flooding.

Challenge track winner: Team YUZ BAK

Student teams’ solutions to the challenge:

Plastic Intervention Educational Program

Team YUZ BAK

Ana Ariyan Aydin, Gabriel Tovar, Gabriel Caraballo Ruiz and
Nihal Elsayed.

From Plastic to Flood Prevention

Team From Plastic to Flood Prevention

Kata Rácz, Elizabeth Aakesson, Monica Mercedes Figuera Rios, Nikolaos Avgerinos, Ebbe Schou and Tarrun Selvan.

Plastic Freetown: Idea-validation project

Team Plastic Freetown

Jo, Mansingh, Gaia, Samuel and Sofia.

“Sorting, Awareness & Bridging” Initiative (SABI)

Team SABI

Ambah Brøndum-Christensen, Ella Lloansi Gelabert, Esben Holdt Christensen, Mahault Genton and Zina A. Saha.
Challenge 3

Rethink Circular Materials in Retail

Circular economy, Digital Technologies, Retail circularity, Returns and recovery, Systems thinking

Help IKEA Denmark reach their goal of be 2030 goal of becoming fully circular and climate-positive. Today, zero-waste operations are held back by subjective grading of returned items, no real-time resale pricing, and labor-intensive manual sorting of complex, multi-material waste.

The goal is to explore how AI, automation, and data can help IKEA make smarter circular decisions, from waste recognition to data-enabled routing and human-machine collaboration, keeping products and materials at their highest value for longer and minimizing the use of virgin materials.

Challenge track winner: Team Blenders

Student teams’ solutions to the challenge:

IKEA Scan

Team Blenders

Simon Ramos, Emma Kristiansen, Summer Hsia, Jonas Kersting and Omar Montelongo.

IKEA Circular Knowledge Hub

Team 13 SepÖda

Carsten Grønli, Yihhsin Hsiao, Thaís Matos, Chizhi Liu and Deakshat Harshan Arounkumar.

Round 2

Team Round 2

Abdelrhman Hatem, Johanna Boywitt, Gloriano Sherifi, Flore Goupil, Anirudh Sonti and Nikhil Kaarthik

IKEA Loop

Team IKEA Loop

Álvaro Martí, Nessma Fouad, Patricia Salas, Sara Khedr and Jacob Wierup

IKEA CIRCA

Team Sweet16

Marine Gaebler, Hang Nguyen, Artur Małuszek, Rachel Hogg, Jaymin Panchasara and Nithiyashri Sathis.

An Eye for Every Return

Team EYEKEA

Fatih, Rui, Yacob, Max, Moe and Paula.

NextHome

Team Full Circle Moment

Mathis, Luca, Sadia and Magnus.
Challenge 4

Rethinking Plastic Waste in Egyptian Cities

AI and IoT, Behavioural design, Circularity, Citizen engagement, Data-driven solutions, Digital platforms, Resource recovery, Sharing economies, Smart infrastructure, Smart waste management, Sustainable materials, upcycling, waste-to-value

Egypt is undergoing a critical green and digital transition, where addressing climate challenges and building sustainable economic systems requires new approaches driven by innovation, technology, and youth engagement. However, significant unmet needs remain at societal, institutional, and individual levels.

Challenge track winner: Team maʿ baʿḍ

Student teams’ solutions to the challenge:

The Cooperative maʿ baʿḍ

Team maʿ baʿḍ

Aleksandra Bobusic, Ali Abdelwahab, Arnau Costa, Luisa Hostlowsky and Waad Saber.

Connecting the pieces of the Egyptian Plastic Economy

Team MOSAIC

Carl Rune Bernhard, Mark Giles, Khadija Marhadi, Fiona Duggan-Fuchs, Mawada Mahfouz and Meyar Muhammedd.

The Cairo Green Hub

Team The Cairo Green Hub

Elena Silvestrin, Priyanka Emmanuel, Bercel Gerebenics, Andrea Szabó, Benedek Szücs and Tarnim Farag.

Turning Today’s Youth Into Tomorrow’s Changemakers

Team BOKRA | بكرا

Tereza Kendrova, Jake Rasmussen, Kaj Ciechanowski-

Jørgensen and Hala Fahd.

CairoCycle

Team Recyabie

Elena Leow, Ahmed Hussien, Zofia Dziekonska and Carla Geraci.

Garbitrage – Recycling for Rural Areas

Team Garbitrage

Ulrikke Veje, SergeyBondarik, SiddharthJain, Hannah ElSayed and Nicholas Reid.

Striving for cleaner Cairo – a win-win for all

Team Circular

Morten Kryger Beck, Małgorzata

Szostak, Julia Krol, Matías Lemus Núñez and Omar Ghynm.

Partners September 2026

Challenge Partners

Program Partner

Vegetarian catering in collaboration with

Strong Partnership

OpenInnovation is brought forward by a strong partnership between three leading Danish universities.

Link to home page.

OpenInnovation is Copenhagen’s flagship student innovation challenge, bringing over 120 students, researchers, and sustainable innovation enthusiasts together with innovation experts and key actors in the Danish ecosystems.

Contact

Sara Dømler
Project Manager
sardera@dtu.dk