Three finalists of the global Bright Minds Challenge for the most promising solar and energy storage solutions to move our planet towards 100% renewable energy were announced on 12 April in Somerville, MA, U.S.A. at Greentown Labs, the largest cleantech incubator in the U.S. The finalists are Cellulike (Tanzania) a pay as you go model for micro-grid solar power distribution systems, Inquimae (Argentina) a sustainable energy storage project from renewable energy sources (solar and wind) for remote electrification and Solar Ear (Brazil), focusing on solar powered hearing aids for the most impoverished communities across the globe.
The Bright Minds Challenge was created by DSM together with partners Accenture; Chinese National Center of Supervision and Inspection on Solar Photovoltaic Products Quality (CPVT), Greentown Labs; U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL); Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, University of Oxford; Solarcentury; SolarAid and Sungevity.
The consortium will provide the finalists with a customized package of commercial, technical and mentoring support to help them bring their prototypes to market as rapidly as possible. In June the winner will be announced and will receive 500 hours (an equivalent of more than USD $100,000) of tailored support to fast-forward their solution.
At the event, the 10 nominees selected by the general public presented their solutions to a panel of expert judges, who ranked the nominees on the basis of societal impact, commercial scalability, uniqueness, technical quality and the quality of their presentation.
Pieter Wolters, Managing Director of DSM Venturing and chairman of the jury commented: “The Bright Minds Challenge aims to accelerate the transition to renewable energy and unlocking the potential of bright minds around the world. With this initiative we help them to take their scientific solution to the next step for the benefit of society as a whole. These three finalists have shown they are ready to take it to next level and make a difference in turning solar and energy storage into the renewable energy source of choice.”
The movement is real. People all over the world are joining together to support our Bright Minds – and to make sure our future is protected. Read the latest blogs from our partners and follow our finalist’ progress as they get ready to face the judges.
The UN SDG17 encourages the revitalizing and enhancing of international partnerships that bring together different actors and to mobilise all available resources in support of global sustainable development.
Who holds the key to achieving the world’s transition to 100% renewable energy? Our partners discuss the need for cross-border and cross-sector collaboration and the impact it can have on reaching the UN SDGs faster.
The Bright Minds Challenge partners represent various sectors and unique expertise. We asked them to share their view on the key challenges for a global transition to 100% renewable energy and cutting the carbon off the grid.
Scientist Ernesto Julio Calvo (Argentina) who invented Inquimae - a new way of extracting lithium that is powered by solar energy and is quicker and cleaner than any existing technology - won the first prize in the Bright Minds Challenge.
As we are near the end of the Bright Minds Challenge we take a look back at the impact of the past 7 months.
As pitches are polished and excitement builds on the run up Grand Final on June 13th, we wanted to share a sneak peak into the three groundbreaking solutions vying for the grand prize.
Join a select group of leaders, pioneers, innovators, scientists and investors at Westergasfabriek - a former gas factory and now a 100% sustainable park - to get inspired, share your perspective, network with industry leaders, find new pathways to collaboration, and celebrate the Bright Minds Challenge!
The finalists are Cellulike (Tanzania) a pay as you go model for micro-grid solar power distribution systems, Inquimae (Argentina) a sustainable energy storage project from renewable energy sources (solar and wind) for remote electrification and Solar Ear (Brazil), focusing on solar powered hearing aids for the most impoverished communities across the globe.
We asked, our expert jury answered: What does the Challenge mean to you personally?
We asked, our expert jury answered: What are your expectations from the judging day?
We asked, our expert jury answered: What will you be looking for when choosing the Bright Minds Challenge winners?
We’re rewarding 10 randomly selected voters with a WakaWaka Power+ - a durable, lightweight and compact solar charger.
Highlights of our Reddit /r/Science Ask Me Anything (AMA) with Paul Wyman, Senior Scientist at DSM, Peter Pasmans, PhD in physics, expertise in optical modelling, Damien Reardon, PhD in chemistry, expertise in sol-gel chemistry and thin film coatings and Ian Bennett, expert in photovoltaic modules.
Key themes emerging from the Bright Minds Challenge submissions that could deliver significant societal and environmental benefits.
We’re giving everyone a say in the Bright Minds Challenge. And why we’re asking YOU to give just a few minutes of your time to support the renewable energy revolution by voting for the solution you think has the greatest potential.
After 20 days of energetic voting, championing, campaigning and promoting we are delighted to announce that your votes have been counted and validated and your top 10 has been chosen!
Jan Slaghekke, Chief Global Officer at Sungevity, offers insight into what it takes to create a successful renewable energy start-up.
Jan Slaghekke, Chief Global Officer at Sungevity discusses the progress the solar industry has made in becoming mainstream and the remaining hurdles to overcome.
Bright Minds Challenge Partners Solarcentury asked their in-house product innovators and pioneers how they would use 500 hours of commercial, technical and mentoring support worth over $100,000.
There are many reasons to take part in the Bright Minds Challenge Challenge - we've boiled it down to our Top 5!
"If we successfully launch an enabling technology to bring free access to education and Internet to children in developing countries…then to me, SolidEnergy was worth it".
"My dream is to have solar cells that after some time will degrade like leaves on a tree – and can be replaced with new ones".
"To sustain our modern lifestyle on this planet, we need to return to a sustainable energy supply: Which is energy delivered to us by the sun."
