On 19 September 2022, on the occasion of the 77th General Assembly of the United Nations, the global final of Universities for SDG13 Award (UG13), jointly organized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and Siemens Gamesa, concluded successfully. Five finalists from China, the United States, Germany, South Africa and Brazil competed fiercely, and the Byte Rainforest team selected by the Institute for Sustainable Development Goals, Tsinghua University (TUSDG), the organiser of the Chinese region, won the global award and will receive a prize money of USD 10,000 for project development and implementation.
Jeffrey Sachs、María Cortés Puch、María Cortina
Jeffrey Sachs, President of SDSN, Professor of Columbia University and Chairman of the International Academic Committee of TUSDG; María Cortés Puch, Vice-President of SDSN and María Cortina, Head of Communications and Public Affairs of Siemens Gamesa, attended the 19th event and read the results of the competition. ía Cortina, Global Head of Social Commitment at Siemens Gamesa, attended the event on the 19th and announced the results of the competition. They hope that the competition will encourage more and more university students to join the fight against climate issues.
"The UG13 is an excellent programme that offers an extremely innovative way to address the challenges of the future's climate change. Today, we see catastrophic climate events around the globe every day. It has taken us a long time to face up to the climate problem, and now we realise that we need large-scale global solutions to decarbonise the world's energy system by mid-century at the latest. The challenge we are facing is enormous and unprecedented ...... The UG13 ensures that the process of innovation can be taken forward into the future in a dynamic way with future engineers and the leaders of next generation. Really appreciate the competition for allowing students from colleges and universities around the world to create real-world solutions to the climate challenge under the careful guidance of their mentors."
--Jeffrey Sachs
"Although college students lack professional experience in the technical field, we still hope to inspire more young people to follow in the footsteps of these former participants and continue to surprise us with creative and high-potential solutions through their talent and teamwork."
--María Cortés Puch
Byte Rainforest team presented their project
The Byte Rainforest team's project monetises the carbon sink capacity of tropical rainforests by converting carbon fluxes into carbon credits through a blockchain-based digital MRV system. Their solution creates incentives for rainforest conservation efforts and calls on societies to focus on rainforest resource protection and social security for those involved.
Universities for SDG13 Award
The Universities for Goal 13 Award was initiated by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network and SIEMENS GAMESA, and held simultaneously at five universities in five countries: China, the United States, Germany, South Africa and Brazil. The innovative environment of the universities gave students the opportunity to showcase their talents and skills in a collaborative manner, and allowed stakeholders to understand the implications of carbon reduction at the technical, legal and sociological levels.
Tsinghua SDG Institute, as the co-organizer of the competition, aims to lead Chinese university students to actively participate in SDG13 - Climate Action, and propose more practicable and innovative solutions to the global climate challenges, while also to help cultivate Chinese university students’ innovation ability and climate awareness in addressing climate issues.
On-site Group photo of the Great China Finals
The three winning teams of the Great China Finals，guided and supported by mentors from Tsinghua SDG Research Institute and Siemens Gamesa, participated in the Global Semi-Final on 6th July. In the global semi-finals, the best teams from each region were selected and the final competition took place in September. From the first, second and final rounds in China to the global semi-finals and finals, the young Chinese students went through five rounds of selection and four rounds of mentoring.
In the competition, students fully demonstrated their intelligence, reflecting the will and determination of Chinese youth to tackle the climate crisis. The competition provided young students with a platform for learning, communication, and professional guidance, allowing them to explore how to tackle climate change from a more professional perspective. The future of the planet is to be shaped by the young generation. The active participation of contemporary young people in the cause of combating climate change is an important foundation for all mankind to successfully respond to the crisis in the future and achieve the goal of sustainable development. The world needs the global youth to contribute their wisdom and strength to lead the way forward.
