University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman students have been named Country Champions in the 3M Inspire Challenge regional innovation pitching competition and will advance to the final stage against other country champions.
UP Diliman’s Team “3MPHANT” comprising of BS Materials Engineering students Caleb Abrazaldo, Mariz Domingo, and Lila Lu, and BS Business Administration student Joseph Paraiso together won a cash prize amounting to USD 1,000 and internship offerings at local 3M offices and the right to represent the Philippines in the regional finals against Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The students’ winning pitch for the Hyacinth-esized Packaging, a non-toxic, pro-marine-life compostable plastic made from water hyacinth, bested Team XVR from Ateneo de Davao University and Team Ad Astra from Ateneo de Manila University in the Country-level Semi-finals in the Philippines. The Philippine event attracted a total of 16 teams.
The University of the Philippines team will next compete in the second stage or the regional-level finals in a face-off among the Country Champions. The winning team will be crowned as the “Regional Champion” and will receive a USD 2,000 cash prize.
The 3M Inspire Challenge is an inaugural competition that aims to hunt for/inspire great ideas in Innovation, Sustainability, and Technology while supporting the next generation of great leaders, thinkers, and creators. The competition started on April 23 and will run until 21 September 2021.
Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña and Assistant Secretary Leah J. Buendia were invited by 3M Philippines, Inc. to serve as judges at the Country-Level Semi-Finals of the 3M Inspire Challenge held virtually on 24 August 2021.
UP students’ disaster risk management system reached the finals of the Google Challenge 2021.
UP students also became Google’s Asia-Pacific Champions in the 7th Google Online Marketing Challenge.
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