SDG Accelerator

Our approach

In order to immerse ourselves more in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and how we could better fulfil the SDGs we had determined for our project, we have decided to partner with the SDG Accelerator, a programme based in the Geneva-Tsinghua Institute that provides guidance and expertise to student projects working on SDGs. In this context, we wrote in June an application document answering many questions around the issue at hand, more specifically:

  • The targeted SDGs and relevant indicators

  • The proposed solution as well as an explanation of the solutions currently in place, and the scope of application

  • The data processing related to our project

  • The impact (target audience, objectives etc.) and possible risks of our project

Writing this document allowed us to take a step back from the situation, to look more deeply into the problem as well as into the objectives defined by the United Nations, in detail, both in the origin of the problem and in the precautions to be taken when trying to bring a solution.

Please find below the application letter :

An ambitious project

The properties we wanted to implement in our material, as well as the steps to be performed and the order of priority were very clear.

Being a biobased material, it is possible that the cellulose aerogel passively absorbs CO2 (like a carbon sink). Mr. Fernandez-Marques suggested to us to verify this point through an analysis of scientific articles on the subject. If this was indeed the case, it could be interesting to put forward this point as another advantage of our product over its competitors.

What we should work on

The project is ambitious and therefore needs to be developed to its full potential in order to convince the actors who can play an important role. What was essentially missing was a quantification of the impact that the project could have! Numbers, rigorously obtained, are essential to convince.

Regarding competitors, it is important to compare ourselves to their products and clearly explain our place and additional positive impact. All these tips, as well as questions about the potential market, the price for the customer, the necessary infrastructure, have been answered as much as possible in the Entrepreneurship page. Indeed, the industrial aspect of bringing the product to market is greatly linked to our Objective 9 "Industry, innovation & infrastructure"1, to find a new and more sustainable approach to large-scale production, with minimum impact on the environment.

Improved impact

To have a positive impact on as large a scale as possible, while staying within sustainable limits for the planet, we need to ensure several things:

  • Stay in the open source and collaborative spirit of iGEM, to allow for greater transmission of this technology

  • Reduce the energy and infrastructure requirements of this technology, so that it can be implemented in as many places as possible

  • Work with government bodies and stakeholders already involved to achieve an industry shift. We have already started to achieve this by taking part in the BioManufacturing track competition, and presenting our modular, innovative and hopefully sustainable idea!

    • References

    1. Sustainable Development Goal 9 : Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
      Full text