Participants in the Green Summer School: they came, acquired knowledge and achieved their objectives - Ideas, inspiration, the effort to advance your own project and, equally important, a pleasant atmosphere. Such were the features of the Green Innovation and Entrepreneurial Summer School in Bratislava. The second year of the event once again provided eco-innovators with the opportunity to learn how to turn their green idea green.

In the course of the Green Innovation and Entrepreneurial School, participants addressed a whole range of issues related to the implementation of innovative products and services in environmental protection and sustainable development. Whether they were reflecting on what was entailed in being eco-innovative or dealing with the issue of eco-design or project funding, all their answers were addressed by knowledgeable experts also involved in the so - called green business. Five days of intense discussion and sharing of new knowledge helped the participants to decide what further steps were needed to advance their projects. Two of the participants in the summer school, Tomáš Mauder, from Brno University of Technology and Silvia Chymová from Comenius University in Bratislava, summarise the experience gained. 

What eco-innovation or project did you come to resolve at the summer school? What did you hope to achieve?

Tomáš Mauder: “My project “Smarter Machines, Smarter World” aims to simulate real production processes with the help of advanced mathematical, statistical and optimisation techniques so as to render the production energy-efficient, hence environmentally-friendly. I simply wanted to acquire as much knowledge and experience as possible from people working in investment, innovation and internet advertising.”

Silvia Chymová: “I attended the summer school with my friend with the vague notion of ​​a summer camp. Our intention was to re-formulate our idea in greater detail in order to render it more specific and targeted. At the same time, we were hoping to gain some constructive feedback and then to improve our idea. ”

Have you achieved what you were planning and what it was specifically?

Tomáš Mauder: “I can say that I have achieved all that I had hoped for. The course even surpassed my expectations, notably in the quality of the instructors.”

Silvia Chymová: “Our expectations were met in full. We have met people with the same mindset, acquired many new incentives to consider further and various insights into our work, all of which has advanced our thinking. In addition, we have gained a wealth of theoretical and practical knowledge through lectures and interactive workshops, and we believe that our original concept has changed and improved every day. ”

What is the most crucial, the most striking, perhaps the most surprising knowledge you gained at the summer school?

Tomáš Mauder: “The most important thing I have learnt is that it is essential to create as detailed a business plan as possible at the very early stages of the development of a new product. This is to minimise the risk of project failure. What surprised me most was the statistical indicator of how many new projects and ideas end up failing. I definitely leave the Summer School with a different view of the whole concept of project planning and preparation, as well as its successful presentation to investors.”

Silvia Chymová: “I leave the summer school enriched with knowledge, experiences and impressions. It is difficult to say specifically what was “the best”. What will certainly remain in my memory is the pleasant atmosphere prevailing throughout the course. We were provided with a number of incentives to improve our plans, our requests were never rejected or our ideas openly criticised. Everyone tried their best to help the others and to embellish all the ideas. Perhaps what I regard as most valuable is that every idea merits a deeper reprocessing, and that each of us can contribute a little to make this a better world, however negligible the contribution may appear at this moment. ”

The event was held from 25 to 29 June 2018 at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava. “The Green Summer School was organised as part of the international EcoInn Danube project, which is a part of the Danube Transregional Programme – Interreg Danube. This programme is co-funded by the EU ERDF and IPA funds. The Centre of Scientific and Technical Information of the Slovak Republic (CVTI SR), a consortium project partner, acts as the project coordinator. It is also important to state that the summer school was sponsored by Siemens s.r.o,”, says Nina Bratková, the project manager from the CVTI SR. Gabriela Mezeiová, an expert from CVTI SR, also found this event inspiring; in particular, she appreciated the opportunity it afforded her for a professional consultation: “The Green Summer School provided me with an opportunity to view things through a business lens. It was a great chance to connect with Slovak and foreign “green” innovators while at the same time being a highly stimulating educational event.”