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Team I-Eco, a group of student entrepreneurs from Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB), is all set to participate in the regional semifinal rounds of the prestigious Hult Prize 2023 in Mumbai, India, during June 9-11, 2023.
Earlier this year, Team I-Eco, comprising IUB students Nahian Islam Asif, Nabeel Rahman, Sapnil Sarker Pollob, Hasib Al Mahmud and Zahana Islam, became champions in the Bangladesh national rounds of the competition, held at IUB, for their low-cost, eco-friendly "Bio-polymer Eyewear", which is a frame for spectacles made out of jute derivatives. The theme for this year’s Hult Prize is "Redesigning Fashion", which aims to encourage student entrepreneurs to design and launch innovative social ventures in the clothing and fashion industry to make it more sustainable.
The base material of the frame is the famous bio-polymer or jute polymer, invented by celebrated Bangladeshi scientist Dr. Mubarak Ahmad Khan, now known worldwide for his trademarked “Sonali Bag”. Bio-polymer is a cellulose-based biodegradable bioplastic that is rapidly gaining acceptance as an alternative to plastics.
During a program at IUB on the World Environment Day on June 5, 2023, Team I-Eco partnered with the IUB Environment Club to demonstrate their Bio-polymer Eyewear. During the program, Dr. Mubarak Ahmad Khan, who is also the mentor and chief adviser of Team I-Eco, delivered a special talk on the importance of finding sustainable alternatives to single-use plastics, which have turned out to be a major menace for the environment. This year, the theme for the World Environment Day was “Solutions to plastic pollution”.
At the Mumbai rounds of the Hult Prize 2023, Team I-Eco will be competing with students from globally renowned universities such as University of Oxford, Princeton University, University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, University of Toronto, Cornell University, New York University, Indian Institute of Technology and Indian Institute of Management. IUB is sponsoring a major part of Team I-Eco’s travel and accommodation expenses during their stay in Mumbai.
Hult Prize1
Independent University, Bangladesh
