Shell Ideas360 global contest comes to Qatar

Shell is giving all university students in Qatar the opportunity to participate in Shell Ideas360 to share their ideas to help tackle global challenges associated with energy, water and food availability.

Shell is collaborating with local universities to launch the global competition, encouraging students to conceive, share and collaboratively develop game-changing ideas.

The competition allows participants to develop their ideas into a “potentially investment-worthy” business case with the support of mentors and subject matter experts.

Students can submit their ideas until December 1.

Shell Ideas360 aims to raise awareness about population growth, climate change and increased resource demands, which add further stress to the supply of energy, water and food.

The process for Shell Ideas360 involves three key stages. In stage one, participants share and submit their initial concepts. These will be evaluated by a team of Shell experts and up to 100 ideas globally will be selected to go through to stage two.

In stage two, participants will further develop their ideas with the help of Shell mentors and subject matter experts. In stage three, five teams or individuals will be invited to Shell’s Global Fuel Challenge Race and the Shell Eco-Marathon Europe in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges.

The winning students will embark on a “once-in-a-lifetime” journey - a National Geographic expedition. In addition to this, the best ideas will be considered for funding by the Shell GameChanger programme, which has invested over $300mn to date.

Gamechanger has worked with more than 1,500 innovators, turning over 100 ideas into reality. This is the second season of the competition but the first time in the Middle East.

Maha al-Mannai, university collaboration manager at Qatar Shell, said: “The Shell Ideas360 is a great platform that will enable Qatar’s university students to collaborate with students from all around the world and develop game-changing ideas.”

Shell Ideas360 was launched last week in Qatar. It started with a visit to Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q). Sandy Kim, Career Services manager at GU-Q, said: “We hope to see a large number of entries from our students in the coming months and are delighted to be a part of this inspiring competition.”

Qatar University vice-president and chief academic officer Dr Mazen Hasna said: “This is an invaluable opportunity for students from the participating institutions in Qatar to collaborate with their peers around the world, to be creative and innovative on important global issues and demonstrate strong leadership qualities and communication skills.”

Participating students in Qatar will be part of an online student community set up to allow students from around the world to create teams and discuss ideas. In addition, students will have access to webinars on technical and non-technical topics to gain and develop awareness and knowledge on innovation, business practices and the importance of energy, water and food.

Mark H Weichold, dean and CEO of Texas A&M University at Qatar, said: “Texas A&M at Qatar is proud to have students competing in this very important global challenge.”