‘Go Green in the City’ contest launched

MANILA, Philippines - Schneider Electric, a global specialist in energy management, has launched the third edition of “Go Green in the City,” its international competition focused on developing innovative energy solutions for smarter cities.

Over the past two years, more than 1,050 teams representing 2,100 candidates from nine countries (Germany, France, Turkey, Poland, the United States, India, China, Russia and Brazil) participated in the competition. This success shows the global attractiveness of Schneider Electric to a young and increasingly female audience, and their growing interest and involvement in energy issues all over the world.

This increasing popularity among engineering school students is confirmed by the World’s Most Attractive Employers Survey released by Universum, which ranked Schneider Electric as one of the Top 50 most attractive employers in the world in 2012.

Encouraged by the success of the two previous editions of Go Green in the City, Schneider Electric decided to open the challenge to 10 more countries, thus bringing the total number of countries covered by this 2013 edition to 19.

The new countries will include Mexico, Canada, as well as eight countries from the East Asia region (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Korea, and Taiwan).

“By opening Go Green in the City to 10 more countries, Schneider Electric wants to respond to the growing concern students show for energy issues and raise awareness of the challenges facing the energy sector in both mature and new economies,” said Karen Ferguson, executive vice president for global human resources at Schneider Electric.

Global energy challenge

Go Green in the City aims to give a better understanding of the global energy challenge and to create a strong bond with the young and emerging talents throughout the world, future core players of tomorrow’s energy market.

It is open to 190 universities in 19 countries. In teams of two, at least one of which should be a woman, students are encouraged to come up with viable solutions for energy management.

The students apply by sending in a pitch of their idea by March 3 at the latest.

The best proposals should reconcile increased demand for energy, social progress and environmental protection. After a first selection of the 100 most interesting projects in April, the students will have five weeks to develop their idea with the help of a Schneider Electric mentor assigned to them.

After the final selection process, 25 finalist teams will be invited to Paris to present their final project to a jury composed of Schneider Electric managers. The two members of the winning team will be offered a job to start their career with Schneider Electric. They will also have the opportunity to visit Schneider Electric facilities in different parts of the world and meet fellow employees, as well as being exposed to senior leaders.

‘Go Green in the City’ Philippines now open

The Philippine edition of the Go Green in the City, an inter-university competition open to engineering students all over the country, seeks to encourage the Filipino youth to develop ideas on intelligent energy management in the city.

The proposed idea must fit into any of the following fields:  home, retail, hospitals, universities, water, transportation, and public services such as airports, office buildings, and residential buildings.

SE Philippines will be accepting entries until Feb. 28. Student participants will be asked to submit a creative presentation of their idea for intelligent energy management in the city during the first round of the competition.

The top three creative ideas will be chosen to be built into prototypes. A panel of judges will select the best project on the merits of design and creativity, innovative thinking, feasibility, cost effectiveness, energy efficiency, and social impact.

Aside from receiving attractive cash prizes, the winning team from the Philippines will be sent to the regional competition in Indonesia to present their project and compete against similar student teams from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Korea.

The winning team from East Asia will be sent to Paris, France, where the Schneider Electric headquarters are located.

Find out more about the competition at www.gogreeninthecity.com.