MTU nominated for two global awards
A Cork university has been nominated for two Triple E Awards in the European category. The Triple E Awards are a global recognition of efforts towards the quest for entrepreneurship and engagement in higher education.
MTU has been shortlisted in two categories - the team-level Innovation and Entrepreneurship Activators of the Year and the initiative-level EDI Community Engagement Initiative of the Year.
The combined success of four different initiatives earned MTU its nomination in the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Activators of the Year category. The Innovative Product Design Initiative, the Student Inc. Entrepreneurship Programme, the Innovation Challenge and the MTU Prize for Innovation all helped MTU to make the shortlist for the awards. These four elements have been developed to ensure that they are complementary to each other such that each of them focuses on a different aspect of educational entrepreneurship and engagement. More than 5,000 people have benefited from the programmes over the last two decades.
Hugh O’Donnell, Lecturer and Course Coordinator, Biomedical Engineering, MTU, said: “For many years, our team has provided a range of interlinked opportunities for students at all academic levels to express their creativity, ingenuity, and entrepreneurial talents.
“We are delighted that the team has been recognised by being shortlisted for the Triple-E award category “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Activators of the Year.”
MTU received its nomination in the EDI Community Engagement Initiative of the Year for its leadership in fostering youth entrepreneurship in rural and urban community initiatives while increasing access to such initiatives for young people. The university demonstrated this through its Enterprise Camp and Goalmine programmes. Both camps are free to attend and encourage student participation from primary and secondary level students in regional and lower socioeconomic areas. Both programmes demonstrate outstanding community engagement, directly impacting over 1,600 individuals since 2012.
Rebecca Robinson, Researcher at the MTU Hincks Centre for Entrepreneurship Excellence, said: “Having delivered the MTU Bishopstown Entrepreneurship Summer Schools programme for the past four years, it is incredibly rewarding to see the dedication of our team and the programme's positive impact on fostering youth entrepreneurship in a way that is accessible to all, acknowledged through the Triple E Awards nomination for EDI Community Engagement Initiative of the Year."
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Lisbon between 18 and 20 September.