UK students to drive positive change through tech solutions
Red Bull Basement 2020 is a forward thinking initiative for student innovators in all areas of study to innovate, collaborate and help improve student life. The program, expanding to more countries than ever in its third year, encourages student entrepreneurs across the UK to take a look at all aspects of life on campus and in their communities, and imagine creative ways to do things better.
Red Bull Basement aims to tear down one of the great barriers to innovation: passive acceptance of “it’s that way because it’s always been that way.” By taking action now and tapping into Red Bull Basement’s worldwide network of resources and connections, young technology innovators don’t need to wait until graduation to bring about positive social change locally and, quite possibly, in the world at large.
To help the next generation of students develop their ideas, the program provides resources such as mentors, workshops, networking events and more, both online and on participating campuses. 2019’s Basement winners, Sophie Bolzer and Nadine Szentivannyi both agree “Red Bull Basement is for everybody. They will support you and all you have to do is ask”.
All activity leads up to the Red Bull Basement 2020 Global Workshop, where thought leaders, entrepreneurs and visionaries from around the world, will support students from more than 35 countries including the UK to bring their ideas to life.
As part of Red Bull Basement 2020, two online launchpad events will take place in October. Launchpads help young creatives develop their business startup ideas and push the boundaries on forward thinking by bringing together a wealth of industry leaders to discuss innovation, business and industry insights to inspire students during their Red Bull Basement journey.
De Montfort University Leicester, named as one of the 150 best universities in the world by the influential Times Higher Education will host the first launchpad on October 7th featuring 2018’s Basement winners Temirlan Totabek and Anna Pogossyan of Vacant, who built a system of motion sensors placed in study/common areas on campuses to transmit real-time data on study spot availability, amongst other guest speakers.
InnovateHer, an organisation working to make the tech sector a more impartial, diverse workplace by educating and coaching young girls from diverse backgrounds about the tech industry, will host the second launchpad on October 14th. The InnovateHer launchpad will feature last year’s Basement winner, Sophie Bolzer of Audvice, and Red Bull athlete and BMX champion Kriss Kyle, who has created three signature lines of bikes in collaboration with BSD BMX and will be discussing ways to explore thinking outside the box and more.
To sign up to attend the launchpads, visit De Montfort University presents Red Bull Basement and iHer presents Red Bull Basement
To enter, currently enrolled university students aged 18 and older simply need to visit the Red Bull Basement website and upload a max. 60-second video that clearly and succinctly shares their idea with the public. Each country’s finalist team selected will then develop their idea further with the help of the Red Bull Basement network including an international mentor programme, access to workspace and micro funding prior to the Global Workshop.
Previous Global Workshops were held in Berlin (2018) and Toronto (2019). This year, the immersive, hands-on, three-day event will feature workshops, additional mentorship programs, and various surprise activities, leading up to a Final Pitch to the judges.
The Global Workshop that the successful entrepreneurs will be attending in 2020 is scheduled for 10-13 December; the format will be unveiled soon.For students in the United Kingdom if you want to apply, simply visit redbullbasement.com to upload your video.
