14 HKUST Dual Degree students together with 32 elite students from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC) and the University of Sao Paulo (USP) gathered in Brazil this summer for the C40 Large Cities Climate Summit and the Technology and Management International Business Plan Competition.  

The elite group of students attended 5 plenaries and 16 working sessions conducted by global delegates at the C40 Summit, to learn first-hand practices for a balanced and healthy environment, as well as to share views on environmental sustainability with other delegates from all over the world. Additionally, HKUST Dual Degree students had an invaluable chance to meet one of the delegates, Edward Yau, Secretary for the Environment of Hong Kong, and held fruitful discussions on new technologies, solutions and practices to protect Hong Kong’s environment.    

Using significant knowledge absorbed from the Summit and different academic professions, students from three universities mixed together to form teams and work on Green Business proposals for the Business Plan Competition. Cultural visits of the slums, landfills, parks and Ecological Institute in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro enabled students to explore the official policy of “Green Brazil”. A series of guest lectures by prominent figures from Business and Academia widened students’ horizon of developing sustainable cities.  

Throughout the competition and C40 Summit, Dual Degree students experienced the passion of Brazilian culture. They shared different cultures with teammates, and developed team spirit, problem-solving skills, as well as friendship with each other. The students made great advances in business analysis, case study and business presentation throughout the whole process.
 

About C40 Sao Paulo Summit

C40 (Climate Leadership Group) summit was established in 2005 and initiated by Mayor of London at that time, when representatives from leading world cities are invited to meet, discuss and join forces to tackle global warming and climate change. The C40 Sao Paulo Summit provides an excellent opportunity for exploration and exchange of new concepts on transportation, energy, financing, land use and solid waste, essential issues to ensure sustainability and quality of life to all people.