• The Hult Prize On Campus competition at IIT Kanpur was a testament to the power of young entrepreneurs to make a difference in the world and to the importance of sustainable and socially responsible business practices.

Kanpur, March 11, 2023: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur hosted the Hult Prize OnCampus competition with CampusFund as its Investment Partner. The annual social entrepreneurship competition by the Hult Prize Foundation challenges students to create impactful, sustainable, and scalable solutions to global challenges. This year's OnCampus round of the Hult Prize competition at IIT Kanpur focused on the theme "Redesigning Fashion". The participating teams were tasked with developing innovative solutions to promote sustainability, ethical practices, and social responsibility in the fashion industry.

The fashion industry is one of the world's most polluting and exploitative industries, and the sixteen teams from various graduate programs and diverse backgrounds rose to the challenge of tackling the numerous issues within the industry. Three notable sessions were held, featuring IIT Kanpur-incubated startup Phool.co Founder Ankit Agarwal, along with Kanan Shah, the Marketing Coordinator at Hult, and Manish Ranjan, a previous winner of the Hult Prize competition.

Ankit Agarwal, Founder of Phool.co, a social enterprise that converts floral waste from temples and weddings into eco-friendly incense and biodegradable packaging, shared his experiences and insights on social entrepreneurship and sustainability. He discussed the challenges and opportunities in creating a successful social enterprise. Kanan Shah gave an overview of the Hult Prize competition and its mission to empower young entrepreneurs to create innovative solutions to global challenges in the session titled "Intro to Hult". Manish Ranjan, previous winner of the Hult Prize competition 2014, shared his experiences and insights on what it takes to succeed in the competition and create a successful social enterprise. He discussed the challenges and opportunities he faced during his journey and shared valuable advice on how to develop a strong business plan.

Overall, the OnCampus round of the Hult Prize competition at IIT Kanpur was a great success, providing a platform for young entrepreneurs to showcase their talents and creativity and come up with innovative solutions to pressing global challenges. The sessions conducted in the build-up to the event provided valuable guidance and support to the participants, empowering them to create positive change in the world.

In the end, Team Closers from IIT Kanpur emerged as the winners of the OnCampus Round. The Hult Prize competition at IIT Kanpur was a testament to the power of young entrepreneurs to make a difference in the world and to the importance of sustainable and socially responsible business practices.

About IIT Kanpur:

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur was established on 2nd November 1959 by an Act of Parliament. The institute has a sprawling campus spread over 1055 acres with large pool of academic and research resources spanning across 19 departments, 22 centres, and 3 Interdisciplinary programs in engineering, science, design, humanities, and management disciplines with 540 full-time faculty members and approximately 9000 students. In addition to formal undergraduate and postgraduate courses, the institute has been active in research and development in areas of value to both industry and government.

For more information, visit www.iitk.ac.in.