Attracting more than 12,800 registered participants from 168 countries during last year's edition, Go Green in the City aims to educate young generations and build awareness of the need for smart energy management to create sustainable cities. — VNS Photo

HCM CITY (Biz Hub) — Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, has launched the 6th edition of Go Green in the City – its global challenge seeking innovative energy solutions for smart cities.

From January 15 to April 15, business and engineering undergraduates and graduates and those studying for an MBA will come from all over the world to join the challenge. Divided into teams of two, with at least one woman each, they will submit a case study illustrating their ideas for innovative energy management solutions in cities based on one of the five basic business challenge topics.

The semi-finalist teams will have two months to work with a mentor from Schneider Electric to create a synopsis and a video presentation of their idea. The 12 best teams will be announced on July 15 and will then be flown to Paris (France) on September 19-22 to compete in the grand finale. The winning team will travel the world, VIP-style, with Schneider Electric, visiting facilities and networking with employees and high-level management. They will also be offered jobs with Schneider Electric in their home countries.

In 2015, the student team from the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur won the challenge for its idea of an efficient energy management application. In 2014, the Vietnamese team, consisting of Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong and Dang Huynh Mai Anh, who were both enrolled at HCM City Foreign Trade University, received the third place award for their "Energy Bank" idea.

Over the last five years, energy management in smart cities has received increasing attention from students around the world. Attracting more than 12,800 registered participants from 168 countries, 57 per cent of whom were women during last year's edition, Go Green in the City aims to educate young generations and build awareness of the need for smart energy management to create sustainable cities. —VNS