Green technology can enable us to live sustainably and preserve our quality of life. However, in Sub-Saharan Africa, it can get complicated. The link between entrepreneurs and expertise in universities is missing.
The TransCIIT project set out to match the climate change entrepreneur’s needs with the expertise of the master’s student in Kenya. The project is implementing a tangible response to the need for understanding what role universities could play in establishing actionable relations in the climate innovation ecosystem (CIE).
“The TransCIIT project has made it possible for entrepreneurs to work with students and tap into their expertise. Some students are very passionate about their work with the entrepreneurs and even intend to continue working with them on a volunteer basis”. Prof. Ogara, Dean, School of Informatics and Innovative Systems from JOOUST.
TransCIIT has matched young and female climate entrepreneurs with students to drive business success and deliver impact. They have set up a matchmaking process and website connecting postgraduate students and entrepreneurial businesses, allowing collaboration to drive green innovation.
TransCIIT brings together five partners,the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS), which is a well-established science, technology and innovation (STI) ‘think tank’, JARAMOGI OGINGA ODINGA UNIVERSITY of Science and Technology (JOOUST) and the Kenya Climate Innovation Center (KCIC). Additionally, the project includes the partnership of the University of Johannesburg (UJ), through the Trilateral Research Chair Transformative Innovation, 4IR and Development (TRCTI), which provides important expertise on innovation systems and informal sector entrepreneurship, as well as the TRCTI along with UJ, the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) at the University of Sussex in the UK, and the Transformative Innovation Policy Consortium (TIPC).
Laurine Aquino Opondo one of the beneficiaries of the project …“Having the opportunity to put into practice what I had learnt from school and be supported through was one of the best initiatives, the school environment makes the world more perfect than it really is out here with the entrepreneurs. I was challenged in a big way thank you.”