The third edition of the U7+ Worldwide Student Forum, Peace and Security – What commitments can students make to support universities as engines of innovation in peace and security? was hosted by École Polytechnique and consisted of six events held virtually.
During these events, students from diverse academic backgrounds engaged with faculty experts from the U7+ Working Group on Peace and Security, including Oluyemisi Bamgbose (University of Ibadan), Jean-Christophe Martin (Université Côte d’Azur) and Costanza Nardocci (Università degli Studi di Milano). Students will work together to develop a set of commitments that they can make to further the commitments made by U7+ university presidents in the U7+ Tokyo Statement: Universities as Engines of Innovation for Peace and Security.
Student finalists from eight U7+ Alliance universities participated in the second U7+ Student Challenge. For the challenge, each participating university organized a team of up to four students to research and develop an innovative proposal to address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) through technology.
The winning teams from Ashesi University, École Polytechnique, Northwestern University and Université d’Ottawa showcased innovative ideas for addressing the scarcity of resources in the public health sector, motivating community members to increase use of sustainable transportation, developing a more sustainable supply chain for electric vehicle batteries and raising awareness of air pollution in cities.