06 June 2024
WISE: the winning team of the programme has already been anounced!
WISE, the programme promoted by the NOVA Impact office and GALP, in partnership with the Innovation Ecosystem of NOVA SBE, has now come to an end after 12 weeks of intense work by the six participating teams. This program aimed to find innovative solutions that could transform the current energy landscape.
Announced this week, the wining project was presented by the team composed of Akil Mambuque (NOVA SBE), Marta Simão (NOVA FCT), Martina Baviera (NOVA SBE), Rodrigo Borba (NOVA FCSH), and Teresa da Cruz (NOVA FCT), with mentorship from Professor Ana Sofia Esteves – they will receive tickets to the European Innovation Academy, with all expenses paid, a job shadowing opportunity at GALP, and a LinkedIn Badge (a NOVA certificate for LinkedIn).
Their proposal is the ‘Sunny Solar Bank’, which introduces the innovative concept of an “energy bank.” This application allows users to deposit the extra energy they produce and use an algorithm that predicts energy availability, suggesting the best times to sell it to the grid. The profits obtained can be converted into discounts on energy bills or invested in renewable energy projects.
An honorable mention was also awarded to the team that presented the project ‘NEWLY – Alternative Energy Storage Systems’: it aims to revolutionize energy storage systems through the development of a supercapacitor, a component capable of storing and providing a high power density in a short amount of time, using paper electronics to increase the capacity of current storage systems. It was developed by students Beatriz Faria (NOVA FCT), Guilherme Caldeira (NOVA FCT), and Constança Vieira (NOVA FCSH), with mentorship from Professor António Câmara.
The jury was composed of Júlia Seixas, Vice-Rector for Sustainability at NOVA; João Ribeiro, Lead Open Innovation Manager; Mafalda Vasquez, Head of Attract, Select, Employee Experience and Belonging; and Pedro Ferreira, Commercial Innovation Unit Manager, all from GALP.
Launched in March, WISE emerged in the context of the protocol established between GALP and NOVA for the creation of the NIRC (English acronym for NOVA Interdisciplinary Research Community), which promotes collaboration within the NOVA community and innovation to address emerging challenges in sustainable energy systems.