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A team of students from the Departments of Economics and Global Studies and Governance at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) has clinched the championship in the 2023 SDG Policy Challenge.
The champion team, Mission Possible, comprised Khadiza Akter Tasnim, Mubashwara Mehzabeen, and Tasfiah Akter Tanjel from Economics and Yazdi Zaman from Global Studies and Governance. Their project was titled "A Transformative Approach to Bio-Mass Utilization: A Case Study of Fultala Upazila of Khulna District.” Team Epilogue from the Islamic University of Technology (IUT) bagged the 1st runners-up position while the Green Team, yet another collaboration of IUB students, became 2nd runners-up.
The month-long competition was arranged by the Global Gatekeepers club of IUB, hosted as a collaborative effort by IUB’s International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) and the Centre for Bay of Bengal Studies (CBoBS), and sponsored by the Embassy of Sweden in Dhaka. It brought together as many as 910 student teams from different universities from across Bangladesh.
The Grand Finale, held at the IUB Auditorium on November 29, 2023, was dedicated to honoring the life and achievements of renowned climate scientist Professor Dr. Saleemul Huq, Executive Director, ICCCAD, who passed away last month.
At the event, the organizers Global Gatekeepers secured the prestigious "Youth Innovation Fund" from the Swedish embassy. This fund will be facilitated through ICCCAD.
Among the guests were IUB Vice Chancellor Tanweer Hasan, PhD; Mohd. Monirul Islam, Additional Secretary (SDG Affairs) at the Prime Minister's Office; Mohammad Alauddin, Rector, Bangladesh Power Management Institute (BPMI); Rafiqul Islam, Director (Training) at Bangladesh Power Management Institute; Ambassador (Retd) Tariq A. Karim, Director of CBoBS, IUB; Professor Dr. Imtiaz A Hussain from the Department of Global Studies & Governance, IUB; Professor Dr. Kamrul Alam from the Central Queensland University, Australia; Professor Dr. Firoz Alam from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Australia; Dr. Nawshad Haque, Principal Research Scientist, The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Australia; and Mr. Khandkar Saleq Sufee, International Energy Expert.
The panel of judges for the Grand Finale included Nayoka Martinez-Bäckström, First Secretary, Environment & Climate Change and Deputy Head, Development Cooperation Section, Embassy of Sweden, Dhaka; Dr. Mostaq Ahmmed, Managing Director, GHEL; Sarder Shafiqul Alam, Coordinator, Urban Climate Change Programme and Country Coordinator, ACCCRN-ICCCAD Bangladesh, ICCCAD; Sohel Ahmed, Managing Director, Grameen Shakti; and Dr. Shanawez Hossain, Assistant Professor, Department of Global Studies and Governance, IUB.
SDG Policy Challenge1
Independent University, Bangladesh
