Syntezia Open 2024 — Switzerland
An Eco-Responsible Open Lab Open Throughout the Year
The Swiss 2024 edition of Syntezia Open was built around water, the blue economy and the protection of natural resources.
Activities took place in Geneva, including at Palexpo during the Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions, and were connected with the wider European Maritime Day / #EMDInMyCountry movement.
WATER AS A COMMON RESOURCE
The edition invited participants to bring their own questions and ideas around water and explored how innovation and collective intelligence could contribute to addressing environmental challenges. The programme considered subjects including:
- Water and the blue economy.
- Urban and industrial heat islands.
- Mobility as a Service. Biodiversity protection.
- Water and cultural heritage. Circular economy.
- Fishing-net recycling.
- Energy-efficient 3D printing
FIVE ECO-CHALLENGES
Participants could contribute to challenges such as:
- How can we manage heat islands in industrial, urban and rural areas?
- What can be done with plastic waste recovered after being submerged?
- How can we highlight the historical and cultural heritage of glaciers?
- How can fishing nets be recycled?
- How can 3D printing be carried out with the lowest possible energy consumption?
LEARNING, CO-CREATION AND NETWORKING
The event combined practical environmental questions with collaborative formats.
Participants could co-create challenges, develop ideas with other participants and find teammates. Creative writing and design fiction were also used to explore possible futures, while the wider programme created opportunities to meet, exchange, invent, experiment, network and develop ideas into projects.
FROM DISCUSSION TO PROJECTS
Previous Syntezia Open editions had already demonstrated that informal exchanges could lead to new partnerships and strengthened consortia.
Teams formed through these activities could go on to explore funding opportunities, feasibility studies, value-proposition validation, prototypes and testing before bringing solutions to market.
THE AIM
The Swiss 2024 edition continued Syntezia Open's objective of turning environmental challenges into collaborative opportunities for innovation, project development and action, while keeping sustainability at the centre of the event format
What results have we obtained in previous editions?
Carbon-free and active mobility
This was the theme of the 2022 edition, which took place in Geneva, and which allowed us to welcome the participants to the Geneva hotel school, for a day of pragmatic actions, which allowed us to generate around thirty innovative ideas and submit 5 complete files of radical innovations to seek funding.
We encouraged participants to take measures to come to our event in carbon-free mobility, and we were pleased to note that the parking lot remained empty throughout the event.
We want to keep the same approach for all future editions of syntezia open.
Meetings and exchanges between partners and participants
Feedback on the experience of previous Syntezia Opens tells us that participants appreciated being able to meet new people, network, and initiate a constructive dialogue on real issues. Consortia were created or strengthened during our times of informal dialogue, and allowed the teams formed to participate in calls for projects with the systems of Switzerland and the European Union to be able to carry out their feasibility studies, the validation of their value proposition, their prototype or their tests prior to placing their solution on the market.
Singular and original content, a new media that is emerging
During syntezia open, we share testimonials from innovative project leaders who have created businesses. We also conducted interviews that we broadcast in the All Inclusive SDGs podcast.
A gendered and balanced budget
We operate with parity in our organizational team and with a gendered budget.
We also measure the participation of women and men to ensure we have diversity in gender, background, experience, achievement and discipline.
Our carbon footprint under control
We measure our carbon footprint and we do our best to minimize the carbon footprint of our eco-responsible Syntezia Open event, and to raise awareness among participants about eco-friendly actions at every opportunity.
Zero waste, zero waste
No food was thrown away during the 2022 edition.
No leftovers, no waste!
We now know that it is possible and we intend to do it again!
Short circuits and local currency
By introducing Lake Geneva into the circuit at every opportunity, we are working on our scale to promote the local economy of the Lake Geneva region.
Bees, butterflies and little birds!
Because the protection of all forms of biodiversity is important to us, we have worked to disseminate flowers that bees, butterflies and birds love.
Innovative ideas, teams
This day resulted in several ideas being generated, and several of the teams were formed during our event.
Funding request submissions
Some teams have chosen to submit funding requests to see their projects financed and sustained.
© 2024
Syntezia Sàrl,
Rue de Chantepoulet 10, 1201 Genève, Suisse