Dimension Data, NTT & Red Bull Basement have partnered in an initiative to empower students in Kenya to be able to innovate.
Red Bull Basement 2020 is an open call for student innovators in all areas of study to innovate, collaborate, and improve student life. The program, expanding to more countries than ever in its third year, encourages student entrepreneurs to take a look at all aspects of life on campus and in their communities and imagine creative ways to do things better.
NTT limited, a global technology services provider, in conjunction with its subsidiary company Dimension Data, is partnering with Red Bull Basement to enable the next generation of entrepreneurs to innovate with purpose.
As the Official Technology Partner of Red Bull Basement’s third year, NTT Ltd.’s Cloud Communications Division will facilitate live virtual workshops to empower teams of university students from host countries to innovate for good. In Kenya, the universities that will take part in the innovation challenge include University of Nairobi, Jomo Kenya University of Agriculture (JKUAT), Kenyatta University, United States International University (USIU), Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), Mount Kenya University (MKU), Strathmore and Daystar.
NTT Ltd. will mentor the students throughout the competition and judge the entries at the final Global Workshop, where a winning team will be announced. Dimension Data will facilitate the first three phases including co-hosting launchpads, judging the entries at the local level and offering mentorship throughout the development phase in Kenya and South Africa respectively.
Launched in 2015 in São Paulo, Brazil, Red Bull Basement supports social innovators using technology to tackle social and environmental issues at universities. In a year where connecting through technology has been more important than ever, Red Bull Basement decided to virtualize the program with a partner who has a proven track record of supporting companies through digital transformations and providing a one-of-a-kind online experience.
The program encourages the next generation of diverse thinking and innovation and is centered around finding solutions to the world’s problems using technology to create positive change. Red Bull Basement’s purpose-led brand and passion for innovation caught NTT’s attention when they realized the potential for scale and inclusion that NTT’s virtual platform offers over a physical conference center. By virtualizing the event and breaking down location-specific and physical space barriers to entry, both partners hope to see even more diversity in thinking.
Richard Hechle, Managing Director for East and West Africa, Dimension Data commented: “Our legacy is rooted in building innovative solutions for clients, people and community. Redbull basement complements our approach to innovation, including our Technical Accelerate Programme that was recently launched across East and West Africa leveraging a multidisciplinary approach to skill development in emerging technologies to accelerate the regions fourth industrial revolution intent. We’re committed to developing and supporting leading programmes that inspire young people to pursue technology-driven careers and attract talent who are passionate about using technology to make a difference in their communities.”
The initiative will work as follows;
- Application phase: Dimension Data will host Kenya’s launchpad live event using its intelligent infrastructure solutions, as teams innovate to address a variety of issues inspired by the 17 United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (Global Goals).
- Voting and selection phase: In addition to the shortlisted teams, Dimension Data will serve on the panel of judges and select a team who demonstrates their commitment to innovative thinking to proceed to the Global Workshop.
- Development phase: As part of its investment, Dimension Data’s Intelligent Innovation practice, and technology experts from across its business will host mentoring sessions and co-creation workshops, further providing the tools and technology they need to succeed.
- Global Workshop: In the final phase of the competition, NTT experts will serve as panelists who listen to the final pitches and select the winning team.