Next Sustainable Idea (NSI) empowers students to tackle environmental and social challenges through systematic design thinking and iterative prototyping. This track guides participants through the complete innovation cycle—from identifying sustainability problems aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals to creating, testing, and refining tangible solutions with real users.
NSI emphasizes human-centered design, evidence-based decision-making, and reflective practice. Students learn to move beyond surface-level symptoms to address root causes, generate creative solutions through structured brainstorming, and validate their ideas through prototype testing and user feedback.
NSI provides a comprehensive methodology for addressing complex sustainability challenges. Students learn to analyze problems through multiple lenses—root cause analysis, barrier identification, and stakeholder mapping—ensuring solutions address fundamental issues rather than superficial symptoms.
Every project connects to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, helping students understand how local actions contribute to global sustainability efforts. This framework provides context, credibility, and a shared language for discussing environmental and social impact.
Rather than pursuing a single "perfect" idea, students generate multiple solutions (minimum 8), evaluate them systematically against weighted criteria, and refine their chosen solution through real user testing. This process teaches that innovation is iterative, feedback-driven, and user-centered.
NSI moves beyond theoretical proposals to require physical or tangible prototypes tested with at least 5 real users in realistic environments. Students experience the gap between design intent and user reality, learning to embrace feedback and iterate based on evidence.
Students identify a specific sustainability problem, research its significance, and connect it to relevant SDGs. They investigate root causes through primary and secondary research, moving beyond obvious symptoms to understand underlying systemic issues.
Through stakeholder analysis and systems thinking, students identify the technical, social, economic, and behavioral barriers that prevent lasting solutions. This prepares them to design solutions that account for real-world implementation challenges.
Using structured brainstorming techniques (SCAMPER, mind mapping, reverse thinking), students generate at least 8 diverse solutions ranging from technological to behavioral to policy-based approaches. The emphasis is on quantity and variety before evaluation.
Students develop 5-8 evaluation criteria (feasibility, impact, sustainability, cost, scalability, etc.) with assigned weights, then systematically score all solutions. This scientific approach replaces intuition with evidence-based decision-making.
Students create "quick and dirty" prototypes—tangible versions that enable testing and learning. The emphasis is on rapid iteration and learning rather than perfection. Documentation includes design rationale, materials used, and differences from final product vision.
Students test prototypes with at least 5 real users (not friends/family) in realistic environments. They observe user interactions, collect qualitative feedback, document both positive and negative responses, and capture the testing process photographically.
Synthesizing user feedback, students identify patterns, prioritize improvements, and create actionable plans for the next iteration. This demonstrates understanding that design thinking is cyclical, not linear.
Students reflect on their learning journey, document team contributions, and create comprehensive project summaries in both written and video formats.
Students passionate about environmental issues who want to move beyond awareness to creating tangible solutions. NSI provides the methodology to transform concern into action.
Those who recognize that sustainability challenges are complex and interconnected, requiring holistic approaches rather than single-variable solutions.
Students who enjoy building, testing, and iterating. NSI emphasizes creating tangible prototypes and learning through making.
Participants who value understanding users deeply and designing based on real needs rather than assumptions.
Those who appreciate structured evaluation frameworks and making decisions based on data and systematic analysis rather than intuition alone.
Students who thrive in team environments, enjoy brainstorming with others, and value collective problem-solving.
While both NSI (Sustainability Innovation) and NIE (Ecological Innovation) address environmental challenges, they differ significantly in scope, methodology, and deliverables.
Scope: NSI projects can address sustainability challenges at any scale—global, national, regional, or local. Problems are framed through the UN SDG framework.
Methodology: Design thinking cycle: empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test. Students generate multiple solutions, build prototypes, and validate through user testing.
Deliverable: Tested prototype with documented user feedback and iteration plans.
Scope: NIE focuses exclusively on specific, observable environmental problems in particular local areas—a specific park, street, neighborhood, or community space.
Methodology: Field investigation (physical observations, measurements, site visits) combined with stakeholder investigation (surveys, interviews with community members).
Deliverable: Research-based solution proposal describing a solution, its mechanism, and expected effects, grounded in thorough field and stakeholder investigation.
NSI provides a rigorous, evidence-based framework for addressing sustainability challenges. Through systematic problem analysis, creative solution generation, prototype development, and user validation, students learn that innovation is a learnable process—not a flash of inspiration, but a disciplined methodology that transforms ideas into tested solutions.