The second E³UDRES² Bootcamp took place in July 2023. The event format, where students from the E³UDRES² partner universities come together to work on regional challenges, took place at the picturesque Lake Balaton in Hungary. Kevin Njondimackal, a student on the Bachelor's degree programme in Physiotherapy at St. Pölten UAS, took part in the event and reports on his experience.
The theme of the Bootcamp camp was "Future Food" - the event centred on topics such as food waste management in Hungary. We worked together with local companies from the region. I decided to take part in the project week because I was looking for an opportunity to expand my skills and work in a collaborative environment. The prospect of exchanging ideas with like-minded people was a deciding factor for me to sign up for the Bootcamp. Group D was made up of six members with different expertise and backgrounds from universities and universities of applied sciences across Europe, which led to a diverse approach and creative solutions. Through regular online meetings, we got to know each other very well before the start of the week in Hungary and were excited to share this experience together in Keszthely. We had the privilege of working with a dedicated challenge owner: Ambrus Pethes, a young, dedicated manager of Munch.hu, had impressive expertise. Initially, collaboration and communication in our team was a bit chaotic as we did not have a clear goal in mind. A personal meeting with Ambrus changed everything - our goal was clear and we worked with full commitment on our solution for the given challenge.
Real industry insights
Ambrus as the challenge owner brought valuable insights into the industry of food waste management through apps and set the main goal for our group. The challenge was set up in cooperation with the app "Munch" - an app that is comparable to the app "Too Good To Go", which is also available in Austria. The aim was to find a solution for how we at Surplus-Food could exchange information between the app users themselves.
In addition to working on the challenge, the Bootcamp also offered a varied supporting programme. As an outdoor activity, we went hiking on a sunny day, accompanied by wine tasting and after taking a great photo with my instant camera. I have immortalised this beautiful memory on my wall 🙂
The Bootcamp was an intensive week, but packed with great conversations, good food and new friends. Once the stress and hard work on your team concept is over, you can only be happy about the experience! I could only recommend taking part in the Bootcamp to anyone who wants to make international friends, gain valuable new practical experience, take on a challenge or simply enjoy teamwork.
Interested to have an experience like this too? The next E³UDRES² Bootcamp is taking place from 01-05 July 2024 in Limburg, Belgium. More info here.
Pictures by Kevin Njondimackal.
