With our next-incubator Hub partner SIMConnect we created a very unique challenge together with Yuno Khripunova Founder of Oma’s Teekanne. Read more about it & the participants learnings here.

Every partner at our innovation hub for sustainability is unique. What we all have in common is our interest in making an impact on sustainability. The studends association of SIMConnect has it’s own Social Responsibility Departement and togehter with the we created this challenge where every participant was invitet to choose one thing that they believe has a positive impact on our society or climate and follow this specific lifestyle for just one day.

After this we organised a keynote of Yuno and a Q&A session where she told them about her business, her vision and her believes. Yuno is one of the Founders of Oma’s Teekanne. A creative Café in Graz with a small shop included that is a 100% Vintage. Very chic. But also second hand. All collected on flea markets and many things simply being upcycled.

Adélaïde Morillot of SIMConnect organised this challenge with us and answered us a few questions about her experience afterwards!

Georg: It feels like sustainability is buzz word that’s pretty much everywhere. but what does it mean to you?

Adélaïde: As business students, we often say sustainability is a main factor for growth as well as opportunities in the next years, and the roadmap companies and governments should follow. As a member of the Social Responsibility Department of SIMConnect (our student association), I would say that sustainability is what we need to do to preserve our world as we know it, through the actions we conduct in our everyday life.

We created this sustainability challenge. How was your experience, what was the reaction of your colleagues, have there been a surprise for you?

Overall we thought the challenge was a good idea, as we are used to having more workshops with companies and this challenge was an opportunity to actually reflect on the measures we take to be sustainable. Most of us chose to go vegan for one day, as it is a comfortable yet challenging step to take, and many pictures of vegan dishes were shared in our chat. Some decided to tackle waste issues by using the TooGoodToGo app, going to Food point, or buying second-hand.

How did you like it? especially the personal exchange with Yuno but also with the next-incubator?

It was very interesting to first share our experience with people who challenge themselves every day. We learned a lot about second-hand products, how to manage a sustainable Omas Teekanne, and what are the (easy or not) steps to become more sustainable. What stroke us the most was how easy it seemed to you guys to be sustainable, and the final quote you shared:

What did you like about Yunos Inputs and Omas Teekanne? What did you and your colleagues like most?

We liked a lot how easy it was to talk to Yuno about the challenge, and her honesty about her business. It was really refreshing that she told us about her current challenges, how her business was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and what vision she had for Omas Teekanne, without any second thought. She also shared a lot of insights on where to find second-hand furniture and clothes, which will be very useful to most of us.

What is your impression about the sustainability hub of next incubator?

It seems that we have been working with the Sustainability Hub forever! And it’s always a blast! We thought overall that the inputs you provided during the meeting we had were truly relevant, and everyone really liked the presentation you made of the next incubator hub 😊.

Will you continue your sustainability journey after your challenge?

Of course! I would say that most of us were really surprised to see how easy it can be to take small sustainable steps. For my part, I will try to go more vegan (it may be a bit difficult cheese-related, but we’ll see), and prioritize second-hand material (clothes, books, furniture, …).

Georg Nistl