Through the course of the EarthTech Summit experts, investors, business leaders and academics met and mentored the 10 finalist teams from across the world including Uganda, Nigeria, India, Philippines, Australia and Bangladesh. The finalists’ solutions, all addressing the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, included innovative emergency and sustainable housing, waste management solutions and medical devices.
The winning team, Safewheel, presented emergency electric ambulance vehicles, offering affordable access and doorstep medical services to villagers living under $5 per day, with a 300% faster response times than existing solutions and a 50% cost reduction in rural services. The solution addresses the Sustainable Development Goals of Good Health & Wellness (#3), Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (#9) and Decent Work and Economic Growth (#8).
Commenting on the win, Faysal Islam said: “We’re so happy to have won the EarthTech Challenge and we are confident that with the new connections we’ve made in Australia, Safewheel will continue to grow and expand internationally. Our idea started in response to personal stories of people without access to medical services and our ambition is to be serving 1.7m people annually in 5 years, in Bangladesh alone. Imagine the potential impact if such units were used in remote communities across Asia, Africa and South America.”