BISC-E
The Bio-based Innovation Student Challenge Europe (BISC-E), organized by the End-of-Waste/RE-SOURCE.BIO and GREEN-CHEM networks from AUGent, encourages students to explore innovation and business development in the emerging bioeconomy while developing a new biobased product or process. The challenge is open for all Bachelor and Master students (+ PhDs as coaches).
And meet some of our past participants:
Team Valorised Carbon
Team Loaf Foam
What is the BISC-E Competition?
All student (Ba/Ma) teams develop a bio-based innovation (product or process) and present their ideas via a 15' live presentation to a jury of experts from industry and science during the Belgian final. The presentation has to be accompanied by a participation file with a few supporting documents explaining sustainability, technical feasibility and economic viability of your innovation.
The jury will first assess all applications via an online preselection based on a recorded presentation and the supporting documents. The 3 best teams will be selected for the Belgian finals to actually present for the live jury, followed by some Q & A. The winning team will receive personal coaching and will compete in the EU finals in Autumn.
All rules can be found in this regulation document.
"The BISC-E Competition was a stepping stone towards our start-up! You really learn how to tackle multiple aspects of a business case." - Team Loaf Foam (2021)
Would you like to compete in the Belgian BISC-E Student Challenge 2024?
To register for the 2024 BISC-E, just send an email to endofwaste@ugent.be with your potential team name, team participants and basic concept.
After that you are welcome at one of our registration events near you! Here you can pitch ideas, create teams and meet like-minded student-entrepreneurs. You don't need to have a detailed business case or even a team to attend, we will help you get on your way to compete in the BISC-E 2023 Student Challenge!
Chose one of our registration events
Registration event in Kortrijk - 18 October 2023
More info and registerRegistration event in Ghent - 25 October 2023
More info and registerRegistration Event in Leuven - 21 February 2024
To compete, participants need to fill out this participation form with your recorded presentation and submit it to endofwaste@ugent.be before 15 April 2024.
15 April 2024 - Submission Deadline
The final date on which you can submit your business case
24 April 2024 - Finals at Tech Tour Ghent
Present your business case to some of the biggest players in the international academic and industrial sector.
Summer 2024 - EU Finals
The winner of the Belgian competition will compete with the other national teams in Summer 2024.
"It's fun to do, a valuable experience and you can really have an impact. Just go for it!" - Team Valorised Carbon (2022)
What's in it for the students?
The competition offers valuable experience to kick-start your career or business idea, the option to network with some of the biggest players in the industrial and academic sector and multiple prizes:
Some of our past participants
Team Valorised Carbon
In 2022, The Belgian edition was won by team Valorised Carbon and consisted of bio-engineers, veterinary and economic students. They showcased how to process plum seeds into activated carbon as a more sustainable alternative to coal. With some coaching from End-of-Waste, they competed in the European finals and won the second place!
- Discover the Valorised Carbon-project through their competition video.
Team Loaf Foam
A group of chemistry and biochemistry students from HOGent found a way to process bread waste into biodegradable packaging. Within their 'Loaf Foam'-project they made packing peanuts (filling chips that are used for packaging) from old bread scraps and set up a business case to collect this bread through a local collection point to avoid transport costs and emissions.
