In September 2019 Maynooth University School of Business Student Colin McAndrew and his DCU colleague Tom presented his Enactus Maynooth idea to the Ford Panel of judges at the Enactus World Cup, in San Jose. Here is Colin's feedback on the event in which he and his team mate successfully won 20,000 USD to develop their idea 'Map my way'.
"They were really happy with the social mission of the project and the technology background of both myself and Tom. We competed against the United States and Ghana, who presented over Skype. Afterwards we attended the World Cup conference which I will be talking with Jessica and Patrick in early October on how we can capture the learnings from that.
We presented on the 16th in front of the Ford Panel of judges. They were really happy with the social mission of the project and the technology background of both myself and Tom. We competed against the United States and Ghana, who presented over Skype. Afterwards we attended the World Cup conference which I will be talking with Jessica and Patrick in early October on how we can capture the learnings from that.
The 17th was dedicated to supporting the Enactus Trinity team throughout the day, however there was a short lunch held by ford where they talked about some other projects that applied but didn’t get through. These included mobility solutions including: ride-sharing apps; reducing carbon footprint and accessibility on public transport.
The 18th was the final rounds for the Enactus World Cup and the awards ceremony for all the side competitions. Tom and I gave a 77 second pitch in front of the Enactus audience of almost 3,000 people! Afterwards they announced the winners where USA came third, Ireland second and Ghana in first place. Although we pitched for $11k we were awarded $20k. Ford told us that the reason behind this was due to the potential of the project and it’s vision. They also commented that the collaboration piece and the story of Tom and I was something that really stood out. if we could meet in Maynooth, if it is possible? Let me know what dates would be suitable for you.
Enactus Faculty leader Dr Christina O'Connor acknowledged the dedication and hard work of both Colin and Tom in the development of this idea:
"Colin and Tom have been very successfully collaborating on this project and we wish them every success in developing this idea into a product, no doubt this will make the impact and a real change for people with disabilities".