The global fight against climate change and other contemporary challenges generate great opportunities for “sustainable” businesses, such as the green economy, the circular economy or social businesses, or businesses related to the energy transition. However, to succeed in those emerging markets and avoid the “business-as-usual” trap, entrepreneurs need to foresee much further than their own innovative idea or technology. In this course, students will learn how to develop a start-up in businesses for sustainability. At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Translate current sustainability “grand challenges” into a value proposition;
- Design sustainable business models and assess their impacts;
- Identify the strategies and triggers to insert an entrepreneurial project into their institutional environment.
The course is based on recent conceptual models and tools, which students will apply by conducting an empirical study in collaboration with a start-up (start-up's challenges): designing platforms for alternative consumption models, tackling social inclusion and solidarity (seniors’ social inclusion, contributing to revitalize territorial dynamics, and decarbonizing industrial value chains (carbon footprint).
4 ECTS
The global fight against climate change and other contemporary challenges generate great opportunities for “sustainable” businesses, such as the green economy, the circular economy or social businesses, or businesses related to the energy transition. However, to succeed in those emerging markets and avoid the “business-as-usual” trap, entrepreneurs need to foresee much further than their own innovative idea or technology. In this course, students will learn how to develop a start-up in businesses for sustainability. At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Translate current sustainability “grand challenges” into a value proposition;
- Design sustainable business models and assess their impacts;
- Identify the strategies and triggers to insert an entrepreneurial project into their institutional environment.
The course is based on recent conceptual models and tools, which students will apply by conducting an empirical study in collaboration with a start-up (start-up's challenges): designing platforms for alternative consumption models, tackling social inclusion and solidarity (seniors’ social inclusion, contributing to revitalize territorial dynamics, and decarbonizing industrial value chains (carbon footprint).