Ford announces winners of College Community Challenge

With the focus on building sustainable communities in South Africa, the Enactus Ford C3 programme produced four winners from universities for 2018/2019. The student-led initiatives see the effective implementation of innovative solutions for communities with critical needs. Teams which are made up of university students tackle problems hindering the creation of more sustainable places to live and work. These projects take place in countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Brazil, the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom with the support of the Ford Motor Company Fund and Enactus.

The Durban University of Technology team created the Kotshiza Pig Farming project which creates a sustainable cycle of recycling. A local farmer partnered up with a hotel and use the waste food produced to supplement the pig feed, some of the waste food is also mixed with pig manure which then becomes an effective organic fertilizer to be used for farms crops. The team of students at the University of Cape Town created the Imvotho project which produced a sustainable method of rainwater harvesting through the use of fog catchers.

“We are extremely proud of the concepts the student teams came up with for making a difference in their communities, and are inspired by the positive impact they have made, it is apt that during Mandela Month in July, we celebrate the empowerment of youth through education which was one of Nelson Mandela’s key principles. These students are the agents of change and the leaders of the future as they set the example for others to follow.” Neale Hill, Managing Director, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa.

The 2018/2019 programme also saw a vertical farming method which promotes agricultural and horticultural skills development from the team at the University of Pretoria while the University of Fort Hare team developed an easy to use greywater purification system.

Enactus Ford C3 national competition has announced the finalist for the sixth cycle which spans 2019/2020.

The Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Cape Town was chosen for its Grow a Seed Urban Farming project which will introduce aeroponics to the Khayelitsha farming community as a sustainable farming method while the Mangosuthu University of Technology team is focussing on solar panels being installed in a local community centre that was not being utilised.

The University of KwaZulu-Natal and its Project Sack Space will introduce a form of vertical farming for low-income households while the University of the Free State student team will be assisting in developing Shayuphondo farm through organic farming practices, and teaching the employees business management skills while creating additional business ventures for the farm. Enactus is a global non-profit organization that unites universities and students, academic professionals and business leaders through global and national competitions focussed on creating and implementing solutions in communities in need of assistance.

“The new group of finalists chosen for the 2019/2020 Enactus Ford College Community Challenge has presented equally inspiring projects, and we wish them every success as they set out to build sustainable communities. As evidenced by many of these projects, it’s often simple, inexpensive solutions that present the greatest opportunity to address the wide range of economic and social challenges we face in South Africa,” Neale Hill, Managing Director, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa.

The team which wins the national championship in their respective country qualifies for the Enactus World Cup which will take place in San Jose, California in the United States of America from 16 to 18 September.