I recently came back from the Explorer Day celebration in Portugal. It was an extraordinary experience. But before going there, let me tell you what Explorer is about…
Explorer es un programa creado por el Banco Santander para promover el espíritu emprendedor entre los jóvenes. El programa consiste en 5 meses de formación y mentorización para convertir ideas en proyectos empresariales, en más de 50 ciudades de España, Portugal y Argentina. Una de las fechas señaladas del programa es el Explorer Day, una jornada en la que personas de todos los campus se reúnen para compartir ideas y crear una gran red de contactos entre jóvenes e increíbles emprendedores.
Explorer is a program to promote young entrepreneurship sponsor by Santander bank. The program consists of 5 months of training and mentoring to turn ideas into business projects, in more than 50 cities from Spain, Portugal and Argentina. One of the milestones of the program is the Explorer Day, a journey in which people from all those campuses come together to share ideas and create a strong network of young and exciting entrepreneurs.
This year, the Explorer Day was in Coimbra, the beautiful university city in Portugal. During the event, many speakers come to share their experience and projects with us. But, probably, the best part was a contest to win a trip to Silicon Valley. The best projects of each Explorer Campus, already got a ticket to California and this was the final opportunity for the selected projects. The contest awarded the best elevator pitch.
The morning started with a one-on-one combat in which each opponent was given 30 seconds to present their 20 projects. After each combat the audience could vote through their phones. It was quick and a great introduction to every selected project. The topics were despair, from high-tech to new intrusive school models. Following this first selection, each project was given a space to share their ideas. Again, the latest word came from the audience, that vote with the X coins for the best proposal. Finally, the three favourites presented their business in front of an expert panel with a Q&A session. Andrés Moreno, with his project Zefrict was the winner of the trip. His project used electromagnetic energy to move commodities in a faster and more efficient way. The day was concluded with all types of team building activities, that we really enjoyed!!
The Explorer programme will conclude in November with a final in Madrid. During that day three projects will be awarded, best project, disruptive technology and women project. My personal project on circular economy will be competing in the women’s category. If you want to learn more about the project stay tuned, as I will publish about in the following days. Lastly, wish me luck for the final!!
Pictures – Revealer Company
