SRH University Heidelberg’s “YIP – Your Ideas to Practice” project has been selected by the Baden-Württemberg Foundation as a “best practice project.” In October 2022, Professor Dr Ulrike Gayh presented YIP and the follow-up project, YIP II.
Knowledge
Baden-Württemberg Foundation awards prize to water project at SRH University Heidelberg
Since 1 September 2021, the “YIP – Your Ideas to Practice: Exploring all stages of a project life cycle to develop sustainable solutions for water conflicts” has been part of the Water Technology degree programme at SRH University Heidelberg under the direction of Professor Dr Ulrike Gayh. Together with Professor Dr Irma Livier De Regil Sánchez from the Universidad del Valle de Atemaja (UNIVA) in Mexico, students as well as this team of professors are developing solution strategies for water conflicts.
The project kicked off in March 2022, on World Water Day. That day students participated in an online workshop, presenting their initial ideas for projects they wanted to work on in the following months. In June, the participants from Germany and Mexico met face-to-face for the first time: Over the course of two weeks, they worked on their group projects in Heidelberg and went on excursions to gain insights into local practices. The next highlight was a visit of the German contingent to Mexico in September. The students stayed with Mexican host families, getting a unique chance to experience Mexican hospitality and culture first-hand.
The YIP project is scheduled to conclude on 28 February 2023. Thanks to funding from the Baden-Württemberg Foundation, however, a follow-up project “YIP II – Your Ideas to Practice: Developing sustainable solutions for water pollution in a global partnership” began on 1 November 2022 and will run until 31 March 2024. A Ghanaian university, KNUST, will be the new partner in this project. Professor Gayh is looking forward to this expanded cooperation: “Three continents addressing the contentious issue of water – this is our chance to tackle mutual challenges in an era of climate change.”
On 12 October 2022, Professor Ulrike Gayh had the pleasure of presenting the YIP and YIP II projects at the BWS plus kick-off event at the invitation of the Baden-Württemberg Foundation. “It was a great opportunity to present our work. We received a lot of interesting feedback. The projects presented by other universities were also very exciting,” reported the professor of Water Technology. “Of course, it was also an honour for YIP to be presented as a best practice project.”
“YIP – Your Ideas to Practice: Exploring all stages of a project life cycle to develop sustainable solutions for water conflicts” is a project of the Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM for students – BWS plus, a programme of the Baden-Württemberg Foundation.
About the Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM
The Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM promotes the international exchange of qualified students and young professionals. Since 2001, more than 28,000 young people from Baden-Württemberg have received the opportunity to gain experience abroad, or young people from abroad have been able to spend some time in Baden-Württemberg. Every year, around 1,500 scholarships are awarded within the Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM.
The Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM Programme for Students – BWS plus
The BWS plus programme is the Baden-Württemberg Foundation’s vehicle to support innovative collaborative activities between universities and other international institutions. The programme, which is endowed with approximately € 1.2 million annually, began its funding activities in 2011. Since then, BWS plus has supported over 110 projects at universities throughout Baden-Württemberg.
The Baden-Württemberg Foundation
The Baden-Württemberg Foundation is committed to a vibrant and livable Baden-Württemberg. It paves the way for cutting-edge research, a wide range of educational measures and responsible interaction with our fellow human beings. The Baden-Württemberg Foundation is one of the largest operating foundations in Germany. It is the only one that invests exclusively and across party lines in the future of Baden-Württemberg – and thus in the future of its citizens.
A Project of
“YIP – Your Ideas to Practice: Exploring all stages of a project life cycle to develop sustainable solutions for water conflicts” is a project of the Baden-Württemberg-STIPENDIUM for students – BWS plus, a programme of the Baden-Württemberg Foundation.
