Calling all young entrepeneurs

The Scottish Institute for Enterprise (SIE) helps students in Scotland discover their entrepreneurial talent and start up their own ventures. Their mission is to help create new student businesses and social enterprises and to increase the number of students who consider entrepreneurship a real option during and after their studies through a number of activities and events.

If you are a student or recent graduate and have a great idea, check out some of their events:

• The national Fresh Ideas Competition is for those who might have an idea but haven't taken steps toward making it a reality. 
• The summer Bootcamp programme is another entry-point for students who know they want to start their own venture but haven't taken the first steps. 

Or if you have already established a new venture or social enterprise:

• The New Ventures Competition is for already established ventures, with the opportunity to win funding and business support. 
• The Scottish Entrepreneurial Academy (SEA) offers a unique opportunity to develop entrepreneurial mind-set and build global sustainable businesses.

SIE also holds various competitions. A recent winner from the Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences is:
David Townsend for the Young Innovators Challenge for the Renewables category in 2013, who has started a geothermal energy company, Town Rock Energy Ltd.

Geology graduate wins Young Innovator Challenge

2013 Earth & Environmental Sciences graduate, David Townsend, has won the Renewables Category of the Young Innovators Challenge, a scheme run by the Scottish Institute for Enterprise on behalf of the Scottish Government. David is one of five talented young graduates to have impressed the judges with his business plans during a tense process to claim a £50,000 award and one year of dedicated business support to turn his ideas into reality. David’s proposal is to develop a Geothermal consultancy which will provide predictions of potential hot saline aquifer geothermal targets within Scotland, with the aim of attracting key stakeholders to facilitate one or more district heating schemes. We wish David the very best of luck with his endeavour!

D. Townsend, left, with three of the winners of the
Young Innovators Challenge and Fiona Godsman - CEO of SIE