Innovation Challenge Concept

The re:gen-u Innovation Challenge Framework is the practical guide behind the project’s challenge-based learning experience: it shows how participants move from a regenerative idea to a real solution concept with a clear logic, validation approach, and pitch. The document explains the purpose of the Challenge, how it supports the project’s wider goals, and why it focuses on regenerative thinking (going beyond “less harm” toward solutions that actively restore ecological, social, and economic value). It is designed to be flexible, so that it fits local contexts, online, hybrid, in one intensive day, or spread across multiple days.

This framework is a ready-to-use playbook that walks partners and participant through the full journey, including:

• Recruitment and team formation across the quadruple helix (universities, industry, government, civil society)

• Challenge delivery structure, from onboarding and kick-off to workshops and mentorship

• Hands-on innovation tools, including design thinking, problem–solution fit, and a regenerative/lean business canvas

• Pitch preparation and evaluation, helping teams shape ideas into persuasive proposals

• Outcomes and KPIs, including participant engagement, tested concepts, and policy recommendations for future regenerative innovation challenges