ESEG Challenge for Socio-environmental Solutions

The Socio-environmental Solutions Challenge recognizes the two projects submitted on the theme "Reverse Logistics: how to dispose of electronic and electrical devices".“

The School of Engineering and Management – ESEG held the Socio-environmental Solutions Challenge with the presentation of two projects on the theme "Reverse Logistics: how to dispose of electronic and electrical equipment". Vitor Murata, a 7th-semester Production Engineering student at ESEG, who participated in the first edition of the Challenge in 2015, presented the event.

The judging panel for the projects included Antonio Rocha Leão Júnior, an industrial chemist who works as a Logistics Consultant; Elda Augusto, an architect and urban planner specializing in Construction Excellence and Anomalies; as well as Professor João Ferreira Netto and Professor Marcos Dornelles, both from ESEG.

The first project evaluated by the panel was "The Gold of the 21st Century," which aims to process and reuse so-called rare earth magnets, present in various electronic materials such as computer and cell phone hard drives. To achieve this, the group proposed raising public awareness about the proper disposal of electronic waste and fostering a partnership between a cooperative that collects electronic waste and a new company responsible for processing and reusing these magnets.

The second group created a digital platform called "Catallogo," which will function as a website on personal computers and as an application on mobile devices. The platform aims to connect people who have disused electronic and electrical equipment with NGOs, cooperatives, and even other individuals interested in reusing these materials. Users will create personal accounts and list the materials for those who wish to reuse them.   

The "Catalog" project received the highest score from the panel, but both groups were praised and awarded registration for the XIX International Meeting on Business Management and the Environment (ENGEMA), considered one of the most important events on environmental management in companies, bringing together researchers, professionals, entrepreneurs, and public and private managers.

This year, the Socio-Environmental Solutions Challenge ceremony also featured a lecture on reverse logistics by Marcelo Bermudes, a specialist in processes and services at LG Electronics, who addressed important aspects of the topic such as the National Solid Waste Policy (PNRS).