Case study - Leiden University

Why did you choose the BrightBirds SDG challenge?

“In the Commercial Economics program we are working hard to integrate 'sustainability' into our curriculum. Within this programme students are tasked with devising a new product for their fictional 'Start Up Company'. Through this SDG week, we wanted to inspire our students to come up with products that can make a social impact. That is why they took on three SDG challenges in the very first study week with the themes SDG City Tour, SDG Mystery Guest and SDG Food & Beverage.

Edumundo's BrightBirds App was developed to incorporate gamification into their educational experience and engage students in the task itself. The students received the challenges and instructions via the App and coins were earned with every successfully completed assignment.

The App works well on a technical level and together with Edumundo's expertise in the field of gamification, it was an obvious choice to start the collaboration."

What did that SDG week look like?

"On the first day, students were given an explanation about the challenges. Our Key-note Speaker Jasper Visser (Director of the 2030 Foundation) explained how the Leiden region is moving towards achieving the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and how students can play a vital role in helping meet them. The students received their first assignments which prepared them for the SDG Mystery Guest Challenge and the SDG Food & Beverage Challenge.

The SDG City Tour Challenge was scheduled for Tuesday. Here, 44 groups of students visited the centre of Leiden and were sent a number of challenges and assignments from the App, so students could discover the many sustainability-themed initiatives that take place in the city.

Thursday was all about the Mystery Guest Challenge. The teams themselves chose a company that they wanted to check for sustainability. The students prepared a questionnaire to examine the company aligned to 3 of the 17 SDGs. The students processed the findings of the visit in a report, and weighted points were awarded to those who had conducted thorough and informative research.

Friday was all about the SDG Food & Beverage event. The challenge was to prepare a sustainable student meal with a maximum budget of €2.50 per person. A report was drawn up about the purchases and preparation of their sustainable meal, with attention to the method of production, distribution, preparation and recommended nutritional value. This all earned students coins based on the detail and rationale of their meal.

At 4 pm, 220 students and teachers gathered on location for the final challenge: the taste test. The students presented their sustainable, homemade meals to the teachers who were ready for the taste test. After this last challenge, the very last coins were also awarded. At the end of the afternoon we were able to announce the winners of a very successful SDG week.''

How do you look back on it?

"By paying attention to the SDGs in the very first week of the academic year, we found that students were better able to come up with products with a social impact for their Start-Up Company. We observed how students can easily get started independently when they are challenged in a competitive environment with an App that they can use effortlessly. By celebrating the conclusion of the SDG week together at the end and announcing the winners, we immediately saw students getting to know one another and work effectively together."

What was the outcome?

"We only saw smiling students during the SDG challenge! The reactions of students we spoke to during the week were extremely positive. We received compliments from our colleagues for the set-up and the fact that the guidance by the Lecturers required little effort during the week."