Hult Prize

Three teams of Rochester graduates and current students have reached the regional finals of the world's largest social entrepreneurship competition.

Four Rochester teams will advance in the Hult Prize, the world’s largest social entrepreneurship contest. The challenge this year: “Harnessing the power of energy to transform the lives of 10 million people.”

University and Simon Business school teams will compete this Saturday for a place in the Hult Prize competition, the largest social entrepreneurship competition in the world.

While they may not have been selected for the Hult Prize finals, Team Meliora is continuing their efforts to build homes for refugees, using Lego-style bricks made from recycled plastic.

The four 2017 graduates on Team Meliora are days away from learning if their project to build refugee housing from recycled plastic bricks will go from wildcard winner to finalist in the Hult Prize.

After being eliminated in the regionals, four international students have been chosen as wild cards for the Hult Prize, the largest social entrepreneurship competition in the world, with a reward of $1 million seed money.

A team of University engineering students was among six finalists at the Hult Prize regionals. The team's startup company, Meliora Homes, will build homes for refugees from recycled plastics.