MCI "gives back" - in service to society

With an exemplary initiative, the MCI is pursuing the goal of "giving something back" to society. Institutions with a focus on charitable purposes can approach the Entrepreneurial School® with concrete project ideas to obtain support for their implementation with the active involvement of professors and students.

The aim is to sensitize students to the needs of socially disadvantaged groups and individuals and to win them over for social commitment. These projects enable MCI students to apply and develop their knowledge and creativity on the basis of concrete questions and problems in cooperation with charitable institutions. The student teams are accompanied and supported by MCI professors, lecturers, and academic staff in terms of content and methodology.

Within the MCI Community Projects, students have completed a number of successful projects for a good cause over the past year. The MCI Community Projects focus on the goals of innovation, entrepreneurship, diversity, social commitment, location relevance, and sustainability in conjunction with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN).

Projects 2019/20 (selection):

- Future concepts for SOS Children's Village Seminar House & St. Martin Monastery:
Students in the master program Entrepreneurship and Tourism developed future concepts for the SOS Children's Village Seminar House and the St. Martin Monastery in Tyrol under the direction of Christoph Engl.

- Digital app for the ‘Social route Planner’ for the association Unicum:Mensch:
Students in the bachelor course Management, Communication & IT developed prototypes of a digital app for the Social route Planner of the association Unicum:Mensch and were supervised by Kristian Hasenjäger.

- Market research for the start-up "Ouroots":
In the study course Nonprofit, Social and Health Management, a team led by Lukas Kerschbaumer and Margit Schäfer researched potential customer groups for the start-up "Ouroots", which produces straws from a local grass in Uganda.

- HERE is an overview of all projects from 2019/2020 as well as further information.

The positive feedback from project partners confirms the top performance of MCI Community Projects. This is how Dr. Christian Honold describes the cooperation with the SOS Children's Village Hermann Gmeiner Academy: "A great project that provides us with valuable input for practical work. We have already implemented several ideas".

Andreas Altmann, MCI Rector: "The development of responsible personalities in science, business and society is at the core of our mission. The MCI Community Projects help to raise our students' awareness of the importance of civil society involvement and encourage them to act in a social, sustainable and responsible manner.”

Regina Obexer, coordinator of MCI Community Projects: "With this initiative, we are offering our students a fantastic opportunity to make meaningful commitments during their studies and to gain new experiences and develop important skills on many levels. The projects give them the chance to contribute innovative ideas and entrepreneurial potential for charitable purposes. I am pleased that the feedback from the project partners is extremely positive and that many of the ideas and concepts developed are being implemented.”

Second round: Applications for new projects now open!

In the upcoming academic year 2020/21, the initiative will continue with the second round. Interested institutions can apply with a concrete project idea. In addition to non-profit institutions, the initiative is particularly aimed at companies, foundations, etc. that would like to make a contribution in the above-mentioned areas in cooperation with the MCI as an academic partner and with the involvement of students. CLICK HERE for registration