Airbus, in collaboration with UNESCO, will host a series of interactive workshops and activities at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil. Airbus Innovation Week has been designed to uncover the innovation process and provide practical guidance to students and faculty on innovating within big industries.

Taking place from 10th to 14th March, Airbus’ Innovation Week is an initiative designed as part of the prize awarded to the winning team of Airbus Fly Your Ideas 2013 challenge (FYI).* The biennial global competition, challenges students worldwide to develop innovative ideas for a more sustainable aviation industry.

Team Levar from USP won the 2013 Fly Your Ideas challenge, with a proposal to improve conditions for baggage handlers by developing an innovative air cushion packing solution, inspired by air hockey tables.

Airbus Innovation Week aims to help students understand how to make an idea become reality. A series of interactive workshops exploring the latest trends in aviation innovation will challenge students to apply their innovative solutions to real industry situations. The event will provide students with hands-on experience for entering the world of work.

As one of the biggest cities in the world, São Paulo is a key driving force behind one of the fastest growing major global economies. Brazil is also one of the most rapidly growing aviation industries and is set to become the fourth largest domestic air travel market by 2032. Innovation to will be central to fostering long-term sustainable development in Brazil.

Airbus Senior Vice President Innovation Yann Barbaux comments, “Ideation is just the first step in the process of making an idea come to life. At Airbus, we are constantly on the lookout for the highest potential ideas which we can transform into value-added innovative technologies and services for the benefit of our customers. We look forward to delivering hands-on experience to the students at USP to help them better understand how innovative ideas come to fruition, in particular within bigger industry situations, for their future careers.”

José Roberto Castilho Piqueira, Director of Polytechnic School, at USP comments, “At USP we are delighted to be hosting the first-ever Airbus Innovation Week, which will expose our students to the leading innovation thinkers within the aviation industry. Our students’ success in Fly Your Ideas 2013 underlines our dedication to doing all we can to equip our students with competencies that will allow them to succeed in the future.”  

Innovation Week will also include a guest appearance by the UNESCO Engineering initiative.

*Fly Your Ideas is a biennial global challenge run by Airbus for students, with UNESCO patronage – and forms part of The Future by Airbus, the company’s vision of sustainable air travel in 2050. Entries for FYI 2015 will open later this year. For more information visit www.airbus-fyi.com

University of São Paulo (USP) is a public university of the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the most prestigious university in Brazil, as well as one of the largest institution of higher education in Latin America, with approximately 90,000 enrolled students. There are campuses in São Paulo and in the cities of Bauru, Lorena, Piracicaba, Pirassununga, Ribeirão Preto, São Carlos and the newest one in Santos. USP is involved in teaching, research and university extension in all areas of knowledge.