Competitive Sustainability Center
Organizations face growing sustainability challenges involving materials, energy, supply chains, waste, workforce development, and community impacts. These challenges also create opportunities. The Competitive Sustainability Center helps businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies identify and pursue opportunities that create environmental, social, and economic value. We do this through applied research, entrepreneurship, workforce development, and partnerships. Working with students, faculty, alumni, and external partners, we develop and apply practical solutions that help organizations succeed while advancing sustainability goals.
Funded Activities
Sustainable entrepreneurship through culture and language
Sara Armengot is principal investigator on a project funded by the Department of Education on Interdisciplinary Entrepreneurship Curriculum for Applied Modern Language and Culture that supports developing sustainable entrepreneurship through culture and language. This project involves developing and running a course for RIT students in which they explore the language and culture of a specific country, culminating in a visit to the country during the summer to refine their ideas about a sustainable business relating to that country. The countries RIT is currently working with include France, Italy, Japan, Peru, and Taiwan. The course ran for the first time in the spring of 2024.
Economic sustainability for immigrants and refugees
Jerrie Hsieh is principal investigator for the Hospitality Workforce Training Program for Refugees and Immigrants. Funded by the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation this project addresses social and economic sustainability by equipping immigrants and refugees with the skills they need to find employment in the hospitality industry, which suffers from a labor shortage.
Female circular entrepreneurs in Jordan
Clyde Eiríkur Hull and Eric Williams were co-principal investigators on a project funded by the United States Department of State, overseen by the United States Embassy to Jordan, supporting training and primarily female circular entrepreneurs in Jordan. The project included Jordanian-owned circular economy ventures in our partner business incubator in Jordan, the Queen Rania Center for Entrepreneurship. Some of this work has since been published in Journal of Business Venturing Insights; lead author Israa Thiab has now completed her Ph.D. at RIT.
ASEAN circular entrepreneurship training
Clyde Eiríkur Hull and Eric Williams were co-principal investigators on a new project funded by the United States Department of State in partnership between the U.S.-ASEAN Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation (STIC) Program and the U.S.-ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership (USASCP).
Games for cybersecurity and physical resiliency design
David Schwartz is the principal investigator on a project funded by the United States Military Academy (West Point) to use game design principles to develop resilience, including identifying threats, considering options, and working through solutions in a simulated environment.