B Academics is thrilled to announce the finalists and winners of our inaugural B Corp Case Competition! This global event brought together over 150 students and 51 teams to tackle real-world sustainability challenges facing the modern hospitality industry.
The Challenge: AndCo Hospitality
This year’s competition featured a case on AndCo Hospitality, a Florida-based Certified B Corp and industry leader in “responsible tourism”. Students were tasked with acting as consultants to help the company navigate real challenges the company is currently facing.
Participants were asked to provide actionable recommendations in one of three critical areas:
- Water Consumption: Prioritizing efforts to achieve a 25% reduction goal.
- Energy Consumption: Evaluating the trade-offs between renewable energy credits and on-site solar to reach a 40% reduction target.
- Behavioral Nudges: Designing engagement strategies for 100% of staff and guests to drive lasting sustainable behaviors.
And the Winners Are…
After a rigorous virtual evaluation process, we are proud to recognize the following teams for their innovative and impactful solutions:
- 1st Place: Team AwesomeSauce (University of California, Berkeley)
- 2nd Place: Nudgeworks (University of Maryland)
- 3rd Place: To Be Decided (University of Malaya and Sunway University)
- Crowd Favorite: Team AwesomeSauce (University of California, Berkeley)
- Honorable Mention: Watts Next (Pepperdine University)
A Global Collaborative Effort
This competition was made possible by the dedication of our community. We extend our deepest gratitude to our final judges:
- Megan Dorsey, Sustainability and Social Purpose Manager at AndCo Hospitality
- Alex Smith, President at AndCo Hospitality
- Summer Brown, President at B Academics
- Carson Bolding, Senior B Network Programs Manager at B Lab
A special thank you to our Phase I Reviewers:
- Jake Mosley
- Avi Mayerhoff
- Elena Kennedy
- Cait Lamberton
- Miguel Maysonet
- Natalia Hopkins
- Michael Goldman
- Saheli Nath
- Jen Jones
- Brooke Lahneman
Case Co-Authors:
- María Ballesteros-Sola
- Saheli Nath
- Brooke Lahneman
Planning Committee:
- Saheli Nath
- Brooke Lahneman
- Jen Jones
- Allen Gunderson
- Rachel Haynes
- Maria Ballesteros-Sola
Congratulations to all our participants for showing us how business can truly be a force for good! We look forward to bring you another case competition in 2027.
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