STUDENTS from the University of West London’s London Geller College of Hospitality and Tourism (LGCHT) have successfully made it through to the finals of the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge.

The event in Montreux, Switzerland, featured more than 100 innovative ideas from 60-plus universities around the world.

Team ALGI, as they are called, impressed the judges with their sustainable ventilation systems in hotels and are now within reach of investment to develop the idea.

The industry spends 20-30% of operating energy costs on ventilation, but indoor air quality in rooms is poorly monitored.

The team of three undergraduate Hospitality Management students, Rahul Dahiya, Marco Palamara and Andrei-Mihai Iftimie, developed an algae-based system that purifies the air, reduces energy consumption and provides real-time tracking of room air quality. 

The team are already exploring commercial applications for their innovation. 

Rahul Dahiya, a team member, said: “It is the culmination of months of hard work that started as  coursework and enabled us to apply our passion for finding nature-based solutions to address climate crisis.”