Battle of Minds: Mycofoam Team

The climate change crisis can be overwhelming, triggering crippling fear and sadness in some people. This journey began with anxieties about climate change and environmental conditions that are getting worse due to plastic and styrofoam waste. The use of styrofoam and thermoplastic as packaging has become common. Products that use this type of packaging also vary, including electronic products, skin care, and others. This makes us think that it is necessary to make substitute materials in the form of materials that are more sustainable and easily degraded. One of the more biodegradable materials is a plant-based one. This makes us think that the use of agricultural waste is a promising way.

The production of agricultural waste in Indonesia is still diverse and large in number. One of the materials we look at is rice straw. There are at least 75 tons of rice straw waste in Indonesia per year. Generally, this waste is only used for animal feed and the rest is simply burned. Adding value to this waste also has many challenges. Especially in developing packaging, we need to consider the material to unite this straw so that the final product can be formed easily. One method that can be used is using mycelium technology.

Mycelium is a collection of hyphae of organisms called fungi. This mycelium generally forms a fairly strong web. Fungi are also quite easy to grow and have promising characteristics as adhesives for agricultural waste. We formed a research team to look for the most promising species to use. In this article, I will not discuss the technical details of how this product was made and its business development scheme, but rather the Mycofoam Team’s experience in participating in the Battle of Minds competition all the way to the top ten.

This competition is organized by BAT (British American Tobacco). The process that we need to go through in this research is quite long. Starting from the registration stage, pitchdeck submission, mentoring stage to the local judging round. This year, 180 teams participated in the Battle of Minds competition.

Long story short, we received an announcement that Mycofoam Team had the opportunity to pass through the local judging round along with the remaining 9 teams. We were lucky enough to make it to the top 10.

Chandra and I went to Jakarta early on August 12, 2022. Meanwhile, Aida from Bogor and Aysya (Ica) were already in Jakarta for the application stage for their master study visa to Taiwan. We left early for pitching practice and made preparations before competing on August 15, 2022. Our trip was fully financially supported by BAT, including lodging at the Neo Tandean Hotel and transportation in Jakarta.

This competition is one of the most fun competitions I’ve ever participated in. Unique team members, interesting places and novelties. On August 14 we had pitching practice together. But filled with laughter. I dont need to explain this, let this photo below explain it to you.

That night we became impulsive and bought Junkfood at Blok M mall. That night was also the deadline for our final pitchdeck submission. We did file transmissions while enjoying juicy burgers and the frenetic atmosphere of the mall. I don’t really like crowds, but it’s okay if there’s food I like, lol. After that, we returned to the hotel and had a nice rest.

The next day, we went to the location of the competition which was located at Capital Place, BAT Jakarta office. We left at 6 AM to avoid Jakarta’s traffic jams. Arriving at the location, we immediately did the administration to get access to the BAT office. After that we immediately looked for a cafe that was open to get caffeine intake. Chandra and I bought a glass of Chamomile Tea which tasted quite strange. For a while we enjoyed tea while discussing possible questions that would arise during the pitching later.

At 8 AM, we had a discussion with our mentor, Jonathan Sembiring, Joe gave us advice on our pitchdeck and gave motivation. The discussion was so insightful, we really enjoyed the competition and the process. Time goes so fast. 9:30 is the time for our team to pitch. We were directed to enter the meeting room. In the room there are 4 judges who are ready to do the judging.

Pitching went smoothly, we also really enjoyed the QnA stage. We also get so many new insights from this competition. Pitching lasts for 30 minutes. After that we went out to enjoy a glass of cold coffee while waiting for the office tour activities.

The office here is so comfortable. Complete facilities and comfortable atmosphere really tempt us to build a career in this company, lol. Btw, after that we had time to take pictures together in the outdoor area. Here are the photos:

Then we return to the hotel to rest before awarding night which will be held at 6:30 p.m. Awarding is held at Basic Instinct Culinary.

During awarding night, we made new connections with 9 other teams. We also had time to discuss with mentors, judges and also people who work at BAT. Even though we failed to make the top 3, we are happy to go home with lots of new insights and connections. Thank you BAT, hopefully next year we can participate in this competition again.

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Cheers.