In March 2025, students from the Print Media and Packaging Technologies program at Stuttgart Media University demonstrated their expertise and commitment to sustainable innovation at the Green Pack Hack competition. The event, hosted during Eye on TAMK week at Tampere University of Applied Sciences, Finland, brought together talented students from leading European institutions-including TAMK (Finland), Stuttgart Media University (Germany), and Artevelde University of Applied Sciences (Belgium)-to collaborate on the future of sustainable packaging.

Green Pack Hack 2025 was designed to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration, uniting students from diverse academic backgrounds such as Business Administration, Printing Technologies, Environmental Engineering, and Cross Media Design. By forming multinational teams, participants leveraged a wide range of skills and perspectives, fostering an environment where innovative solutions could thrive.

The competition’s central challenge was to reimagine the take-back and reuse of wood-based packaging materials. Participants were tasked with developing transformative concepts that could set new industry standards and support the transition to a circular economy. The focus on wood-based packaging highlighted the importance of renewable materials in reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainability.

Outstanding Achievements by Stuttgart’s Print Media and Packaging Technologies Students

Among all participating teams and individuals, the students from Stuttgart’s Print Media and Packaging Technologies program delivered outstanding results:

·         Gold Medal: Shell’s Haven

o    The Shell’s Haven team, including students Joyce Maline Tumakay and Sophia Hagmann, developed a reusable, wood fibre-based egg packaging system utilizing a return and refill deposit model. This innovative solution was praised for its originality, scalability, and real-world applicability, earning the opportunity to advance to a consumer pilot as part of the BioPak project.

·         Silver Medal: ReBox

o    Aya Elbasyouni and her team, ReBox, presented an adaptively foldable, reusable packaging solution. Their design minimized waste through flexibility and material efficiency, capturing the judges’ admiration.

·         Bronze Medal: RePaploop

o    Students Arpitkumar Lakhani and Adrian Reimann, together with their teammate, earned third place with RePaploop, an in-store, deposit-based refill system that addressed both logistical and behavioural challenges in reusable packaging.

The impact of Green Pack Hack 2025 extends well beyond the podium. By participating, students gained invaluable experience in interdisciplinary teamwork, real-time problem-solving, and industry collaboration. The event also provided immediate feedback and mentorship from an expert panel, equipping participants with insights to guide their future careers.

The success of Stuttgart’s Print Media and Packaging Technologies students at Green Pack Hack 2025 reflects the program’s dedication to excellence and its role in preparing future leaders for the challenges of sustainable development. Their achievements highlight the importance of experiential learning and international collaboration in driving innovation within the packaging industry.

As the ideas developed during the competition move toward real-world implementation, these students continue to set new standards for creativity, technical proficiency, and environmental responsibility. Their contributions are helping to shape a more sustainable future for packaging on a global scale.