International Trefl Innovation Week | Faculty of Management and Economics at the Gdańsk University of Technology

Forty students from partner universities participated in the event, including:

• Gdańsk University of Technology
• HAMK University of Applied Sciences (Finland)
• Stockholm School of Economics in Riga (Latvia)
• Hochschule Niederrhein (Germany)

On the first day, students learned about the history of Gdańsk University of Technology and interesting facts about the university during a campus tour led by Katarzyna Stankiewicz, PhD.

The event's business partner was Trefl, which invited Gen Z students to work on a challenge: designing board and card games for the Millennial generation, taking into account aesthetics, user experience, and the potential for digital adaptation.

Marta Frankel-Dominik and Paulina Kortas were involved in the project on Trefl's side, helping to create the space for the event. Their presence during the final presentations highlighted the importance of the initiative and collaboration with business partners.

The project was an intensive design process based on a design thinking approach. Direct collaboration with industry was a key element of the event, including visits to the Trefl factory, mentoring, and expert feedback.

Congratulations to the students who developed innovative concepts for board games and their digital counterparts in such a short time. The ideas presented were thoughtful, well-developed, and engaging, reflecting Millennials' interests such as TV series, leisure activities, and hobbies.

The project was implemented in collaboration with international partners:

• Simona Chilba, Melanie Kirwa (HAMK University of Applied Sciences)
• Nicoletta Messerschmidt, Sarah Keeler (Hochschule Niederrhein)
• Aivars Timofejevs (Stockholm School of Economics in Riga)

From Gdańsk University of Technology, the following were involved: Katarzyna Stankiewicz, PhD, and Barbara Stępnowska, PhD, along with a team from the Faculty of Management and Economics, with support from Mateusz Dobrzyński from the Faculty’s Promotion Team.