Maila Conte, an entrepreneur from Bento Gonçalves, was the only Brazilian to win the Gold Medal in the BRICS Technological Innovation competition, held from September 15 to 17 during the 14th InnovaCities in Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná. In addition to the award, she also placed third in the Regenerative Innovation competition, which focuses on projects with a positive socio-environmental impact.
A law graduate, Maila is the founder of the startup Hi! Mundo, incubated at Inova Bento, responsible for developing a smart recycling center to modernize waste collection.
“I spent two years collecting recyclable materials in the building where I live to see how much waste I generated and understand the process,” he says.
The experience led her to create, in 2023, the startup that has already raised more than R$ 700 thousand in resources from FAPERGS and Embrapi/FURG.
The recycling point, with a capacity of 10,000 liters per day, will feature hybrid artificial intelligence to identify waste, monitor packaging in real time, and offer digital credits to citizens.
“We want to raise awareness and encourage simple actions to transform waste disposal into something sustainable and rewarding,” he explains.
In October, Maila will take the project to Croatia, where she will participate in ARCA – International Innovations Exhibition, the third largest innovation event in Europe.
“We need to think about the future for a balanced and healthy ecosystem,” says the entrepreneur.
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