The Cornelius-Ernström Group Climate Scholarship to student who wants to build sustainable
The Cornelius-Ernström Group Climate Scholarship has for the second time been awarded at the School of Business, Economics and Law at the University of Gothenburg. The scholarship of SEK 50,000 is awarded to Master's student Jonathan Zepeda Villela and his work on offering developing countries housing produced in a sustainable way at an affordable price, which can be a first step for social change.
Housing affordability and fair access to housing are two clear issues in today’s society, especially in the developing regions of the world where slums and precarious living conditions are increasing. By utilizing rammed earth as the main construction method and sourcing local labor, Jonathan Zepeda Villela has formed a business plan for Terraforma Inc, to provide affordable housing options for mid-to-low-income families and stimulating sustainable economic growth through job opportunities.
“Our vision is to become a pioneering architecture and land development firm, leading the way in promoting affordable housing and sustainable communities, especially in underdeveloped nations,” says Jonathan Zepeda Villela.
“Buildings, and the way we today build our houses, is one of the largest Co2 polluters in the world. Commercial real-estate owners have understood the value of owning sustainable buildings as well as transforming existing to more climate neutral. However, also normal house owners needs to understand the value destruction they will face if they lack behind in this development. Terraforma Inc is a good example of starting to visualizing and making this transformation. We are therefore happy to support their continued growth with SEK 50,000,” says Pontus Cornelius, previous CEO of Ernströmgruppen.
“This scholarship holds significant meaning for me. I genuinely believe that the real estate development market serves as a remarkable platform to create equitable value for all stakeholders with the environment and end-consumer being at the front and center. The allocation of these funds primarily aims to construct a small-scale prototype that effectively showcases the exceptional properties of rammed earth as a construction technique,” says Jonathan Zepeda Villela.
Contact:
Jonathan Zepeda Villela, phone +46 735-6824-37, email zepedav.jonathan@gmail.com
The scholarship was established with the purpose to encourage bright individuals in finding solutions that enable us to live within the resource capacity of our planet. Each year a selected number of students (or alumni) at School's business-oriented educations receive a symbolic sum as a token of appreciation for their initiatives. The prize is provided by Ernströmgruppen and Pontus Cornelius who led the group as CEO between 2011-2020. Today, Pontus is a private investor, a board professional, and a continued strong climate advocate.
About Jonathan Zepeda Villela
Jonathan Zepeda Villela holds a bachelor's degree in banking and finance from the Universidad Privada de San Pedro Sula in Honduras. After the summer, he will begin his second year on the Master's programme in Knowledge-based Entrepreneurship at the School of Business, Economics and Law. He is a recipient of the Swedish Institute's Global Professionals Scholarship - an international scholarship programme for Master's studies in Sweden that aims to develop future global leaders who will contribute to the UN's global goals in Agenda 2030.
