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JA Europe and Arconic Foundation continue their focus on STEM education and Entrepreneurship

Second year of ‘Inventing the Future’ project aims to expose students to key challenges related to material innovation in the manufacturing industry.

• $260.000 investment committed by Arconic Foundation to cover two academic years, supporting the development of the creative and innovative potential of young people in France, Germany, Hungary and the UK
• First year of ‘Inventing the Future’ positively affected close to 500 young people (15-19 years old) with support of Arconic professional volunteers, actively involved as role models to the students

JA Europe and Arconic Foundation kicked off ‘Inventing the Future’ exactly one year ago, in order to bring more innovation to the classroom and encourage students to pursue STEM related careers. The two-year- project aims to reach over 600 students aged 15-19 from France, Germany, Hungary and the UK. The initiative combines STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and entrepreneurship education through classroom and company site visits, national innovation camps and a European competition.

Innovation relies on education to spur innovative ideas and talent. This project offers students the opportunity to engage with highly involved Arconic role models to broaden their professional perspectives, guide them through different challenges they encounter and help them better understand the relationship between what they learn in school and their future participation in a global economy.

The activities under this initiative have a special focus on how material innovation will influence the manufacturing industry and societal challenges in the next decade. In the first edition, students were challenged to come up with innovative solutions on how the next generation of materials can help transform urban mobility by 2030. Team Germany’s idea of hydrogen powered hybrid cars that can be fueled by Oxy-Hydrogen gas or charged by electrical energy was selected as the winning solution of the competition out of four outstanding proposals from the national teams. The winning team was offered a study trip to Brussels, the Capital of Europe, and a visit of the European Parliament.

“It was a great opportunity to be actively involved in the first year of this exciting competition, working hand in hand with Junior Achievement and such an engaged group of students, focusing on how technology and innovation are at the forefront of dealing with some of our biggest societal challenges”, says Francesca Stevens, Director of Government Affairs and Business Development in Arconic. “After celebrating this year’s winners, now we focus on the second year of ‘Inventing the Future’ to continue to help create interest in and prepare young people for the manufacturing jobs of the future.”

Between 2014 and 2024, the number of STEM jobs¹ will grow 17 percent, compared with 12 percent for non-STEM jobs. The European Commission, recognising the need to equip young people with the right skills, put STEM education high on its agenda, and several initiatives are being developed at the European level. Arconic, Arconic Foundation and JA Europe are engaged with policy-makers to draw their attention to the importance of entrepreneurship and STEM education and support them in shaping strategies to help young people develop right skills for the future.

“Arconic is investing in impactful programmes that will give young people the skills they need to create the jobs of the future. We are proud to be collaborating with Arconic, a pioneer in innovation strategies, to foster entrepreneurship and generate employment,” says Caroline Jenner, CEO of JA Europe.

About JA Europe
JA Europe is the largest non-profit in Europe dedicated to preparing young people for employment and entrepreneurship. JA Europe is a member of JA Worldwide which for 100 years has delivered hands on, experiential learning in entrepreneurship, work readiness and financial literacy. JA creates pathways for employability, job creation and financial success.
Last school year, the JA network in Europe reached more than 4 million young people across 40 countries with the support of 140,000 business volunteers and 130,000 teachers/educators. www.jaeurope.org

About Arconic Foundation
Arconic Foundation supports programs that help prepare the 21st century engineering and advanced manufacturing workforce. Arconic Foundation is an independently endowed foundation with assets of approximately $330 million and is the charitable arm of Arconic Inc. – which works in close partnership with customers to solve complex engineering challenges to transform the way we fly, drive, build and power. Through collaboration with our nonprofit partners, our initiatives make quality STEM education opportunities available to students; support engineering and technical skills training through community colleges, technical schools and universities around the world; and help to create access for underrepresented individuals to the STEM fields. The work of Arconic Foundation is further enhanced by the thousands of Arconic employee volunteers who share their talents and time to make a difference in their communities. Established in 2016, Arconic Foundation is active in 26 countries around the globe.

About Arconic
Arconic (NYSE: ARNC) creates breakthrough products that shape industries. Working in close partnership with our customers, we solve complex engineering challenges to transform the way we fly, drive, build and power. Through the ingenuity of our people and cutting-edge advanced manufacturing techniques, we deliver these products at a quality and efficiency that ensure customer success and shareholder value. For more information: www.arconic.com . Follow @arconic: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

For press enquiries, please contact:
JA Europe Communications - media@jaeurope.org 
Arconic  Communications – Jasper van Zon – jaspervan.zon@arconic.com;
Arconic Foundation – Suzanne van de Raadt – suzanne.vanderaadt@arconic.com

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