The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), and The Foundation for a Sustainable Future, San Francisco, organised the second annual Al Gore Sustainable Technology Venture Competition on December 5, 2008 at IIFT Delhi. Contestants for the Al Gore Sustainable Technology Venture Competition needed to prepare a business plan that can meet traditional profitability and return-on-investment standards while also demonstrating eco-friendliness and eco-sensitivity by increasing sustainability. Numerous entries were received from various Engineering and Management institutes. However, the team representing IIFT Kolkata campus comprising of Shashank Singh Rathore, Ankur Agarwal, Kumar Gaurav and Parin Chawda, won the championship title. This team will now represent India in the March 2009 Sustainable Track Global Competition hosted at the Tepper School, Carnegie Mellon University and get cash awards of Rs 100,000 plus all expenses paid travel to USA, where teams from 38 other countries will be competing with their Business Plans. The same Business plan had also won 1st prize at the “Indian Innovator Competition” – the National level B Plan Contest held at NMIMS University in August 2008.
Robin Goyal, a Finance student at IIFT is currently representing India at the BIMUN conference held in Germany. 180 selected students from more than 50 countries came together in order to debate controversial issues of international politics under the overall title “Global Social Responsibility – Merging the Needs of a Fragmented World”.
Saswat Kumar Sahu, the Joint Cultural Secretary of IIFTas student body was the Indian delegate to the HPAIR (Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations) conference which was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in August 2008. The HPAIR Business Conference is an annual event in which international graduate and MBA students and young professionals worldwide come together to interact and learn about areas of Asian business from the industry leaders.