How does the Winter School 2026 help companies find solutions to future sustainability challenges?
The Winter School 2026 helps companies discover future sustainability solutions by combining international expertise with practical innovation. The five-day intensive program offers companies the opportunity to gain fresh perspectives from a multicultural group of approximately 100 healthcare professionals. The event focuses on integrating sustainable development into health technology product development through concrete tools and collaboration.
What is the Winter School 2026 and why is it important for health technology companies?
The Winter School 2026 is an international education and innovation event of the ManagiDiTH master’s programme, held from 26–30 January 2026 at Laurea University of Applied Sciences’ Otaniemi Campus in Espoo, Finland. The event brings together around 100 healthcare professionals from 15 different countries to solve real challenges presented by companies.
For health technology companies, the event provides a unique opportunity to leverage international and multidisciplinary expertise in their product development. Participants represent a wide range of healthcare specialists, including physicians, nurses, engineers, and other domain experts. This multidisciplinary composition enables challenges to be approached from multiple perspectives, integrating clinical practice, technical implementation, and business acumen.
The event’s significance is particularly pronounced in the rapidly changing operating environment of health technology. As digital transformation, ethical use of artificial intelligence, and cross-border data sharing reshape the sector, companies need fresh ideas and innovative approaches. The Winter School 2026 meets this need by offering an intensive five-day programme that combines expert lectures, interactive workshops, and team-based innovation.
Participating companies gain visibility as forward-thinking organisations committed to co-creation and innovation in healthcare. The event also creates networking opportunities with other participating companies and ManagiDiTH programme experts, which can lead to long-term collaborative partnerships.
How does the Winter School 2026 address sustainability in the context of health technology?
The event places sustainability at the core of the health technology innovation process by addressing environmental, economic, and social sustainability as integral parts of product development. Companies can present challenges related to, for example, internationalisation, reaching new target groups, or improving sustainability practices in healthcare operations.
The handling of sustainability challenges is based on a practical approach. Multidisciplinary teams develop concrete concepts and prototypes over the five days that take into account the various dimensions of sustainable development. This means that solutions focus not only on environmental impacts but also on economic viability and social acceptability.
The importance of sustainable development is increasingly emphasised from a regulatory perspective as well. In the development of healthcare software and devices, companies must consider not only medical device regulatory requirements but also broader environmental and corporate social responsibility obligations. The event helps companies understand how these requirements influence product development and business operations.
The international participant group adds significant value to sustainability discussions. With healthcare professionals from 15 different countries involved, solutions take into account diverse cultural perspectives on healthcare organisation, regulation, and patient needs. This diversity strengthens the innovation process and ensures that the developed solutions are applicable across different healthcare systems.
What kinds of solutions and tools can companies obtain from the Winter School 2026?
Companies receive tailored innovation concepts and prototypes developed specifically to address the challenge they have presented. The solutions emerging from five days of intensive collaboration are grounded in real healthcare expertise and are practically implementable.
The participation process is structured to maximise benefit. On Tuesday, 27 January, companies present their challenge to all participants in a short 5–10 minute pitch and then engage in face-to-face working sessions with the students. On Friday, 30 January, companies attend the final presentations, where teams showcase the developed concepts and prototypes.
Networking opportunities form a substantial part of the event’s value. Companies interact with approximately 100 healthcare professionals, ManagiDiTH programme experts, and other participating companies. These connections can lead to future collaborative partnerships and open doors to international markets.
The event also supports companies in product development, risk management, and regulatory matters. ManagiDiTH programme experts provide guidance and facilitate workshops addressing critical areas such as ethical AI implementation, cross-border data exchange, and health technology adoption. This expertise helps companies identify and practically address future sustainability challenges.
In challenge formulation, companies receive support from a ManagiDiTH programme contact person, ensuring that the challenge is appropriately scoped for the five-day schedule and delivers maximum value to all parties. A well-formulated challenge clearly defines the problem area, desired outcomes, and relevant constraints while leaving room for creative problem-solving.
