Route 360 Solutions Initiative won the Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (APU) 2026 Hult Prize in Japan, organized on 11th January 2026 at the APU Beppu City campus. Represented by Joseph Turay and Gifty D. M. Aggor, Route 360 competes with 18 teams of students from APU. Route 360 successfully competed in different phases of the competition and advanced to the finals, where it competed with five teams and won. Winning the campus edition of the Hult Prize will allow Route 360 to compete with other teams across Japan in the National edition. Once successful in this stage, Route 360 will advance to the Global edition, where it will compete with different teams from across the world in the United Kingdom.
The Route 360 team appreciates Joseph and Gifty for representing Route 360 in the global stage, and would like to thank the Mastercard Foundation, National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy, Global Greengrants Fund, UNDP Rome Centre, Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security, and all other persons and organizations who have invested their time, energy, resources, and finances in keeping the Route 360 dream of empowering marginalized youth and women while reducing plastic pollution, climate change, poverty, and lack of access to affordable construction materials in Sierra Leone alive.
We wish Joseph and Gifty all the best as they participate in the remaining phases of the Hult Prize competition. We cannot wait to celebrate the win with them!
