We all have a responsibility to end poverty and inequality, protect the future of the planet, and ensure that everyone has the right to health, justice, and prosperity.
Are you a current student or graduate? Do you have an idea which addresses one of these global challenges?
In 2019, Paul Lindley OBE, a British entrepreneur, author, and children's welfare campaigner, partnered with the University of Reading to launch a process to find the best sustainable business ideas, from anywhere in the world, and to support one idea with a special award.
The biennial award is designed to bring together exceptional individuals with innovative ideas and provide them with the guidance, knowledge, and insight they need to turn their ideas into reality.
Finalists who make it to the judging phase are paired with expert counsellors to help shape their ideas and hone their pitches. Our counsellors are purpose-driven leaders from academia, business, social enterprise, and entrepreneurship who are passionate about helping people develop their initial ideas into sustainable business opportunities.
Get ready, just IMAGINE if ... 2026 launches on 31 March 2026.
2026 is an important year for both the University of Reading and Henley Business School. It marks the centenary of the granting of the University’s Royal Charter, and the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Henley Business School’s Greenlands campus.
To mark this occasion, just IMAGINE if… will focus on the University's global community of current students and graduates for the 2026 business development award.
Your business idea must address one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and should not have received third-party funding by way of any commercial investment or government organisation in excess of £100,000 total.
Finalists who make it to the judging phase are paired with expert counsellors to help shape their ideas and hone their pitches. Our counsellors are purpose-driven leaders from academia, business, social enterprise, and entrepreneurship who are passionate about helping people develop their initial ideas into sustainable business opportunities.
The top three business ideas will be decided at the just IMAGINE if… 2026 award event in September. Each winner will receive a cash award of £5,000 and a year's access to business development support from Henley Business School academics and the Henley Enterprise Lab (HELAB).
HELAB and the Henley Business School Centre for Entrepreneurship will support the three winners to:
The winners will need to engage fully to make the most of this support.
Find out more about the application process and how to apply for just IMAGINE if ... 2026.
Find out how previous just IMAGINE if... recipients have realised their dreams and tackled a global challenge.
The just IMAGINE if ... business development award is made possible by the generous support of our friends and sponsors.