Hosted by Tongji SEM, 2020 Global Entrepreneurship Summer School (GESS) was held online from September 1^st to September 6^th. Fourty-six young entrepreneurs from 16 different countries gathered online to focus on the global energy, advocate international cooperation, explore new knowledge on entrepreneurship, broaden global horizons, and contribute wisdom to global governance challenges.

The 2020 GESS emphasized the international vision and characteristics of globalization, continued to optimize in the aspects of topics, researches and learning intensity, through lectures, group assignments that inspire creative ideas and tutors in multiple fields to assist in the whole process. 10 groups, including market prospection, business model, financial modeling and roadshow training, focused on green energy and low-carbon technology to explore promotable business models and entrepreneurial paths. In addition, the “Global Time” part built a communication platform, presenting a colorful cultural journey through cross-cultural interaction, way of thinking training, fun games and other forms.

This year is the 5^th year that Tongji University has participated in hosting GESS, and it is also the first time that it has been held online. Through the online platform, young talents discussed topics on innovative entrepreneurship and sustainable development in international and interdisciplinary teams, shared life insights, explored entrepreneurial problems and enriched innovative horizons with international entrepreneurial elites. Taking China as an example, relying fully on high-quality faculty and alumni resources, Tongji University invited SU Yiyi, Associate Professor of Department of Innovation and Strategy in Tongji SEM, alumnus FU Yi, Director of Chengdu Longquan & Tongji University International Youth Venture Valley, to join the program, and invited alumnus WOERNER Kevin, who is in charge of XNode Chuangji Infinite Accelerator Project, to give a keynote speech on business model.

GESS aims to train innovative and entrepreneurial leaders for global sustainable development. It is founded in 2008 and is jointly organized by Tongji University, University of Munich, The Munich University of Technology, Munich University of Applied Sciences, The Helmut Schmidt University, The Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education and The Union of Life&Co Universities in South Africa. It is held alternately in Shanghai, Munich, Mexico City and Cape Town every year. GESS breaks through the traditional teaching mode of summer school and the previous mode of innovative entrepreneurship education, stimulates creativity through thematic lectures, workshops and research, starts from transnational culture, puts the establishment of business models and the optimization of strategic objectives in social practice, and equips each group of students with “companion mentors” to guide international entrepreneurial youth to find out the pain points of global governance and cultivates innovative entrepreneurial thinking. GESS is committed to grasp the new trends of global entrepreneurship to cope with the changes of the times and the demands of innovation.