Sustainability Day kicked off with an information fair that gave participants the opportunity to reflect on their behavior and how much they already know about sustainability: Do I eat according to what’s in season? What social responsibility do companies bear? To what extent does my lifestyle shape tomorrow's society? The organizers were particularly interested in the relationship of the exhibitors to Winterthur as a location. "A broad spectrum of organizations that contribute to sustainable development is represented in Winterthur. We wanted the information fair to highlight this diversity," the five students explained. Among others, Public Eye Winterthur, the online magazine "Das Lamm", the "Stadtgmües" campaign of Winterthur’s Environmental and Health Department, and WWF Zurich were represented at the information fair.

In the evening, the ZHAW School of Management and Law held its first "Dragon's Den". Participants were given the opportunity to "invest" in one of four impact start-ups depending on whose business concept they considered as most convincing. They were able to choose between Kompotoi, Yova, Direct Coffee, and Travelhero, who demonstrated in an inspiring way that, in a cash cow climate, business and ecology are not mutually exclusive. The winner was Kompotoi, a start-up offering environmentally friendly, odorless toilet solutions. The audience invested a total of CHF 37,000 in that company.

The evening concluded with two exciting presentations: "Kreislaufwirtschaft als Brücke zur Nachhaltigkeit" (Circular Economy as a Bridge to Sustainability) and "Impact Investing". These were introduced by Prof. Jens Lehne, a member of the ZHAW School of Management and Law Executive Committee.

In the first talk, Philipp Rufer of the Circular Economy Switzerland initiative presented the circular economy as an alternative economic system to today's prevailing linear economy and explained how this new economic understanding can be implemented. "In practice, economists are needed to develop new circular business strategies and business models. To do this, they do not have to be experts in environmental sciences, but they need a systems understanding of the circular economy as well as of system-relevant disciplines such as design, materials, and resources," Rufer said.

Next, Svetlana Baurens, President of the Galileo International Impact Investing Center, told the audience how she is trying to raise awareness of impact investing in the Swiss financial industry. Impact investments aim to achieve positive social and environmental effects, as well as generating economic profits.

The event was catered by “Äss-Bar Winterthur”, which offers a food concept to help combat food waste: Working with various bakeries, the company sells pastries and other baked goods from the day before, thus sending a clear signal against food waste.