Minting the 2025 Turner MIINT Champion with the GSLI

By Aliya Carr and the 2025 MIINT Team (Andrew Poss, Aldo Galli, Caroline Murray, Estefany Lira, and Andrew Kress)

Five students. A shared vision. One shot at $50,000. After a year of hustle, these Longhorns turned vision into victory at the Turner MIINT Competition — and brought the win home to UT.

The Turner MBA Impact Investing Network and Training Program (MIINT) is an international impact investing competition run by The ESG Initiative at The Wharton School of Business and Bridges Impact Foundation. The Global Sustainability Leadership Institute selects, trains, and sponsors the UT Austin MIINT representatives each year. This is the second year that UT Austin won the global prize, and the first time a public school has won multiple times. The last UT win was in 2021.

Dr. Meeta Kothare, the GSLI’s Managing Director and Professor of Practice at McCombs School of Business, selected and mentored second-year MBA students Andrew Poss, Aldo Galli, Caroline Murray, Estefany Lira, and Andrew Kress to represent UT at the Turner MIINT competition in the fall semester. Coming from diverse academic backgrounds, professional experiences, and career goals, they brought a wide range of perspectives to the table. But one driving force connected them all: a passion for creating real impact.

“We had to learn on the go,” Lira said. “We had to learn how everyone worked in a team setting, and had to take it from there.”

The team members found that their individual unique experiences and ideas were an asset to their problem-solving capabilities. Between the five members, all of them could contribute meaningfully according to their strengths.

“We all have very diverse skills that gave us some pretty unique perspectives,” Kress said. “We form a well-rounded team with a lot of different backgrounds and prudent abilities (that) makes sure we’re able to compete at a very high level.”

MIINT is an international competition and immersive learning experience that puts MBA students at the heart of impact investing. Over the course of the year, teams scout mission-driven startups, conduct due diligence, craft investment memos and pitch their recommendations to a panel of judges each April. The UT team starts work in October after being selected and takes a class with Dr. Kothare in the Spring to deepen their impact investing knowledge.

The reward? A real $50,000 investment in the startup they back.

But for the UT team, the first hurdle came early — finding the right startup to pitch.

“It was challenging the first couple months, finding a company that had both impact and financial viability,” Murray said.

The students weighed multiple factors before selecting their venture, carefully considering business viability, sector alignment, risk management, and scalability: ensuring their choice was both strategic and sustainable.

“It was about finding that balance of selecting the right startup that hit scalability and also had a great story to tell,” Poss said. “It took us a while to argue it out and agree on what we were going to look at.”

The team ultimately landed on ReJoule, founded by Steven and Zora Chung, a diagnostics company transforming electric vehicle battery assessments. ReJoule provides faster and more accurate health assessments, critical for implementing sustainable battery usage.

“What ultimately led us to ReJoule was looking at the environment for investment right now,” Murray said. “Battery life and battery sustainability are top of mind for not only federal investment, but global mandates. It was the perfect time for ReJoule to be poised for investment in this space.”

Finding, researching, and assembling their venture was just the first step this team had to make toward their win. Next came the pitch against 47 other top-tier schools.

The weekend of the pitch was off to a less-than-perfect start — delayed flights, tight timelines, and last-minute details cinched on the plane made for a hectic beginning.

“The time we prepared the most was when we were at the competition in Philadelphia,” Lira said. “It was pretty intense, but everyone was on top of everything. We integrated the feedback we were given to make a nice, cohesive narrative.”

Positivity and shared outlooks united this team together.

“We were able to stay positive through a challenging experience,” Kress said.

As the team began to pitch, their nerves quickly washed away. Months of preparation, dedication, and a deep understanding of their startup allowed for a smooth, confident pitch that separated them from the other teams. By the time they arrived at the “question and answer” portion of their pitch, they felt confident they could tackle any question.

“A lot of the judges were industry experts, so the questions were pretty in-depth,” Murray said. “I think the ease with which we answered them really spoke to how much we learned throughout the process, and how comfortable we were representing ReJoule as a company.”

After securing a $50,000 win, the team reflected on the incredible journey that led them to this achievement at the MIINT competition. The team felt a deep and collective sense of pride: in both their dedication and the spirit of Texas.

“I do think (our win) speaks to the unique environment of UT Austin,” Murray said. “We were able to speak with experts across the value chain when it comes to clean technology and impact in the space, which provided a holistic perspective.”

The win became far more than just a financial prize; it proved that meaningful impact and strong business performance are not mutually exclusive. Innovative ideas grounded in social and environmental good can also be viable, competitive, and scalable in the real world.

“(Our venture) validated the impact investing part of (the competition),” Poss said. “You can do good and make money from it. Doing good is good business.”

The team encouraged prospective McCombs students and future MIINT participants to pursue their passion for impact investing with confidence.

“You don’t have to know everything going in,” Kress said. “Don’t be afraid if you have the intention to go in and work and learn.”

They emphasized that creating change starts with one bold step: having the courage to take the leap and get involved.

“Anyone who is thinking about doing this next year, don’t be afraid to contend,” Poss said. “You have a unique personality and you’ve been selected by UT for a reason.”

Texas McCombs MBA students can apply for the 2026 team in late August 2025 through the GSLI website and social media. Follow us on LinkedIn or Instagram for updates.