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Alpha Bank Cyprus Champions Educational Equality Through Nationwide Back-to-School Initiative

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

September 3, 2025

Corporate Social Responsibility At Its Finest

Alpha Bank Cyprus has once again reaffirmed its commitment to social responsibility by engaging in the nationwide “Back-to-School Initiative,” organized by the Pan-Cypriot Coordinating Council of Volunteering. Now in its 11th consecutive year, the campaign underscores the bank’s enduring pledge to create a positive social impact by ensuring that vulnerable children from disadvantaged backgrounds are well-equipped for a dignified start to the academic year.

Strategic Impact Through Corporate Citizenship

As a leading supporter in this initiative, Alpha Bank Cyprus offered redeemable gift vouchers for purchasing school supplies. This decisive support meets the immediate needs identified by NGOs and various social partners across Cyprus, while emphasizing the campaign’s powerful message: “Help A Child Start School With A Smile.”

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Empowering Future Generations

Education remains a strategic priority for Alpha Bank Cyprus. Committed to advancing equal access to education for all children, the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility strategy focuses on initiatives that secure the essential resources for an effective and seamless start to students’ academic journeys.

A Legacy Of Social Cohesion

Through continued investment in initiatives that bolster social cohesion and drive progress, Alpha Bank Cyprus exemplifies a governance model predicated on accountability, mutual support, and pragmatic social investment. This approach not only empowers individuals but also fortifies the community at large.

The Future Forbes Realty Global Properties

Cypriot Startup LIVIA Wins Europe’s Top Youth Entrepreneurship Competition

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

July 29, 2026

A Cypriot university team has won the European GEN-E 2026 youth entrepreneurship competition with LIVIA, a smart agriculture platform that combines satellite data, autonomous drones and artificial intelligence to help farmers improve irrigation, detect disease earlier and reduce pesticide use.

Alongside first place, the team received the FedEx Access Award, expanding its access to investors, entrepreneurs and industry experts across Europe.

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Initially developed for vineyards, LIVIA analyses individual plants and turns complex data into practical recommendations. The team is now preparing its first functional product and pilot projects in Cyprus, with plans to expand into additional crops and international markets.

From An Idea To Smart Agriculture

LIVIA began with a simple question: how could satellite data create practical value in everyday life? After exploring applications ranging from meteorology to marine biology, the team identified agriculture as the sector with the greatest potential.

Recognising the limitations of satellite imagery alone, particularly in resolution and update frequency, the founders integrated autonomous drones into the platform to provide more detailed field data.

Designed as a modular system, LIVIA can continuously incorporate new data sources and capabilities. Its initial focus is irrigation management, early disease detection and plant health monitoring, with vineyards serving as the first use case because of their importance to Cyprus and the team’s own experience.

Turning Data Into Decisions

Satellite imagery provides continuous monitoring of crops, while autonomous drones capture high-resolution images whenever greater precision is needed.

Artificial intelligence then combines those datasets with information collected by growers, including IoT sensors and field observations, to generate tailored recommendations for irrigation, disease prevention and resource management.

By analysing each plant individually, the platform enables precision agriculture rather than field-wide recommendations.

Building A Hardware And Software Startup

Developing LIVIA has required balancing advanced software with specialised hardware, including drones, multispectral cameras and charging stations, all while operating with limited resources.

Although the startup participates in the Bank of Cyprus IDEA programme and has secured non-equity funding, integrating multiple data sources into a reliable AI system remains its biggest technical challenge.

The Role Of Junior Achievement

Participation in the JA StartUp Programme helped transform the original concept into a business proposition through mentoring, coaching and pitch preparation.

Support continued after LIVIA won the national competition, with the Junior Achievement Cyprus team helping the founders prepare for the European final in Latvia.

European Recognition

Winning GEN-E 2026 and the FedEx Access Award marked the team’s biggest milestone to date and created new opportunities to connect with investors, entrepreneurs and industry experts across Europe.

The founders are now focused on completing their minimum viable product, launching pilot projects in Cyprus and expanding the platform to new crops and international markets.