St Cross Student Leads Prize-Winning Oxford Team at Entente Cordiale Day Summit

sua paris

St Cross MPhil Sua Cho with his Sir Winston Churchill Prize

St Cross College is delighted to celebrate the achievement of Sua Cho, Student Communications Assistant and MPhil in Development Studies, who led an Oxford University team to third place among British universities at the prestigious Entente Cordiale Day Summit in Paris. 

Sua represented Oxford alongside teammates Khin Thazin and Amalia Ghina Alfiya, and was the only member of the team able to travel to Paris, presenting their work on behalf of the group. The team was also awarded the Sir Winston Churchill Prize in recognition of their outstanding project. 

Held annually to mark the anniversary of the 1904 Entente Cordiale agreement, the Summit brings together students from leading universities in the United Kingdom and France to present research addressing pressing global challenges. Finalist teams present their work to an international jury, with awards recognising excellence in research, collaboration and impact. 

This year’s theme, ‘Conflict, technologies, and world security’, saw the Oxford team explore the environmental and socio-political consequences of nickel extraction in West Papua, driven by the global demand for electric vehicle production. Their project examined how resource extraction can contribute to environmental degradation and conflict, and proposed an interdisciplinary solution combining technical remediation methods with community-led governance. Their approach brought together scientific techniques, including electrocoagulation and agromining, with legally binding Community Benefit Agreements designed to empower Indigenous communities to monitor and enforce ecological standards. 

Reflecting on the experience, Sua said:

I am incredibly honoured to have received this prize. As someone who grew up in Southeast Asia, this topic is especially close to my heart, and it was a privilege to work with friends from Oxford on a solution that ensures that energy transition is not only green, but also accountable.

St Cross warmly congratulates Sua and his teammates on this outstanding achievement.