Sentinus Young Innovators, Northern Ireland’s largest science fair, has returned for the first time since the pandemic.
The fair welcomed more than 150 young people from over 60 schools across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, during the exhibition at Queen’s University Belfast.
Students showcased their science projects solving real world problems and competed for a variety of prizes including the chance to represent Northern Ireland at the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in the USA in 2023.
The event also was used to promote projects that have emerged from the Sentinus Research Academy which saw over 100 students undertake a summer placement within a research and development environment across a wide range of Northern Ireland’ leading engineering and innovation firms. They included Sensata, First Derivatives, RSPB, Queen’s University Belfast, Ulster University and Trinity College Dublin.
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The overall winner of Young Innovators was Michael McMahon from Lagan College who will attend the International Science & Engineering Fair in Dallas, Texas in 2023 to represent Northern Ireland. Michael’s project involved 3D game digital asset and custom model development to create a more immersive experience for the player, and for use outside of games for CGI compositing and 3D camera tracking projects.
The event was organised by Sentinus, an educational charity working with more than 60,000 young people from schools and colleges across Northern Ireland each year delivering programmes that promote engagement in STEM and support the development of scientific and technological skills. On the day, exhibitions of project work post-primary and further education students were displayed and judged by industry experts who volunteer their time as part of a commitment to progress the STEM agenda for Northern Ireland.
Commenting on the event, new Chair of Sentinus, Tanya Hedley said: “ It is great to be back and to be able to once again showcase the fantastic work and innovative thinking from our next generation of young innovators. We know that a STEM literate society is vital to the long-term economic success of Northern Ireland and that these skills are necessary to enable us to compete in a truly global and connected marketplace.”
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Tanya added: “Given the huge challenges we all face, be they economic, environmental or societal, innovation will be critical to solving these challenges. Having seen the many projects up close today I am confident that we will have a strong pipeline of innovative talent coming through as long as we can continue to nurture and encourage it in the coming years.”
Sentinus Young Innovators is the charity’s flagship event and represents a culmination of a lot of work with schools over the past year which is designed to encourage and develop an interest in STEM subjects and skills among our young people.
Source: Written from press release.
