Ideas on bacteria-driven biofilter for vehicles and solar energy management system emerge as winners at Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2021 competition
- Written by Reporters
Samsung Gen Z poll found that health and mental well-being issues and environmental sustainability challenges are top concerns for youths in Singapore
SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 2 March 2022 - Samsung Electronics Singapore today announced the winners of the Solve for Tomorrow 2021 competition, with teams MNKS X CO2 from Singapore Polytechnic and Team Adustio from the National University of Singapore (NUS) taking home top honours for the Post-secondary and University categories respectively. The final round of this competition saw 10 finalist teams – five from each category – showcasing their ideas to a judging panel of industry leaders. Supported by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) under its Digital for Life initiative, the fifth edition of Solve for Tomorrow was launched on 7 October 2021. The 10 finalist teams were shortlisted from over 170 teams comprising more than 510 students in Singapore. The top team from each category walked away with $10,000 worth of Samsung products, $5,000 cash prize and an insider tour of Samsung Singapore office, and a study trip to Seoul, South Korea [1]. "We believe that our youths hold the keys to address our most pressing issues and shape the nation's advancement, tapping on their passion and knowledge while harnessing the power of technology and innovation," said Mark Kim, President, Samsung Electronics Singapore. "Science and technology play a pivotal role in the fight against climate change and creating a sustainable, circular economy. Digital solutions' immense potential to overcome real-world issues has been highlighted tremendously during the pandemic. Through this competition, we hope to spark the light of innovation amongst our next generation of leaders and innovators, thereby enabling them to pioneer positive social and environmental change through technology." In a Samsung online poll [2] participated by 107 Gen Zs (aged 16 – 25), half of the respondents (50 percent) ranked diseases, chronic illnesses and mental health issues as Singapore's most critical challenges. This is followed by climate change and environment sustainability challenges. Health and mental well-being and environmental sustainability are top concerns for Gen Zs The poll was conducted on the sidelines of the Solve for Tomorrow competition to highlight youth perspectives on the different societal and environmental challenges that the nation faces, as well as understand how they are playing their part to address these issues. More than four in five GenZs (82 percent) indicated that the rapidly changing economy and widespread changes in jobs have become even more concerning due to Covid-19. However, despite these heightened concerns, most respondents (75 percent) are still optimistic that Singapore can solve the societal and environmental challenges it faces. Covid-19 has also made 57 percent of Gen Zs realise that everybody has a role to play in addressing Singapore's pressing issues. Additionally, 58 percent of respondents also highlighted that the pandemic has made them realise the critical role digital technology plays in addressing Singapore's societal and environmental challenges. Furthermore, more than four in five GenZs (81 percent) stated that social entrepreneurship is important or highly important in addressing societal and environmental challenges. Nearly two-thirds of them (64 percent) also aspire to be social entrepreneurs if given the opportunity. Solve for Tomorrow encourages youths to take a more proactive approach in addressing Singapore's key challenges by providing them with a platform to ideate and apply their knowledge and skills across multiple disciplines, including Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), to make a meaningful impact in our community. It also allows them to ignite their entrepreneurial spirit by empowering them to develop tangible innovations that can potentially be implemented at scale. Solve for Tomorrow reflects Samsung's investment in youths and its commitment to inspiring and developing the capabilities of the next generation of leaders to fulfil their potential. Entries showcase innovation and aspirations of Singaporean youths for the nation The judges for Solve for Tomorrow 2021 consisted of an esteemed panel of industry leaders. They included:- Mark Kim, President of Samsung Electronics Singapore
- Foo Hui Hui, Deputy Director, Digital Literacy and Participation, Infocomm Media Development Authority
- Aziza Sheerin, Vice President, APAC, General Assembly
- 1st prize: MNKS X CO2
- 2nd prize: Team Mech Care
- 3rd prize: PowerWHATt
- People's Choice award [3]: MNKS X CO2
- 1st prize: Team Adustio
- 2nd prize: JBSamsung
- 3rd prize: Team S^2 Brace
- People's Choice award [3] : JBSamsung
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies. The company is redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, digital appliances, network systems, and memory, system LSI, foundry and LED solutions. For the latest news, please visit the Samsung Newsroom at http://news.samsung.comAppendix AAbout Samsung Solve for Tomorrow The Solve for Tomorrow 2021 competition, which launched on 7 October, encourages students in Singapore to take a closer look at the social issues around them and think about how they can make a meaningful impact on the community. The platform also allows youth to express their creativity and passion while encouraging them to apply their knowledge and skills across multiple disciplines - including critical and design thinking, marketing and communications skills, technological expertise and STEM knowledge – when developing their ideas and solutions. Competition overview There are two categories for Solve for Tomorrow 2021.
- Category 1 – Post-secondary: Full-time students aged 16 years old and above, enrolled in any junior college, polytechnic, Institute of Technical Education or the Millennia Institute in Singapore
- Category 2 – University: Full-time undergraduate students aged 18 years old and above, enrolled in any of the six publicly-funded autonomous universities in Singapore, namely
- 30%: Feasibility - Elaboration on how the solution can be created and implemented
- 20%: Creativity - Innovativeness, uniqueness and originality of proposed idea
- 25%: STEM - Elaboration on the use of STEM and how it can solve the problem
- 20%: Video - Flow and effectiveness of the presentation
- 5%: Public voting –Based on the number of votes the team receive from the public
- First Prize for Category 1 and Category 2:
- Second Prize for Category 1 and Category 2:
- Third Prize for Category 1 and Category 2:
- People's Choice awards for Category 1 and Category 2:
Source https://www.media-outreach.com/news/singapore/2022/03/02/122146/