Practical Action inspires national science competition win

Two students from Felsted School in Essex, were the winners of the Discovery Award at the Youth Grand Challenges competition held in London yesterday and run by the British Science Association. The competition, funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation aimed to get young people engaged in finding solutions to prevent the spread of infectious diseases in the developing world.

Phoebe Bruce and Sophie Tyrie’s project was inspired by Practical Action’s Stop the Spread STEM challenge, an educational challenge looking at the importance of handwashing to stop the spread of infectious diseases, set in the context of Kisumu, Kenya and linked to Practical Action’s Safe Pair of Hands project.

Practical Action’s Head of Education, Julie Brown said: “The students produced two models of ingenious hand washing devices that would enable young children to wash their hands using a food pump to avoid contamination and would also use minimal water in an area that suffers from drought.

“The devices are made of materials that could be sourced locally and at a low cost. Both were great examples of a simple technology providing a smart solution to a global issue. We are delighted for Phoebe and Sophie on their win and are sure they have a bright future ahead of them.”