After a successful opening salvo in 2017, the Department of Science and Technology – Science Education Institute’s (DOST-SEI) imake.wemake: create. innovate. collaborate. project is again on the lookout for science and technology projects that cater to important societal and community issues.
Now on its second year, the competition challenges young Filipinos to use their creativity, discover their potentials, and learn the process of using innovation to help their community of interest. Senior high school students will get the opportunity to pitch, build, and present their projects based on accessible technological platforms. For this year, DOST-SEI is partnering with lead innovation company, ACER Philippines, and will introduce its innovative platform called ACER Cloudprofessor.
In the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between the two parties held last July 20 at the World Trade Center, SEI Director Dr. Josette Biyo thanked ACER Philippines for its support in promoting innovation among the youth.
“Having partners from the private sector is always a welcome boost to our work. Linking up with a globally recognized leader in the name of Acer in promoting science, technology, and innovation among our youth is especially crucial as we are entering the fourth Industrial Revolution. We are uncertain about our overall readiness as a country, but with this partnership we can say that we are preparing ourselves better,” she said.
The competition comes in three stages: 1) Call for Proposals and Selection; 2) Technical Training/Workshop and Project Pitching; and 3) Final Project Presentation and Judging.
To join, a team composed of three Grade 11 and/or Grade 12 students and one teacher per school may submit a project proposal addressing any of the following areas: food safety, security, traffic/road congestion, health, education, disaster mitigation, entrepreneurship, agriculture, and environment. This should be accompanied by a 2-3 minute video supporting the concept. Entry form and contest mechanics are available at https://goo.gl/YhF22L.
School teams passing the selection process will be invited to attend free technical training/workshop on basic electronics, programming, troubleshooting, presentation skills, and ACER Cloudprofessor and sensor application – the programming tool that will be used in all imake.wemake projects. They will also get free ACER Cloudprofessor Starter Kit, Sensor Expansion Pack, and toolbox containing basic tools and components.
Teams will be given a build and testing period of three months prior to the final project presentation and judging. The projects will be evaluated by this year’s judges: Dr. Nestor Michael Tiglao and Engr. Percival Magpantay of UP Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute (EEEI); Engr. Carlos Matti Oppus of Ateneo de Manila University; and Alexis de Guzman of Acer Philippines, Inc., based on relevance and potential impact to the community of interest, novelty, viability, and community engagement.
Three school teams will win P50,000 cash prize and The Youth Innovation Prize each.
Deadline for submission of proposals is on August 10, 2018. For details, visit www.facebook.com/imake.wemake or email imake.wemake@gmail.com.
