Several Hawaii Island student teams worked diligently from January-April to develop ideas for how to help solve one of the island’s urgent environmental problems. They competed in The Success Factory — NexTech’s Fish Tank, the first STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) competition of its kind on Hawaii Island designed to empower youth to create solutions for local problems by leveraging design thinking and the engineering process.
“Hands-on STEM education like Fish Tank invites students to explore and contribute solutions to island issues, and engage directly with STEM and business professionals,” explained Doug Adams, a board member of the Success Factory.
This year’s competition focused on the plastic waste problem. “This is a real problem,” said William Kucharski, director of the county Department of Environmental Management. “County of Hawaii disposes of approximately 130,000 pounds of waste plastic every day. We know there is a solution and we are confident that this challenge will help us to find a positive approach for our island.”
Since the county’s recycling program no longer accepts plastics, much of this waste is making its way into the island’s landfills. The competition started in January with 36 students in grades 6-12 from around the island. The students were supported by volunteer mentors and active and retired subject matter experts from Hawaii County, Recycle Hawaii and local engineering firms.
To read the full story, visit https://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/2020/06/13/community/hawaii-island-student-innovators-tackle-plastic-pollution/.
Author: Hawaii Tribune Herald