The 1st High School of Heraklion Attica won a $20,000 sponsorship in the international STEM competition for science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Fifteen Greek students achieved an important achievement by winning first place in the annual Made to Move Communities student competition. The students of the 1st High School of Heraklion Attica were among more than 240 students from 30 teams from 15 countries and territories who participated this year in the Made to Move Communities Challenge. They competed in the European, Middle East, and African regions with a task that focused on helping people with disabilities.
The subject of this year's competition was "Expanding access to green spaces to promote well-being for all."
During the eight-week challenge, students identified ways to create safer access to nearby green spaces for people living with disabilities or in underserved areas of cities. The teams then presented their science-based (STEM-based) proposals to a panel of Otis judges, who selected the winners and awarded financial prizes to their respective schools to promote STEM programming and benefit even more students.
The inventive students of the 1st High School of Heraklion Attica, with the assistance of two of their teachers and under the guidance of four Otis mentors, created a Smart Walking Cane which offers sensory information to people with vision difficulties so that they can navigate green spaces. In order to collect the necessary information, the group of students collaborated with the organisation "Me Alla Matia" to promote diversity and inclusion among employees and customers and, in general, to raise awareness throughout the country.
Students first identified the needs and issues of visually impaired people to provide the most effective solution. They then developed innovative science-based solutions, which they believe can remove some barriers to real-world mobility issues.
The judges highly appreciated the smart cane's concept and implementation, concluding that it significantly improves access and navigation conditions for visually impaired people in green spaces.
The award also includes a $20,000 STEM grant, which the school can use for new lab equipment and leading science, technology, engineering and math initiatives.
"This is a public school, and resources are always needed. Thanks to Otis and the strong student performance, we will be able to improve our science lab and organise educational activities to promote STEM. At the same time, we plan to support teachers through training programs to continue to promote STEM in the future," said the director of the 1st High School of Heraklion Attica, Zoe Serefoglou.
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