Samsung Announces 2021 Solve For Tomorrow Competition Winners

NEW ZEALAND – 24 November 2021 – Drew Kenny and Harrison Maxwell have today been crowned co-winners of Samsung’s first ever New Zealand Solve for Tomorrow competition.

Delivered in partnership with MOTAT, Solve for Tomorrow is a celebration of young people using design thinking and STEAM to innovate and solve issues in their communities – helping to change the world for good.

The judges, led by 2020 New Zealander of the Year, Associate Professor Siouxsie Wiles, along with Julie Baker from MOTAT and Simon Smith from Samsung, simply couldn’t part the two winners.

"We were so incredibly impressed with the calibre of entries, innovation and level of problem solving by our next generation. We think we'll be in good hands!" said Siouxsie Wiles.

Year 10 Rangitoto College student Harrison Maxwell created ‘Beautify the Berms’, an inspiring video presentation that demonstrated how local councils can better use roadside berms to not only create beautiful fauna but build new ecosystems for essential wildlife.

And matching that brilliance, Drew Kenny, a Year 7 student from Tauranga Intermediate School, created the world’s first ‘Parkinson’s Belt’ – a belt she designed and prototyped with a range of accessibility features to help support those suffering from Parkinson's disease, including quick access to medication, water, and their support alarm.

“There was no way to separate them. We were wowed by Harrison’s initiative to get direct feedback from over 950 members of his community to identify the issue, and then continuing that intuitive, feedback-led approach path by consulting an expert on sustainable plants to refine his solution. And aside from creating a successful prototype, we were so impressed by Drew’s design process, creating multiple prototypes and building on each concept through testing and direct feedback from those suffering with Parkinson's disease,” Siouxsie said.

President of Samsung Electronics New Zealand, Minsu Chu, said Samsung received many amazing entries from students across the country, and that it was hugely encouraging to see the level of talent shining through.

“Solve for Tomorrow challenges students to create high-impact, functional solutions that utilise technology and STEAM principles to help solve societal issues. Ingenuity and innovation are well-known Kiwi traits, but it has still been incredible to see students not only embrace the challenge but deliver such thoughtful and creative solutions.”

The winners will share $20,000NZD in prizes, including prize money and Samsung tech for them and their schools.

MOTAT Education Manager, Julie Baker said that it was particularly impressive to see the range of real-world problems identified by students, and that the innovative solutions developed speak to an emerging generation of creative thinkers and problem solvers.

“As challenging as it was to narrow down a winner, we really enjoyed the judging process and I know the team together with Samsung, has a lot of ideas for enhancing and taking the competition forward when it returns in 2022.”

To find out more about the Solve for Tomorrow competition and its inaugural winners, visit: www.samsung.com/nz/solvefortomorrow

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.com

About Solve for Tomorrow

Delivered in partnership with the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT), the Solve for Tomorrow competition is designed to build interest and proficiency in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics). In the competition’s first year, students were tasked to identify and create a solution for an issue important to them and their community, which were then judged on creativity and originality, relevance to the community, feasibility of the solution, presentation, and application of STEAM.

Launched in the US in 2010, the competition has been hugely influential internationally, with more than 1.7 million students and teachers participating across 20 countries. Read more about the competition here.

About the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT)

MOTAT seeks to use the past, present and future technology and ingenuity of Aotearoa to educate and inspire the innovators of tomorrow. MOTAT provides multi-platform learning opportunities, offering STEAM Cells programmes in schools, onsite education programmes at the Museum, micro-credentials and online workshops direct to the classroom. Experience interactive learning and exploration through exhibitions, events and education programmes. Visit MOTAT.NZ

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