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Fairchild Challenge at Phipps: Challenge #3 Winners Announced!
Thank you to the many schools that submitted entries for Challenge #3! These challenges were titled “Enviro-Engineers” for middle school and “Sustainably Savvy” for high school students. Entries for “Sustainably Savvy” were considered for the Patti Burns Prize for Excellence in Communication and Media.
Middle School
Nature has been inspiring our inventions for hundreds of years, whether it be Velcro, airplanes, waterproof paints or even the structure of the glass ceilings at Phipps Conservatory! Middle school students were challenged to design an invention that was inspired by nature and explain its purpose. They submitted labeled blueprints of their original inventions that show what they look like and how it works. Students also submitted a description about how the invention’s design was inspired by something in nature. We were thoroughly impressed with their thoughtful and elegant designs!
First Place: Archangel Gabriel; Adelina Vattimo and Leo Beadling
Adelina’s Nature Frequencies Machine was designed to help people with sensory processing issues and was inspired by the many sounds of nature, including thunderstorms and the ocean.
Leo’s Water Poncho was inspired by the thorny devil lizard and was designed to keep hikers dry during the rain while also storing and filtering the rainwater to used as drinking water.
Second Place: Pine-Richland Middle School; Jack Beatty, Devin Garcia, Cameron Wincko, Logan Beck, Katelyn Beatty and Haniya Jameio
Katelyn and Haniya’s solar-powered Serpent Seeder was designed to reseed forests with minimal disruption to the ecosystem and was inspired by animals’ role in seed dispersal.
Jack, Devin, Cameron and Logan’s Rivulus Gill-o-Breath artificial water breather was designed to help people breathe under water and was inspired by fish gills.
Third Place: Avonworth Middle School; Lyla Sebeck, Lyra Klinedinst, Elena van Mater and Phoebe MacKillop
Lyla’s LumGlow technology was designed to combat fast fashion by creating clothing that changes colors to reflect emotions. It was inspired by color-changing chameleons and bioluminescent creatures.
Lyra, Elena and Phoebe’s security system was designed to protect valuables at night while eliminating the need to manually lock everything and was inspired by the sensitive plant and flower buds.
Special Merit: Freeport Area Middle School; Caty Deacon, Natalie Wallisch, Emma Charlton, Mackenna Dorian and Mackenzie Miller
Caty and Natalie’s Bioluminescent Fish Tank was designed to provide a dazzling, fish-safe light show in home aquariums and was inspired by the bioluminescence of dinoflagellates.
Emma, Mackenna and Mackenzie’s MEM Blocks are magnetic building blocks that can change colors and patterns to reduce plastic waste. They were inspired by the Northern Lights.
Special Merit: North Hills Middle School; Niamh Greer, Autumn Mandell, Keelin McKiernan, Adelaide Seigworth and Ellie Kim
Niamh, Autumn, Keelin, Adelaide and Ellie’s Bio-Light was inspired by lightning bugs and was designed to be an efficient, economical and eco-safe alternative to a traditional street lamp.
High School
High school students were challenged to research climate change and/or conservation solutions that young people can do to make a difference and make a series of short videos explaining at least three of their favorite sustainable actions. The environment is constantly impacted by the actions of people in many ways: pollution, resource consumption, habitat loss, climate change, the list goes on. All of these environmental problems can feel overwhelming, but there is a lot that you can do to help save the planet, and these videos aimed to show us how!
Congratulations to Mirae Choe and Michelle Hwang, twelfth graders from North Allegheny Senior High School, for their fantastic winning entry for “Sustainably Savvy.” These students will be awarded the annual Patti Burns Prize for Excellence in Communication and Media and will receive funding for environmental and sustainability initiatives. Michelle and Mirae have big plans for a project to fund with their prize money and we’re excited to see it in action! You can watch their video here.
We would like to give a special shout out to our incredible panelists: Phipps staff MaryLou Linton-Morningstar; CMU PhD students and candidates: Nihar Pathak, Bobuchi Ken-Opurum, and Lipika Swarup; Phipps volunteer Anne Moy; and activists from the YOUNGO ACE Working Group: Nelson Usiri, Pooja Tilvawala and Julia Sydik. Thank you all for lending us your time and expertise!
Have questions? Contact Jennifer Torrance at jtorrance@phipps.conservatory.org or 412/622-6915, ext. 3230.
Developed by the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami, Fl., and adopted by Phipps as a satellite partner in 2008, The Fairchild Challenge offers a menu of interdisciplinary challenges for grades K-5, 6-8 and 9-12, attracting students of diverse interests, abilities, talents and backgrounds. The Challenge empowers young people to engage in civic life and encourages them to become energetic and knowledgeable members of their communities.
