The kids are alright
It’s all a bit silly season here at Terra Infirma Towers at the minute – the usual series of holidays with sudden intense bursts of work in between, so service on the blog may be somewhat erratic until September. But, anyway…
Yesterday I was judging the entries for the Dott 07 Schools Eco-design Challenge. Schools from across the North East of England were invited to measure the ecological footprint of their school day and develop design solutions. Last year Terra Infirma provided technical support in the development of the teaching materials for the project and trained about 55 teachers in eco-design techniques, so it was great to go back and see the results of our efforts.
About 36 entries had made it through the initial screening and they ranged from an Eden-style bubble classroom to funky light switch covers to remind people to switch out the lights. I was particularly impressed with the toothbrush that stored water so you don’t have to keep turning on the tap to rinse it, but simply squirted water through the bristles. The amount of work that had gone in across the board was astounding – the teams of pupils submitted photos, diagrams, models and even videos of their designs. I wonder if any of these kids will be inspired to become the eco-innovators of the future – I certainly hope so.