Grand Challenge 2024: Towards Net Zero

In The Grand Challenge, students in Years 9 & 10 will spend a fast and fun day learning about a real-life global problem before ideating, developing and pitching their own solutions to their peers and STEM experts for a chance to win prizes. This event is powered by Future Anything and the Faculty of Science, University of Sydney, 

THE GRAND CHALLENGE 2024: TOWARDS NET ZEREO

Too much CO 2 in the atmosphere is warming the planet, which is contributing to climate change. To preserve the planet for ourselves and our future generations, we need to completely balance out the CO 2 that we produce – this is known as Net-Zero. The Net-Zero transition will be one of the largest technological revolutions ever carried out by humankind. A transition to Net-Zero means developing technologies that will remove CO 2 produced by us, as well as the generations before us, since the Industrial Revolution. We can also develop technologies to avoid emitting any future CO 2 , such as switching to renewable energy sources.

Expert speaker Dr Eleanor Kearns from the University of Sydney and Future Anything's inspiring workshop facilitators will help students unpack this critical issue and to create innovative, sustainable solutions. 

TICKETS & WHO SHOULD ATTEND

• The event is designed for school groups of students in Years 9 & 10 (Students may not attend individually)

* ICSEA stands for Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage. ICSEA is a scale which allows for fair and reasonable comparisons among schools with similar students. ICSEA provides an indication of the socio-educational backgrounds of students; it has nothing to do with the staff, school, facilities or teaching programs at the school. ICSEA isn’t a school rating. You can check your school's ICSEA Value at https://www.myschool.edu.au/

KEY TIMINGS:

• Arrival & registration: 8am - 8.30am
• Session 1: 8.45am - 10:45am - During this first session, students will engage with our lead facilitators and expert speaker on unpacking and understanding the "Grand Challenge". 
• Session 2: 11am - 1pm - In the second part of the day, students use design thinking methodology to ideate and prototype their own innovative, scalable and sustainable solutions that make the world a better place using The Entrepreneur's Odyssey.  
• Session 3: 2pm - 2:45pm - This session kicks off with students learning the art and science of the Elevator Pitch before The Grand Challenge culminates in teams of students 'elevator pitching' their innovative ideas to their peers and a panel of judges in an exciting mini-showcase.
• Event ends: 2.45pm
• Break times are subject to change. A detailed agenda will be shared with all registered schools closer to the time. 

VENUE & TRANSPORT:

The event takes place at the University of Sydney's Messel Lecture Theatre on level 3 of the Sydney NanoHub Building A31. See location on Google Maps here.  Participating schools are required to organise and manage their own transport requirements for students and supervising staff/parents attending the event. 

PERMISSIONS & SUPERVISION:

Each participating school should manage risk assessment & parent permissions according their own policies, and ensure a suitable level of staff supervision for their students attending the event. While participating teachers/parents will not be required to formally facilitate the sessions, their engagement in the activities will increase teachers’ skills and confidence in unlocking students’ enterprising mindsets in their classrooms. IMPORTANT: All students are required to have a caregiver complete Future Anything's Media Permission Form here.  Students without media permission WILL NOT be able to participate on the day. 

WHAT STUDENTS NEED TO BRING:

• Their own refillable water bottle
• Lunch, and morning/afternoon tea (if required) as no catering is provided.
• Students are required to wear their school uniform
• Completed Media Permission Form here (fillable PDF).
• A dash of enthusiasm, an open mind and a willingness to engage with others.

MEET THE EXPERT SPEAKER: Dr Eleanor Kearns
Eleanor completed her undergraduate and honours degree at the University of Auckland. She began her research focussing on self-assembling zwitterionic organic donor molecules for solar cells, before moving to the University of Sydney to complete her PhD research in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and their composite materials (awarded 2022). While completing her PhD Eleanor worked as an APR.Intern developing novel ways to 3D-print MOFs for carbon dioxide removal applications with Southern Green Gas, one of Australia’s first Direct Air Capture (DAC) companies. This work was awarded $250,000 USD from the Musk Foundation’s student XPrize competition in 2022. Eleanor has since been working as a Senior Research Officer at the University of Sydney designing new materials for DAC and creating new environmentally friendly green syntheses for MOFs.