For eight years in a row, HK Electric's "Green Energy Dreams Come True" competition has been encouraging students to help combat climate change with innovative green energy solutions. More than 100 green energy dreams from secondary and tertiary students were inspired to promote energy efficiency, renewable energy and low-carbon lifestyle on campus and in the community.
First-time participant, Cognitio College (Hong Kong), won the championship in the "Green Energy Dreams Come True Competition 2021/22" for secondary schools. While the competition was postponed due to the pandemic and school suspension, this group of young inventors overcame challenges on all fronts to make their green dreams come true.
HK Electric's General Manager (Corporate Development), Mr. Bill Ho, said at the presentation ceremony held earlier on that he was pleased to see the outcome of this year's competition.
"Since its launch in 2015, the 'Green Energy Dreams Come True' Competition has been committed to motivating young people to develop and promote innovative projects that bring about environmental and social impacts.
"We provide seed money for short-listed teams and pair them with our engineers to give technical advice in realising their dreams," he added.
The winning project from Cognitio College (Hong Kong) utilised solar energy to power up the intelligent conditioning system of the school's greenhouse and the mosquito repellent and sprinkler system at the school's garden.
A member of the winning team, Ms. Janice Cheng Ho-yiu, explained: "The competition not only prompted us to make our campus greener but also facilitated us to learn from other schools through experience sharing and exchanging ideas."
The first runner-up was Cotton Spinners Association Secondary School, who developed a collection of kinetic energy toys to introduce the various types of green energy. St. Paul's Secondary School came third with a movie trailer illustrating the differences between a world with and without renewable energy to remind people to use energy wisely and care for our planet (see below table for other winning projects). Some of these outstanding ideas, together with those from the tertiary category, will be put on public display next year to further promote decarbonisation.
In the new school year, 11 tertiary and seven secondary school proposals were selected for funding, covering areas like renewable energy, green buildings, sustainability, smart city and decarbonisation technologies. For the list of 2022/23 funded projects, please click here.
Many of these projects were creative and timely, such as a mask-recycling project, the production of decarbonisation drones, seawater generators, solar-powered car sunshade systems, etc. Each team will receive seed money of up to HK$50,000 to develop their ideas.
"We are delighted to see so many youngsters eager to contribute to decarbonisation. We hope to empower them in turning their ideas into achievements through funding and technical support. We look forward to seeing more dream projects shine in the coming year," Mr. Ho said.
Apart from supporting secondary and tertiary students to chase their dreams, HK Electric also offered a one-off "Happy Green School Seed Funding" of HK$10,000 to 16 primary schools or special schools in the new school year to organise activities related to decarbonisation and STEAM. For the list of 2022/23 funded projects, please click here.
The Happy Green Campaign has been an anchor event under HK Electric's Education Fund, which aims at promoting energy efficiency and conservation, renewable energy and low carbon lifestyle to the public and the younger generation.
In the past year, the campaign continued to highlight decarbonisation as a new mission for all and engaged over 80,000 people via various activities online and offline, with the Happy Green School Network expanded to include more than 540 schools throughout the territory. For more about the campaign and its activities, simply visit HK Electric's website www.hkelectric.com/happygreencampaign, and the campaign Facebook www.facebook.com/hkelectrichappygreencampaign or call 3143 3727.
Winning teams of "Green Energy Dreams Come True 2021/22" Competition (Secondary School Category)
Awards | School | Project Title & Description |
|---|
Champion | Cognitio College (Hong Kong) | Smart and Green Generation Utilise solar energy to power up the smart conditioning system of the school's greenhouse and the mosquito repellent and sprinkler system in the school's garden.   |
1st Runner-up | Cotton Spinners Association Secondary School | Energy Play Produce different energy devices to facilitate students and the public to appreciate the importance of green energy.   |
2nd Runner-up | St. Paul's Secondary School | Green Today, Green Tomorrow Create an animation to illustrate the differences of a world with and without using renewable energy and highlight the importance of energy efficiency.  |
Merit | Christian Alliance SW Chan Memorial College | Save the World with Hydrogen Island Explore the feasibility of building an artificial island in Hong Kong for developing renewable energy and storing hydrogen.  |
| Caritas Wu Cheng-chung Secondary School | Solar-powered Hydroponics System Develop a hydroponics system leveraging the concepts of environmental protection, waste utilisation, technology and nature.  |
| Confucian Tai Shing Ho Kwok Pui Chun College | Energy Saving in Electricity Generation Develop a new method to lower building temperature, reduce energy consumption of air-conditioning system and convert the heat from the sun into electricity.  |