A team of three Omani students that came fourth at the Waste Not contest of the Actions for Earth – Global Youth Summit, held in Singapore last month, now plan to implement their idea in schools across Muscat.

 

The team had created a water cooler that runs on solar energy. The three students – ninth grader Ahmed al Subhi and tenth graders Khalid al Waleed al Barmani and Taif al Rahbiyya – reached the finals from among 400 students from schools across Asia in the contest, which is dedicated to environment preservation and energy-friendly projects.

 

The summit was held at the Science Centre Singapore from January 15 to 18 and discussed innovations for sustainable solutions to protect children, fresh water and the natural environment.

 

Fawziyya Dad-Mohammed al Balushi, educational researcher at the Ministry of Education, who was the team’s supervisor, said, “We are looking for sponsors who can provide us with solar cell devices needed for the water coolers. The students, selected for their excellent academic performance, particularly in the English language, participated with a project for manufacturing water coolers that work on solar energy for schools.”

 

“The idea came up while addressing the sultanate's hot climate, which leads to over consumption of electricity,” Khalid, one of the students said.

 

What makes the achievement even more special is that Oman was the only Arab country to participate in the edition. “We were the only students from Arab countries,” Khalid said.