We were quite unexpectedly surprised by the activity of secondary vocational and industrial schools. Their suggestions were among the most thoughtful and immediately applicable. And that while taking into account the specifics of the Ústí Region. After all, this also applies to the other finalists, who successfully focused on specific problems in their surroundings and proposed convincing solutions." Soňa Kritzlerová, judge and representative of the Swiss Embassy, which announced the competition, comments on the results. Three representatives in each age category received material and valuable prizes from the announcer, the Nestlé company, the Municipality of Ústí nad Labem or the Innovation Center of the Ústí Region.
The competition focused on topics falling within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Pupils and students focused on clean water and hygiene, climate measures or clean energy or innovation in infrastructure. The jury, which also included a representative of the Faculty of Natural Sciences of JE Purkyně University, appreciated that practically all submitted works were based on the local or regional conditions of the Ústí Region and its cities and towns. It was the contestants' sensitivity to their surroundings that was one of the evaluation criteria.
It was a very pleasant surprise that schools outside Ústí nad Labem also participated in the open call. Very high-quality contributions came from Teplice, Litvínov or Bohosudov u Krupka. The jury highlighted the great activity of classroom teachers, school management and their founders. Also thanks to their leadership, the work was very balanced and every point was decisive in the evaluation.
In the category Elementary schools 3rd place was taken by Tomáš Do from the Basic School with extended teaching of informatics and computer technology. He looked at the topic of clean water and hygiene in a wider social context. He worked exemplarily with data sources, and his work had a clear structure: from description, through analysis, to solution design, in which professional terms such as blue-green infrastructure, reverse osmosis and UV disinfection appear.
The first two places were taken by Elementary School Buzulucká in Teplice. Pupils from class 4.B decided to respond to the problem of overproduction of plastic waste with a happening - an installation in a public space. A plastic millipede would be an art artifact. The jury liked the fact that the children would assemble it from the waste they collect themselves.
The winner in its category was the team 9.A. Pupils designed a new look for the Teplice forest park. The jury was interested in a local and obviously acute topic, for which the students found an effective and feasible solution. They described their plan clearly and convincingly. In this regard, they demonstrated what a responsible and sustainable solution means.
In the category of multi-year gymnasiums and secondary schools, there was an unexpected participation of the Secondary Technical School of Construction and the Secondary Vocational School of Construction and Technology in Ústí nad Labem. "Their contributions proved that vocational education can create a number of new layers that extend into other specializations and fields of general education. The contributions from this school literally took our breath away and we consider them to be a great business card of the school, the students themselves and their fields of study." notes Soňa Kritzlerová.
1st year - the Carpenter major from the mentioned school in Ústí focused on the area of affordable and clean energy. He brilliantly mapped out the possibilities offered by sloping roof surfaces in the city. He suggested equipping those, where possible, with photovoltaic panels. And thereby achieve that Ústí nad Labem and other regional cities are more energy self-sufficient, economical and sustainable. He earned the 3rd place with a comprehensive approach that included the area of measurement and feedback, energy storage with an overlap into the local distribution network and, last but not least, the important issue of public support - subsidies.
2nd place was taken by 1st-year students from the same school - Bricklayer major. The clearly negotiated proposal suggests diverting part of the rainwater - at least in housing estates - to polders and lakes. The authors very correctly understood the key role of the microclimate in the city - especially during the period of adaptation to climate change, when average temperatures rise and precipitation totals fall. The jury was impressed by the extension into leisure activities and landscape ecology, when the motive of cooperation of such a solution with urban greenery was convincingly described.
The winners were Adam Hadraba and Adéla Jírová from the Bishop's High School in Bohosudov. The jury agreed that their proposal of responsible consumption and production transferred to the area of Fair trade and local food is very well understood. The authors found out the necessary facts, proposed a solution and kept in mind the feasibility and sustainability of the entire project. Interest was also expressed by a questionnaire, for which they managed to get 250 respondents! The proposed activity aimed at educating the next generation is great. The jury recommended the authors to try a grant contribution in the region, as the topic fits exactly into the transformation of the entire region.
/source: Swiss Embassy in the Czech Republic, Press release dated 16/05/2023
