Bundaberg Region students have developed, refined and pitched their original ideas to compete in this year’s Mayor’s Telstra Innovation Awards.
Students from across the region were invited to participate in a two day incubator session, presented by Young Change Agents recently.
They pitched their projects to a panel of judges in front of an audience of supporters, businesses and the residents of Bundaberg.
The winning team was Micah Ephraims and Bailey Hunt from Kepnock State High School for their ‘SideQuest’ initiative.
SideQuest is a private social coordination platform that helps groups of friends organise activities, confirm attendance and share photos from their experiences in one place.
The duo was inspired to create the website as a way of reconnecting people post-Covid and said the project encouraged real-world social connection.
Second place was awarded to Bundaberg State High School students Simrat Sidhu, Rori Steel and Charlie Sell for Drink Smart.
Their idea included a smart straw link to an app that analyses beverages for signs of drink spiking, helping users stay safe and informed.
Mayor Helen Blackburn said she was impressed by the breadth of ideas presented by all the students at the pitch night.
“The Mayor’s Telstra Innovation Awards are a wonderful opportunity for young people in our region to develop critical thinking and problem solving skills,” Mayor Blackburn said.
“Through the intensive incubator sessions, the students learnt how to develop and apply this thinking to solutions for real world issues they care about.”
