William Kamkwamba, a globally recognised innovator whose life story served as inspiration for the well-liked Netflix miniseries The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, recently spoke to students from a variety of Delhi NCR schools at the Shiv Nadar School campuses in Noida, Faridabad, and Gurugram, announced the Shiv Nadar School today, May 10, via a press release.
According to a press release by the foundation, Kamkwamba was invited to attend the STEAM Conclave with the theme Innovate To Sustain: Green Energy, Essential For Earth's Tomorrow as the chief guest.
Kamkwamba is an author, engineer, and inventor from Malawi. He rose to fame in 2001 when he used bicycle parts, blue gum trees, and materials gathered from a scrapyard to build a wind turbine that would power several electrical appliances in his family's house. This was an example of his inventiveness and self-education.
In his address, he gave students priceless advice on how to create an environment in schools that fosters students' abilities and capabilities, according to the press release.
Further, he spoke about STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) and shed light on practical projects that supported Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 7, ensuring that everyone has access to affordable, dependable, and sustainable energy.
The conclave consisted of student paper presentations from Shiv Nadar School and other schools, followed by a panel discussion.
In the presence of chief guests William Kamkwamba, Dr Nitendra Singh, President Indian Youth Nuclear Society (IYNS), Nuclear Safety and Design Engineer IREF France, and Dr Sandeep Chatterjee, Senior Director, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, students demonstrated various STEAM projects at the conclave, showcasing their responsibility towards the environment.
The first runner-up project, Flowing Water Energy Plant from Shiv Nadar School, Faridabad, and the second runner-up project, Pots Made of Cow Dung and Fly Ash from Shiv Nadar School, Gurugram, were the winners of the pitch presentation. Project Urja from Shiv Nadar School, Noida, took first place.
"In order to deal with climate change issues, we need to work together. It's not going to take just one solution; it will take several solutions,” Kamkwamba said in his address.
"Working with younger people in schools is a great starting point because if we instill the idea in their minds that they can be part of solving climate change issues, they will grow up knowing they can have an everlasting impact on the world. Training young people will also empower them to educate future generations,” he added.
