Galaxy International School wins 2 awards at Olympiad
Three students of the Galaxy International School have been awarded medals for securing top spots at this year’s International Greenwich Olympiad (IGO), a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) competition in the United Kingdom.
Two of the students, Silver Ahmet Yusuf Balci and Arnorld Edem Pardie – who teamed up for an engineering project – won silver medals while Mataya Nana Awoa Aseda Opoku won a bronze medal for a project in the field of arts.
Balci and Pardie’s presentation developed a cutting-edge AI-based smart dustbin capable of classifying over 100 types of waste using a camera system and machine learning model (YOLOv5), coupled with an Arduino-controlled sorting mechanism.
Opoku, on the other hand, presented to the judges an environmental art piece with a passionate plea against elephant poaching in African countries and the devastating impact it has on global ecosystems.
Titled: “Let Them Live”, the artwork was displayed on a bamboo tree canvas, symbolising both the fragility and resilience of nature.
Competition
The IGO is an annual project competition for students aged 10-18 to share ideas, build connections and contribute to a more sustainable future.
Organised by North London Grammar School in London, the Olympiad is aimed at fostering innovation, creativity and collaboration among young minds, focusing on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The competition features various categories such as science, engineering, social sciences and the arts, and culminates in an exhibition where students present their projects.
The contest brought together over 520 students representing 52 countries and featured 322 innovative projects spanning science, engineering and the arts.
Beyond the academic challenge, the students had the chance to immerse themselves in British history and culture, visiting major landmarks including the London Eye, British Museum, Oxford colleges, and even the Sherlock Holmes Museum.
During the event’s Cultural Night, Galaxy International School represented Ghanaian heritage through a captivating stage performance and traditional attire, sharing handmade gifts and forging bonds with students from across the world.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic shortly after touching down at the Kotoka International Airport last Sunday, June 29, Pardie described the competition and its experience as fun, saying it allowed them to explore insights into finding practical solutions for a sustainable future.
On plans for the future after winning the awards, he said his team would sit down to consider what to do next, with a possibility of replicating the project for the Ghanaian market.
For her part, Balci said the idea was born out of a survey conducted among their schoolmates, which revealed that 80 per cent of students frequently use plastic, but only half dispose of it responsibly.
Opoku, on the other hand, called on the public to desist from killing wild animals and protect some of the animals that were almost extinct.
