It was two very exciting & hectic days at the Geolab 2023 – Inter School Earth Science contest organized by CERG (Centre for Education and Research in Geosciences) Pune and International Institute of Information Technology (I²IT), Hinjewadi, Pune 411057 in association with the Krishnanunni Memorial Charitable Trust.
What a contest it was!! Extremely busy, exciting and a great learning event. The contest was indeed a phenomenal success, with more than 60 bright minds actively and enthusiastically participating in the contest.
More than 200 students from different schools, and many parents and teachers visited the exhibition. With the theme ‘Earth Science : Exploring our planet, empowering our future” the event was aimed at people from all walks of life. Our focus was of course on the young students from different schools and colleges. Another small yet significant step in our endeavor to build awareness about the importance of Earth Science and its influence on Society.
2023 year’s theme - “Earth Science - Exploring our Planet, Empowering our Future" highlighted the significance of Earth science in achieving the goal of understanding and preserving our planet while also creating a better future for humanity. It emphasized the vital role of Earth science in our quest to comprehend and safeguard our planet while working towards a better future for humanity.
The main objective of Geolab is to create awareness on how Earth Science has changed our lives and motivate students to think of our planet. The common man has been largely unaware of Earth Sciences and about how it plays a role in our daily lives. Unfortunately, our educational system has also largely ignored Earth Sciences and its importance.
Geolab 2023 received a very enthusiastic response from the young school students. Several students such as St. Mary’s School, Bishops Co-Ed School, St. Vincents School, St. Felix School, Gurukul Vidyamandir, etc participated in the contest. The participants had prepared models and explanation charts.
The exhibits covered a variety of topics under the theme and ranged from some very relevant topics like Global Warming, and Hydrogen powering battery for Vehicles to Kinzoku the plastic Eater. Other projects revolved around the environment & sustainability - Smart Link - A Hydraulic bridge, Renewable resources, Global warming, Land Slides and their mitigation, El Nino, Bubble Barrier, Rocket launching system, etc. Highly competitive and motivated, the youngsters fought to the finish.
Bubble Barrier and Kinzoku focussed on river pollution, a dumping ground of plastic. The projects detailed the process of plastic collection, shredding and recycling. Smart Forest, another interesting project focussed on clean and neutral energy, a sustainable way of life. Through a model, the students of Bishop’s school explained the Centrifugal Rocket Launching system; a futuristic way of launching the rockets, as it minimises the pollution and saves fuel.
The event was inaugurated by Prof. Ravindrasing Pardeshi, former Principal of Fergusson College, Pune. The project competition was judged by the Chief Guest, Prof Ravindrasingh Pardeshi, Prof Sandeep Patil & Prof. Anjali Jagtap. It is worth mentioning that all the judges were highly impressed with the projects and the depth of knowledge of the students.
Janhavi Dethe was recognized for her enthusiasm and creativity in the individual category. A special appreciation award was given to the "Pavement Water Conservator" project team from G.K. Gurukul School, consisting of Atharva Jawale, Nirav Sonawane, Vikrant Rathod, and Tanvi Lod.
The runner-up award went to the "Bubble Barrier" project team from St. Mary's High School, consisting of Avia Meher, Alika Parmar, and Aisha Oswal.
The winner of the competition was the "Kinzoku" project team from St. Mary's High School, consisting of Navya Kumar, Paanya Pavaki, Riya Sherlekar, and Aahana Chhabria.
The prizes are presented by Prof. Sandip Patil, Prof. Rajesh Chowdary, and the Prof. Vaishali Patil, the Principal of International Institute of Information Technology (I²IT).
Just as in many of our earlier events, Geolab 2023 was turned into reality by a group of diligent volunteers from I2IT and CERG, who worked hard over the last few weeks to ensure its success. The program managers for this event were Aishwarya Ghole from CERG and Harshvardhan More from I2IT.
We now eagerly await the next year’s event.
