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27 March 2023 | YESC

YESC’s Regional Celebration of STEM

Around 80 young people from both primary and secondary schools across Dundee, Fife, Angus and Perth & Kinross gathered at Dundee Science Centre to take part in SCDI’s Young Engineers and Science Clubs (YESC) Regional Celebration of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) in partnership with SHELL U.K. Limited.

The event included a STEM challenge competition, with industry volunteers and partners each providing a five-minute, hands-on challenge focusing on teamwork and problem solving. The challenge doubles up as an opportunity to provide the young people with an insight into the different career paths available in the STEM industry. The STEM Challenge winner was Canmore Primary and runner-up was Newport Primary.

Schools also showcased their entries into our ‘Climate Smarter’ project to design their schools of the future. The teams all received resource kits and training and then undertook a series of experiments around energy sources, sustainable water use, sustainable materials, energy storage and ‘smart’ technologies, combining them into fantastic tabletop models. Our judges spoke to the young people and were taken on a tour of their models. The Climate Smarter Primary winner was St Joseph’s RC Primary and the runner-up was Lumphinnans Primary.

The ‘Carbon Capture and Storage’ project took the students on a learning journey through the exciting world of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). The project covers a variety of different aspects of CCS, including experiments from how to design and build a carbon dioxide storage facility to investigating carbon dioxide storage and transport and the role CCS plays in the wider global energy challenge. The Carbon Capture and Storage winner was Newport Primary and the runner-up was St Ninian’s Primary.

Schools presented a wide range of their STEM projects to win the ‘Club of the Year’ titles (primary and secondary). The 2023 Regional Club of the Year titles were awarded to St Paul’s RC Academy and St Ninian’s Primary.

Head of YESC, Thomas Wild stated: “What a fantastic event we had! It was truly amazing to see young people meet and be inspired by industry leaders, while showcasing and celebrating an amazing range of science. We have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from both pupils and teachers alike. It is clear that there is a strong desire for more opportunities like this outside of the classroom. These events are crucial for bridging the STEM skills gap and encouraging underrepresented audiences to pursue careers in STEM. We are extremely grateful to our event partner, Shell U.K.Limited, as well as the volunteers from our other partners for their invaluable support.”

Mairi McKay, Social Investment Advisor for Shell UK, said ‘We believe the ingenuity of young people is important for a successful energy transition, so we are delighted to be working with the SCDI’s Young Engineers and Science Clubs.

We hope taking part in events like these will encourage pupils to engage in STEM subjects and pursue careers in engineering.’

STEM Challenge Winner – Canmore Primary, Fife

STEM Challenge Runner-up – Newport Primary, Fife

Climate Smarter Winner – St Joseph’s RC Primary, Fife

Climate Smarter Runner-up – Lumphinnans Primary, Fife

Carbon Capture & Storage Winner – Newport Primary, Fife

Carbon Capture & Storage Runner-up – St Ninian’s Primary, Fife

Primary Regional Club of the Year Winner – St Ninian’s Primary, Fife

Highly Commended Secondary Club – Queen Anne High School, Fife

Secondary Regional Club of the Year Winner – St Paul’s RC Academy, Dundee