Al Mawakeb Innovates 2023: A groundbreaking success in fostering innovation and sustainability among students

Al Mawakeb Al Khawaneej hosted the eagerly anticipated Al Mawakeb Innovates annual event at its school auditorium in March. This flagship competition, which showcased some of the brightest and most innovative young minds across all Al Mawakeb schools, was a resounding success, with 30 exceptional projects presented to an esteemed panel of judges.

Al Mawakeb Innovates is a groundbreaking initiative launched by Al Mawakeb Al Khawaneej in 2020 to elevate the traditional STEAM fair to new heights of impact, innovation, and vision.

Under the guidance of the school's leadership team, students are challenged to think beyond convention and routine and to focus on making a positive difference in their school, community, and the wider world.

The judges were impressed with the calibre of projects presented and faced the challenging task of selecting the winners. After careful evaluation, the following projects emerged as the winners of Al Mawakeb Innovates 2023:

• First place, with their 'Gem AI' project: Sami Chemali and Ahmad Hassan

• Second place, presenting their 'Smart Green House': Khalifa Al Suwaidi, Daoud Al Awadhi, and Hamad Al Awadhi

• Third place, for 'METAM': Adel El Mheiry, Amr Abu Najm, Hadi Alsabsabi, Rabab Helal, and Ghina Nahlawi

The panel of judges for Al Mawakeb Innovates 2023 included esteemed experts in a variety of fields, including Dr Marwan Al Zarooni, strategic advisor at Digital Dubai; Maitha Al Gergawi, projects manager at The Executive Council of Dubai; Dr Abdulla Al Shimmari, CEO of HCMS.ai; Eng. Reem Al Musabbeh, Energy Engineer and serial entrepreneur; Saeed Bin Faris Al Ketbi, manager awareness and education, IPR Department at Dubai Customs; Alia Al Qemzi, manager - future foresight technology at DEWA; and Muna Al Marzooqi, analyst at Mohammed Bin Rashid Funds for SME.

Al Zarouni acknowledged the potential of Al Mawakeb’s young individuals in coming up with innovative ideas related to various fields, such as sustainability, Web3, finance, and healthcare. He emphasised that the key to success lies in following up and executing these ideas.

Alissar Nasr, the CAO of AMS, shared: “I’m so proud of our students, their sense of adventure, their courage to speak out about their ideas, and their passion to pursue them. Every year, we come together to be blown away by the level of innovation our students have. With the support of Digital Dubai and cDubai Customs, we will continue to watch them draw inspiration from Dubai's vision, support them, guide them, and help them realise their dreams and their potential.”

The principals of the Al Mawakeb Schools honoured the winners and praised them for their outstanding efforts. The winners received cash prizes amounting to Dh20,000 from Dubai SME and were recognised by Dubai Customs on World Intellectual Property Day, April 26, in the presence of Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, director-general of Dubai Customs, and CEO of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation.

Samira Al Awadhi, principal of Al Mawakeb Al Khawaneej, concluded the event by thanking all our students who took part and presented their ingenious ideas. She, along with Omar Hatoum, principal of Al Mawakeb Al Garhoud, and Mousssa Chahbaz, principal of Al Mawakeb Al Barsha expressed her excitement at the prospect of seeing students on stage again next year; with their creativity and determination, they are sure to make a positive impact and inspire others to join them on their journey towards a better future.

• KT Network