A team of eco-conscious students from Northampton College are celebrating after landing first-prize in the Green Future Challenge – a competition challenging students to come up with innovative new ways of helping the planet.
Held at Milton Keynes College to mark Earth Day and the Association of Colleges’ National Green Week campaign, the Northampton pair of Olga Melenciuc and Aleda Sarbay presented their project to the panel of expert judges.
The girls outlined a project tackling traffic-related air pollution around schools and colleges in Northampton - an issue that quietly affects thousands of students, every single day.
Olga said: “We didn’t want to create just another idea, we wanted something real, so we designed a system that could actually change behaviour, with smart access zones, clean air corridors, live air-quality monitoring, and student-led action.
“I’m incredibly grateful for this experience and winning means a lot but it also made me realise that change begins with individuals who choose to care and choose to act.
“I hope that more people start paying attention to the world around them, that we stop seeing environmental issues as something “in the background”, and start recognising them as something deeply personal because the planet needs millions of people who care.”
The challenge was held as part of the ongoing South East Midlands Inter-College Competition (SEMICC) - an annual initiative where colleges in the region collaborate to host competitions, enabling students to showcase skills in business, enterprise, and sports coaching, often with industry-mentored, sustainability-focused, or "Dragons' Den" style challenges to enhance employability.
For more information about courses available at Northampton College from this September, visit www.northamptoncollege.ac.uk
