When it comes to merging technology with environmental science, Waiakea High School students are at the forefront.
A class of about 20 Advanced Placement Environmental Science students produced a video showcasing their conceptual product, a sustainable sunscreen made from recycled sugar cane that uses materials from Hawaii and protects coral reefs from bleaching.
The presentation won the students top prize at the 13th statewide Solve for Tomorrow STEM competition, including $12,000 in technology equipment and school supplies, along with an opportunity to compete at the national level.
“This product started out as an assignment for our environmental science class as a way for Hawaii to be more sustainable,” said Maya Polloi, a member of the winning team. “We did some research and found that there is a compound in sugar cane that can be used as a UV protectant.”
After conducting research on squalane, a saturated oil found in sugar cane that offers UV protection, the students set off to share their results by producing a video.
“We’re not traditionally digital media people, we’re mainly environmental- and scientific-focused,” Polloi said. “It’s been a process figuring out filming and planning, what the best ways are to showcase our product and its impact on our environment digitally. My favorite part has been the whole story telling aspect of it, being able to tell how our coral here in Hawaii and our natural environment has been affected.”
Environmental science teacher Whitney Aragaki supported the students, and after nearly a decade of competing, Waiakea took home its first win in the competition.
The group will move on and submit a final presentation, where 10 national finalists will be selected.
“If the students make it out of this round, they get to fly to New York and present their projects in-person to the Samsung personnel and judging panel,” Aragaki said. “Our deadline is April 5 and it’ll be a push to the finish, but we’re really excited about it.”
If Waiakea High School places in the top three, they will receive $100,000 in prize packages including Samsung technology and classroom supplies.
“This is definitely the education for a needed future,” Aragaki said of the competition’s focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM education. “Sometimes we think of tech as isolated from conservation or sustainability, but Samsung has really been showing they care about our local communities, indigenous knowledge and conservation.”
The competition was open to students in grades 6-12, and Waiakea High School was selected out of over 300 groups throughout the country.
“Some of the students’ STEM solutions have continued to thrive long past the competition and benefited local communities,” said Samsung’s Senior Director of Corporate Citizenship Ann Woo. “Students are engaging their local boards of education, city council, and government agencies to shed light on community issues and possible solutions – and as a result of competition exposure, some students are getting added funding for implementing a broader STEM curriculum at their schools.”
The Waiakea students have been filming new videos at local beaches, botanical gardens and other Big Island locations to prepare for their final submission.
“Our project is nature based, so we’re trying to focus on how sunscreen impacts the ecosystem around us,” said Waiakea student Alexander Tuson, adding the group is utilizing their new Samsung laptops, cameras, microphones and phones to finish the video. “It’s a learning curve, but it’s fun, we’re figuring it out and it’s really useful to have all this new technology to help.”
Both Tuson and Polloi are excited to participate at the national level and learn new ways to share their scientific research with the community.
“People on the continent might not know a lot about Hawaii and our environmental issues, but they’re very important even if they’re far away,” Polloi said. “I’m just very excited, even if we don’t win, to be able to bring that awareness from our home to them.”
Email Grant Phillips at gphillips@hawaiitribune-herald.com