POST-SECONDARY school students from across the region had the opportunity to put their engineering and business skills to the test when the UNDP/SIDS DOCK support programme, in conjunction with the OECS Commission and the Caribbean Science Foundation, launched the first ever Caribbean Energy Efficiency Lighting Project (CEELP) Competition.
The three teams who progressed to the final round had the opportunity on Monday to present their lamps, which they designed and produced, to a panel of judges. In a keenly contested competition, two teams from the Barbados Community College and one from the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College in St. Christopher and Nevis made presentations to a mixed panel of judges, some regional and others joining via live stream, one from Australia.
Teams demonstrated how their lamps work, detailed their construction and outlined the commercial viability. They further discussed how the lamps can be marketed and fielded questions from the panel. All teams were assessed on their presentations, functionality of the lamp, energy efficiency considerations, appearance and commercial viability, originality and use of materials and safety.
The winning group, Celestial Glow of the Barbados Community College, received Mac computer systems, financial support to develop their products further and a grant to support or develop renewable energy and energy efficiency programmes in their respective institutions, totalling US$7,500. Celestial Glow will also attend an international lighting conference.
Project Coordinator for CEELP, Jason LaCorbiniere said he was impressed with the quality of the submissions from across the region, adding: “This is the first competition of its type in the region and the submissions we received exceeded our expectations. We think that this event has enormous potential to inspire students to think creatively about energy efficiency and how it can be integrated in various aspects of our lives.”
The CEELP team has congratulated the winning team and said it will continue to support them in the development of an energy efficient, commercially viable desk lamp.
CEELP is a UNDP/SIDS DOCK Support Programme project designed to assist Barbados and the OECS territories in removing the policy, capacity and investment barriers to EE lighting. These goals are expected to be achieved through pilot demonstrations and training; regulatory assessment and policy development support; and support for de-risking and EE financial network development.