Samsung Solve for Tomorrow
An Opportunity for a Community to Heal
Healing the community
In a small neighborhood in Brooklyn, there was a teddy bear hanging on a every
streetlamp. It was to remember a 13-year-old boy named Sammy who died in a car accident a few days
ago.
The community was in shock, grieving the loss. Unfortunately, hundreds of people are killed this way every year in New York. Two of Sammy's middle schools had died in a similar
accident.
Some looked to blame others, some wanted to simply forget, but Sammy’s friends, including Alison
could not sit still – they wanted to do something.
Smart alert app to protect pedestrian
When Alison first learned of Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition, she could
not help but think that something could be accomplished through the competition. Through
participating in the STEM curriculum offered by the program, Alison came up with the idea for moving
vehicle alert system for pedestrians and persuaded her friends to join.
While her friends were skeptical in the beginning, they slowly began to change their minds.
They devised a system that allowed a mobile app to recognize the sound and speed of the car and
alert the user, and to execute this idea, they went through multiple tests day and night, finally
coming up with a smart watch app.
Hoping to change the world
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition gave Alison and her friends a hope
that they could change the world. They were also reminded that it’s important to voice their thoughts.
“We just want people to be safe. There was nothing else to it.” This is what Alison and her
friends said when someone asked them what they wanted out of this app.
“It was one of those moments when we realized who we were, what we wanted, and what we wanted to do to contribute to the world,” they said.
A new perspective, seeking to help
When everyone was in sorrow after the accident, Alison and friends did not just
stay in sorrow. Even in their despair, they still looked for ways to make a difference and help
others.
Alison, her friends and their efforts were a great comfort to the small community in Brooklyn.
United States of America
