Samsung Solve for Tomorrow, an educational program that empowers students to find solutions for their communities with STEM knowledge, was held for the third time in Taiwan. Continuing the theme of ‘social and environmental sustainability’, Solve for Tomorrow brought together young students from all over the nation.

After a six-month process from brainstorming and building ideas, and training to creating actual prototypes of the imagined concept, eight outstanding teams were selected to present their ideas in the final competition. The shortlisted teams received educational and functional support from Samsung’s NGO partners and experts to optimize their proposals. Let’s see what their experience was like.

An abundance of resources

For the 16 teams that entered the semi-final round, Samsung provided an online course, Design Thinking Workshop, and 1-on-1 mentoring by NGO partners on a weekly basis. Boss Huang, a student from team Save the Earth, said, “I have participated in many competitions, but this was the first that provided a private mentoring course.”

Yun-Ting Chiu, a student from team Good Kids League, noted that the mentor-mentee sessions were extremely helpful. “At first, we thought that the course would only teach us technology-related knowledge such as how to build a robot,” Chiu said and continued, “But Samsung provides so much more, like interpersonal skills and tips to present better - which surpasses our expectation.”

A learning experience for all

Samsung Solve for Tomorrow provides a learning experience for not only students but also facilitators. Wei-Chung Lin, one of the teachers of the participating teams, said, “Students are not the only ones that learned from the project. Teachers and facilitators like myself have also learned a lot. The program stimulated me to think differently.”

Tse-Hua Kuo, a facilitator from the final winner team Pyasan Lahao, said, “Both students and teachers as one team learned a lot, and it is very rewarding to see our students make such great progress. I am happy to have been a part of Solve for Tomorrow where the school could work closely with tech experts to discuss and find solutions for sustainable development of our hometown.”