Students from all around Medellin presented projects that could improve the world during GIN Conference Friday, April 28th at the Columbus School.

These projects were a part of a series of challenges designed to generate ideas to solve social and environmental problems.  

“It is important for us because we are talking about our environment which is everything around us, our home and we want to start helping,” Luciana Toro, Colegio Montessori student, said. “This is the first year we are coming and we want to start creating awareness.”

Students focus on  solving  harmful world problems with methods and ideas that could be developed into influential projects.

“We work in our school but also with the community because it is very important that people around us have an impact based on what we do in school”  Wuendy Torres,  Colegio Antonio Derka student, said.

Participants found their solutions many different ways, giving rise to some crazy and out-of-this-world ideas. These ideas can range from ways to help vegetables grow better to creating different dyes for the clothing and textile industry.

“Our project is about biotechnology, it’s about using pigment producing microorganisms to apply them in the textile industry as natural dyes,” Mavely Romero, Colegio Loyola student, said.

These designated groups presented their inventions with PowerPoints, speeches, posters and videos.

“Our project demonstrates the effectiveness of 100% organic products like our rooting compound which helped the plants continue on their growing cycle without any chemical, as well as our bug repellant with garlic and methods to help grow plants with protective plants around it,” Samuel Graciano, Colegio Antonio Derka student, said.

People come to see these projects to not only see what the future holds, but to notice what many different schools have been doing over the years to help the environment.

“Our project was about making people aware about the effect plastic can have on our environment, through campaigns, signs and the prohibition of plastic bottles being sold in our school, we want to help the environment.” Maria Antonia Rico, Colegio Montessori student, said.

Presenting these ideas to the community full of future leaders has become an opportunity for these creators to influence others, to inspire and make people aware of the troubles that happen all around the world.

“Here we have a space in which we can think and become aware of the problems that are happening in the world, not only wars but contamination and as young people and the future of this country, the world and we can bring you a better environment and better developments,” said Romero.

This year, a new turn was made in the ideas of the projects which students mainly focused on technological solutions to environmental  problems. Furthermore  with a new wave of ideas, students have found new ways they can solve more than just environmental.