The Davidson Inventors Challenge 2024
A call to all STEM students in Years 11 and 12 from UK Schools.
PLEASE NOTE: This is the event for the 2023/24 academic year. The winner was selected from a strong group of contenders.
For details of the 2024/25 competition, please click here.
The Challenge: Research a Sustainable Development Goal and Propose a Solution
The theme of the Davidson Inventors Challenge is the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as outlined by the United Nations.
The task of each participating team is to choose one of these goals, research an associated problem, and craft a sustainable, innovative solution.
STEM Students:
Get ready to put your chemical engineering and biotechnology skills into action, while developing essential problem-solving and critical-thinking abilities.
Register to attend the 2024 Davidson Inventor's Challenge Final:
The Final - June 21st 2024
Join us for the online Final of our Davidson Inventors Challenge (DIC) 2024, the innovation competition encouraging Y11/Y12 students to use and develop STEM skills to come up with sustainable and innovative solutions to tackle current global challenges.
After 100 school teams across the UK entered the competition this year, our shortlisted teams will be presenting the projects they have been working on over the last few months. Whilst researching UN sustainable development goals and attending a series of webinars with chemical engineering experts in their fields, the teams have been working on a specific challenge or problem. The finalist teams will showcase their innovative solutions to our online audience made up of DIC organisers and mentors, department staff, and graduates in industry, as well as other participating students.
Registration
Date: Friday, 21 June 2024
Time: 3.00 - 5.00pm
STEM Students: What's In It For You?
The Prize: An Opportunity to Experience Cambridge and Student Life
The Davidson Inventors Challenge winning team will be rewarded with an e-voucher for online purchases and have an exclusive opportunity to sample life at one of our esteemed Cambridge Colleges. The winners will immerse themselves in the Cambridge lifestyle and join us for a day at our department located in the vibrant West Cambridge Campus.
Past Winners: Celebrating Innovation
Below is a list of inventions developed and presented by previous winning teams of the Davidson Inventors Challenge:
2023 Benenden School, Cranbrook
Sustainable flavonoids soaps made of plants against bacterial spreads
2022 Eastbourne College, Eastbourne
A solar water sterilisation system
2021 The Tiffin Girls School in Kingston upon Thames
Honouring the Legacy of a Pioneer
The Davidson Inventors Challenge is named after Cambridge University Emeritus Professor John Davidson, the founding father of fluidisation.
Launched in 2020, the Davidson Inventors Challenge is a competition and outreach initiative encouraging innovation in STEM. We honour his legacy each year by inviting students in Years 11 and 12 to research sustainable development goals, select a problem to address, and present an innovative, sustainable solution that can make a positive global impact.
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