Ballymahon students win The Big Idea national prize
A team of students from Mercy Secondary School Ballymahon have won the Hidden Poverty Award at The Big Idea creative thinking awards.
Team Immoderate won the award for their development of an idea for an app ‘Incognation’, to build an online community and provide information, resources and support for people experiencing hidden poverty.
The Big Idea is delivered through the Leaving Cert Applied (LCA) and Transition Year (TY) programmes, as well as an expanded pilot Youthreach and Community Training Centre (CTC) programme.
It is a nationwide programme empowering young people to tackle social issues with problem solving skills. It was delivered across 22 counties this year, with a successful pilot programme trialled in Northern Ireland.
This year's winners, including the team from Ballymahon, were announced at the end-of-year online Big Showcase on Friday, May 12.
Students were tasked with working through the four Ds of the creative process – discover, define, develop and deliver - focusing on solutions for issues they identified as major stressors in their lives. These were mental health, climate change, hidden poverty, displaced people, and diversity and inclusion, all aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With the help of hundreds of Big Idea mentors from a range of sectors, they develop a digital experience, product, service, space or place, or a tech solution to tackle that issue.
Founder and CEO of The Big Idea, Kim Mackenzie-Doyle, says that the winners were selected by judges based on the recognition and celebration of their journey through the creative Big Idea process, in addition to their innovative and inspiring ideas which have potential for real social impact.
“A massive congratulations to all of the students across the 22 counties who have journeyed through the 2023 programme. They have learned transformative creative skills and thanks to the help of our industry mentors, they can continue to think big and use creative thinking to solve problems and develop solutions – whether in life, college or work.”
The award-winning product designer who founded Ireland’s creative thinking programme, The Big Idea, in 2021 says that it is more than just an educational programme, “it’s a movement to elevate the national skill base and democratise the world’s most in-demand skill - creative thinking.”
Kim says the programme is brought to life by the Creativity Champions, teachers, staff, facilitators and coordinators who bring the Big Idea to life across classrooms and workshops across Ireland.
“They create a safe space for students and learners to experience creativity in action. They empower young people to find their voice and share their Big Ideas.”
Since the programme launched in 2021, it has already reached 6,500 learners, supported by over 750 industry mentors globally to help unlock valuable industry knowledge to help build the confidence and problem-solving skills of young people.
The winners will go on to take part in a Big Idea accelerator in September. The Big Exhibition which includes every project submitted this year is now live at thebigidea.ie, where schools and mentors can also sign up for the next term.