This year’s Solve for Tomorrow theme is ‘1maginati0n that Creates our Sustainable Future’. Samsung is encouraging Hong Kong students to use STREAM knowledge and creativity to design technology solutions for sustainable development issues. They can compete for prizes worth more than HK$260,000.
HONG KONG SAR 21 September 2023 – The world’s leading technology company, Samsung Electronics H.K. Co. Ltd, officially launched the Solve for Tomorrow competition for 10 years. Over the past years, the competition has inspired tens of thousands of Hong Kong students to unleash their creativity for social causes they are passionate about. As sustainable development is one of the most discussed issues globally, this year’s theme for Solve for Tomorrow is “Imagination that Creates our Sustainable Future”. The competition aims to encourage Hong Kong students to have a longer-term vision and perspective, and collaborate with Samsung to contribute innovative ideas for sustainable development.
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow has been organizing for 10 years. The competition aims to inspire and motivate Hong Kong students to think deeply about the social issues affecting their community. It encourages them to develop creative technology solutions by applying their STREAM (Science, Technology, Research, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) knowledge. Samsung also added several new elements to help students have a fun and experiential learning experience throughout the competition.
“Samsung, as a market leader, is dedicated to inspiring the talented younger generation and using various technological innovations to help them create a better society. This is precisely why Samsung has been organizing Solve for Tomorrow competitions around the world,” said Yiyin Zhao, Managing Director at Samsung Electronics Hong Kong.
“Samsung’s concept of ‘Everyday Sustainability’ aims to incorporate sustainable development into product design and user experience, enabling billions of users to work together towards building a healthier and more livable planet. As part of our ‘Galaxy for the Planet’ project, we utilize recycled materials (such as plastic, aluminium, and glass) in all smartphone products. Additionally, we use eco-friendly packaging, ensure zero-power consumption when smartphone chargers are idle, and strive to achieve zero landfill waste by 2025. Samsung is committed to promoting sustainable development, and we hope to inspire others with this concept. That’s why we have chosen sustainable development as the theme for Solve for Tomorrow’s 10th-anniversary milestone. We look forward to seeing more young inventors create innovative solutions that contribute to promoting sustainable development in society,” said Zhao.
Encouraging students to integrate competitions into learning
The United Nations established 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, covering a wide range of issues such as the environment, economic development, and social inclusion. Participating students can choose from these SDGs to create innovative technology solutions and works using STREAM knowledge and creativity, contributing to sustainable development in society.
To further strengthen the STREAM knowledge of participating students, the Solve for Tomorrow STREAM workshop has been well received among the academic community since it was first introduced to the programme three years ago. In addition to the existing collaboration, communication skills, and video production workshops, a design thinking workshop that was included in the kick-off event of the competition, we divided the robotic modular design and programming language workshops into elementary and advanced courses, aiming to significantly enhance students’ skills in these two areas.
As for the scoring system, this year’s preliminary round will include evaluation criteria such as design concepts and creativity, feasibility and technical concepts, presentation, as well as sustainability (considering whether their conceptual economic model is operationally sustainable and scalable) and business model (related to cost and economic benefits). To encourage participation in the Solve for Tomorrow competition, teams that participate in all activities (including the introduction session, design thinking workshop, and STREAM workshops) will receive an additional 5 bonus points, which will be included in the total score of the preliminary round.
The eight teams will be shortlisted in December 2023, with 4 teams from primary schools and 4 teams from secondary schools. During the Mentorship period, specific professional mentors will assist the teams in further improving their creative ideas and enhancing their presentation skills. All shortlisted teams will present and showcase their works to the judges on the Presentation Day (tentatively scheduled in February 2024), and will be evaluated by the judges along with public voting scores. The official announcement and award ceremony are expected to take place in March 2024.
Samsung aims to strengthen participating students’ STREAM knowledge and other essential 21st-century skills through the unique projects in the Solve for Tomorrow academic technology competition. The competition also provides an opportunity for students to exchange ideas with peers from other schools, achieving a true integration of competition into learning.
Turning creative ideas into real-life solutions for our sustainable future and winning attractive prizes
The annual Solve for Tomorrow 2023 competition is co-organized by Samsung and the Association of I.T. Leaders in Education (AiTLE) with the full support from A Plastic Ocean Foundation, Hong Kong Education City Limited and Coding101, the leading STREAM solution provider in Hong Kong. The competition opens in September 2023 and will run till March 2024. All primary and secondary students can participate in teams representing their respective schools. Teams are encouraged to combine their STREAM knowledge with creativity to design innovative solutions that can help solve the city’s social issues and help create a sustainable future.
There will be one championship winner, 1st runner-up, 2nd runner-up, 3rd runner-up, and six Merit Awards. The winners will be picked from a shortlist of 20 teams, with prizes worth more than HK$260,000.
To participate or learn more about Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2023 “1maginati0n that Creates our Sustainable Future”, please visit
https://www.samsung.com/hk_en/offer/solvefortomorrow2023/.
