Durban: Aditi Sookdhaw, a matric pupil at Star College in Durban, has won a gold award at the 2021 Virtual Indonesia World Innovative Science Fair (WISF).
The competition was open to young people in scientific research.
Kyle Dawson, 17, of St Stithians Boys' College in Johannesburg, came second and scooped a silver award.
The WISF, which consisted of online, live seminars, YouTube seminars and judging sessions, was held virtually earlier this month. More than 100 pupils from different countries participated.
Aditi, 18, said she had been participating in the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists for the last five years.
“The selection process for the recent competition began with the regional expo in December last year. Thereafter, I competed in the national level International Science Fair, which automatically entered me into the international WISF,” she said.
Describing her project, Polymer Bioplastic, she said: “I created a way to make plastic from avocado seeds. I had to prepare the seeds in numerous ways to ensure they became what I wanted them to be.
“I ran them through a series of tests and experiments in order to receive the desired sample results. It took about a year to actually get a project formulated and completed, but many advancements followed the original project.”
She said she was grateful to her chemistry teachers at school, especially Mr Tahir Denli.
“He was my biggest mentor throughout this project.”
Aditi said winning a gold award on an international level was fulfilling.
“It was truly an honour to be one of the best students selected to represent South Africa in an international expo. It just showed me that hard work does pay off and I am grateful that my work is being recognised in such prestigious events and by academic individuals.
“Winning the gold award gave me a sense of accomplishment. It made me realise that there is so much that can be done with science and so much more that I am yet to experience and learn.
“Participating in WISF was an amazing experience. I got an opportunity to meet other young scientists and officials from around the world. Receiving constructive insight on my project from international and experienced judges made me feel special.
“I am grateful to the WISF platform, which has allowed me to showcase my work and take me one step closer to achieving my goals.”
She said her passion for innovation, science and technology grew when she started high school in 2017.
“Going to (a) school like Star College did not only open doors for me, but it also stimulated my ambition for science and technology. It also provided me with ample opportunities and every resource under the sun to accomplish and achieve more than I ever anticipated.”
Aditi said she had already been provisionally accepted by six universities in the country. She wants to study civil engineering or computer science.
Parthy Chetty, the Eskom Expo’s executive director, said their learners have always won awards, whether it was in competitions in Taiwan or the US.
Chetty said the Expo competed in about eight international events each year.
“We are proud of our students, including a team of mentors who worked with the learners to upgrade their projects to a level that is competitive at an international level,” he said.
Chetty said the awards were a result of the pupils' passion for science and their achievement of excellence on the international stage.
According to him, Eskom Expo was the oldest and only official science fair in the country that gave learners opportunities to pursue their scientific passion and engineering innovations.
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