In 2021, Young Change Agents hosted the Telstra Foundation-funded Bushfire Resilience Challenge in Geelong. Over 60 students from 5 schools in regional Victoria participated in the challenge, where they had the opportunity to learn design thinking and entrepreneurial skills. The participating schools were Mount Rowan Secondary College, Bellarine Secondary College, North Geelong Secondary College, Oberon High School and Geelong High School.
Having seen and experienced the devastation caused by the 2019/20 Australian bushfires, students were challenged to ideate solutions focused on bushfire resilience. Some of their ideas included:
- A drone that helps relocate animals by luring them to safety;
- Portable shipping container homes that provide people displaced from bushfires with temporary shelter and housing; and
- An SOS button that can be attached to a wheelchair, necklace, watch or walking stick and would assist people in wheelchairs or with limited movement get to safety in an emergency.
This initiative is a great example of how young people can ideate solutions to significant social and environmental challenges that affect their local and regional communities.
