The 10 finalists of the Energy Up 2023 Award are the proof that schools are building the future. In a year in which the quality of the projects made the final decision difficult, students from several classes of the vocational courses at Casa Pia de Lisboa were overjoyed when the grand prize winning school was announced. Their project, focusing on energy efficiency, circular economy and territorial regeneration, had stood out and won over the jury.
The projects are selected on the basis of a series of requirements, ranging from their contribution to sustainability and their ability to involve the community outside the school premises, to their objectives and the results achieved. "This year it was very difficult for us to reach a consensus because we have solutions that are already being implemented and showing results," explains Sandra Aparício, Galp's Social Impact Manager.
Joana Petiz, Executive Director of Dinheiro Vivo, moderated a panel that included Pedro Ruão, Founder & CEO of Omniflow, Manuel Andrade, Director of Open Innovation at Galp, and José Carlos Sousa, Director of Educational Projects Services at DGE
Fundação Galp, together with its partners in the Future Up education programme, has a tradition of bringing energy into schools and encouraging them to develop solutions that make them more sustainable and inclusive. When the Energy Up Award was created three years ago, the aim was to recognise the work done by teachers and students towards sustainable development, while providing the school with solutions to continue its own journey towards energy transition.
"The balance of these three editions has been exceptional, due to the dispersion of the projects, which cover the entire continent and islands, and due to the nature of the projects themselves, in which more and more ideas are presented as prototypes that are being implemented, with real impact results. This is very satisfying for us, because it means that we are working on what drives us, which is to promote a socially just and accessible energy transition, in which we all have a contribution, but also a duty," she adds.
João Diogo Marques da Silva, Galp's Executive Vice-President - Commercial, also considers important for the company the connection with the schools, the children and the teachers who encourage the students, as well as the challenge to creativity that the competition implies. "Someone in the room said that start-ups start in schools. It was gratifying to see that sparkle in the eyes of the children and teachers who will surely take home a story that goes far beyond the prizes we are handing out today. This initiative has enormous potential," he stresses.
