Grade school students from Taguig Integrated School recently brought the country honor and pride on the world stage as they won major science awards for inventing innovative, yet practical household products.
The two winning products, “Euphorbia Hirta Dengue-Relieving Tea” and “Coconut Oil, Basil, and Beeswax Anti-Bacterial and Mosquito Repellant Candle” won gold and silver prizes, respectively at the International Engineering Invention and Innovation Exhibition organized by the World Invention Intellectual Property Association and the International Federation of Inventors’ Association on April 13 to 15 at Universiti Malaysia Perlis in Perlis, Malaysia.
TIS’ Kenth Andrew Gallarda, Franxes Keisha Joven and Francis Elija Valdez took home the gold award, while Ivan Gabriel de Lumen, Issachar Philippe’e Zerda and Vien Kiosoffe Lopez won silver. The teams were led by research advisers and TIS faculty members Rosenda Puno, Georgie Amaranto and Grace Binalla.
The Aboitiz Foundation, the corporate foundation of the Aboitiz Group, provided the school’s learning facilities as well as financial support during the three-day exhibition as part of its broader and strong commitment to the Department of Education Special Science Elementary Schools project.
As part of the DepED SSES project, the science students explained that their inventions were inspired by practical everyday challenges that they sought to address.
“Many people today have dengue, especially in our community, and we want to help relieve their symptoms through the euphorbia, which make blood platelets reproduce faster,” said Joven.
“I felt a bit nervous during the question-and-answer portion because I thought the questions from the jury would be too hard. Still, I was able to answer some of them,” Gallardo said of his experience at the contest.
“I felt really happy for our students. Aboitiz proved to be a really big help. Aside from the laboratory provided by the Aboitiz Foundation, the equipment for research such as projectors and computers can definitely be used in the future,” said Puno.
“This big win by our student-beneficiaries from TIS truly motivates us. The Aboitiz Foundation will continue supporting important educational initiatives, particularly the strengthening of SSES and technical-vocational high schools, as we help communities feel empowered, safe, and be sustainable,” said Maribeth Marasigan, Aboitiz Foundation first vice president, and chief operating officer.