Students from across Luton and the region have taken part in the Climate Change and Digital Innovation Summit, presenting their work on environmentally themed apps. Teams from 16 schools in the Chiltern Learning Trust met at Venue 360 to display their apps, give demonstrations of their tech, and hear from other young coders and tech professionals.
Each team presented their app from the stage and at a stand in the hall, with visitors and experts voting for a favourite. The winning project was Cedars Upper School with an app called Cedars Uniform Marketplace. The team identified the multiple benefits of reuse as a climate action: reusing school uniform reduces waste, and also builds community and saves families money.
Marston Vale Middle School created an app to help their teachers cut down on paper use and took second place. Third place went to an eco-art app developed by a team of girls from Lark Rise Academy, which creates artwork and music from walks in nature. Sophie and Grace, both in year six, developed new skills in working together as a team, and found new confidence in presenting their app. “I was kind of scared to go on stage, and then when I was on, it was fun,” says Sophie. “I loved talking to everyone about our idea.”
Among the other projects were apps that educate users on deforestation or recycling. The team from Chiltern Academy focused on food waste and the benefits of composting. Lea Manor High’s wellness app helped people to draw the connections between their own health and the health of the planet.
The Climate Change and Digital Innovation Summit, now in its third year, is organized by Denbigh High School, the Chiltern Learning Trust, and Apps for Good. Students use lessons from the tech education charity Apps for Good, along with their app development platform. Some take part in the programme during computing lessons, others as an extra-curricular activity. The winning team from Cedars High School meet as a lunchtime coding club.
For an organization that mainly works online, the event has become a fixture in the calendar for Apps for Good. “The best bit is hearing students so confidently sharing their ideas with our industry volunteers and getting real life feedback,” says Natalie Moore, CEO at Apps for Good. “I feel reassured that our future is in good hands with these inspiring young people, and excited about the app ideas they’ve come up with to combat climate change.”
Apps for Good work with over 28,000 students every year, challenging pupils to take on a tech project that tackles climate change or a social issue. With lessons exploring the problems and practical tools for building solutions, pupils develop working prototype apps that could make a difference in their community. The programme nurtures skills in two key areas of the economy, green jobs and the tech sector.
“The inspiring innovation we saw from students of all ages at CCADIS underscores the vital importance of this work,” says Emma Darcy, Director of Technology for Learning at Denbigh High School. “By using tech to tackle climate change and social issues, these young people gain crucial digital, oracy, and problem-solving skills. This not only opens doors to sustainability and technology careers, but also empowers them to actively address their concerns and build a more climate-conscious future.”
Zero Carbon Luton 