An 18-year-old Cork student has taken the title of ‘best individual’ at the 61st BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition.
Tomás Markey from St. Brogan’s College, Bandon, Cork won best individual for a project designed to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. He was presented the award for his work – titled ‘PM-DAC: A system for removing CO2 from the atmosphere’ – at a ceremony in Dublin on Friday evening.
Leonard Hobbs, Chair of Technology Individual Judges, said, “The judges were very impressed with the level of innovation demonstrated by the best overall individual winner, Tomás Markey who addressed one of the greatest challenges currently facing the world in the excess of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
“Tomás demonstrated his prototype at the exhibition which showcased an impressive mechanical and scalable design and novel carbon capture technology, which resulted in a cost effective approach to this challenging and topical issue.”
Another Cork student, Anaus Syed Muhammad from Bruce College, Cork, took home the 2025 Irish Aid/Self Help Africa Science for Development Award, for his project developing a way of screening blood samples using smartphones.
(Image: Fennell Photography)
Minister for International Development and Diaspora, Sean Fleming TD, awarded the prize to Anaus Syed Muhammad and said: “Science and technology has the potential to tackle major issues facing people across the world. The Science for Development Award encourages young people to use their curiosity and talent to develop projects with the potential to improve people’s lives and make the world a better place.
“I was hugely impressed by the projects on display. Anaus from Bruce College in Cork was a deserved winner for his innovative project. A huge amount of work went into developing this project and I want to congratulate him, his teacher Labhras White and the wider school community for receiving this award.The winner of the Science for Development award will travel to the Gambia with Self Help Africa later this year to further develop their project in a real world setting.
Shay Walsh, Managing Director of BT Ireland, said, “It has been an incredible week here at the RDS Dublin, and I would like to congratulate all the participants and finalists of this year’s BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition, who have not only showcased some truly innovative project ideas, but have also done themselves, their teachers and schools, and families proud. In addition to demonstrating boundless energy and ingenuity across topics ranging from Artificial Intelligence (AI), cyber security, mental health, sustainability, agriculture and many more, what has been most uplifting is seeing how STEM subjects can be used for the betterment of society and the world around us.
Over the last twenty-five years, since taking up the custodianship of the YSTE, BT Ireland has been honoured to play our part in evolving one of the most prevalent and longstanding STEM exhibitions in the world, and look forward to seeing what exciting endeavours our winners have in store in the months and years ahead. To all of the judges, partners, sponsors, and BT volunteers, thank you for making this week so unforgettable for us all.”
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