For the 300 plus entrants in the 2002 edition of the Prime Minster's Awards for Innovation and Invention the suspense was broken on Tuesday 14th January 2003 with the announcement of winners at a gala function held at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre. Winners were honoured in three categories: Individuals, Company and Lifetime Achievement. 

In his address, the Honourable Danny Montano, Minister of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education and Minister with responsibility for NIHERST, noted that “It is a culture of innovation that will catalyze the transformation of our society.” He encouraged NIHERST, administrator of the Individual Awards, to continue its outreach activities in science popularisation into far-flung areas of Trinidad and Tobago, and to specifically to capture and develop the raw talents of the “grassroots/home inventors”. 

To the large number of inventors, students, teachers and parents gathered, he issued the challenge for a paradigm shift in teaching towards new methods that motivate and inspire learning so as to ensure that “no one is left behind”. Minister Montano made the poignant statement for the youngsters that “working well at what one enjoys, may realise eventually great value, when one becomes very good at what one enjoys”. Placing this in the global context, the Minister reminded the large gathering that outputs must be judged against international standards, and that to compete at that level, upgrades in our educational system and a greater emphasis on Science and Technology were vital.

Individual awards were presented to the winners of the Bright Solutions contest, and the Junior and Senior Innovator/Inventor age categories.

• The Bright Solutions contest was a new addition to the Awards. It encouraged youngsters aged 7 to 17 years to develop creative solutions to everyday problems in the following areas: Water, Food, the Environment, Health, Security, Road Safety, and the Design of Children-friendly Buildings. Prizes in this category were valued at over $25,000.

• Junior Innovators and Inventors competed for awards which totaled over $60,000 in value. Prizes were presented in three age categories: 11 to 12 years, 13 to 14 years and 15 to 17 years. With prototypes ranging from “The Toothpaste Dispenser” for the disabled, to “Teen Temptation” a board game that steers youngsters away from adolescent perils and pitfalls, to “Hang-a-Line” a creative method of hanging out laundry where space is a limitation, youngsters demonstrated in a tangible way the abundant creativity of our nation’s youth.

• In the Senior category, there was a great diversity in entries and keen competition which also attested to the abundance of local inventive talent. Prizes amounting to over $230,000 were awarded in the categories of Artistic Process, Electrical Devices, Furniture and Design, Games, Machinery, Mechanical Devices, Indigenous Materials, Simple/Useful Devices and Waste Material categories. 

The audience of over 600 guests was treated to an actual live demonstration of an innovation, with the performance of Ms. Sabina Allard and her group ‘Los Dinamicos’. Ms. Allard collected the First Prize in the Artistic Process category for her “Redesigning the Shape of the Cuatro, Maracas and Toc-Toc”. 

Four inventors received a great surprise at the evening ceremony, with the presentation of Special Awards of Merit for Innovation. They were as follows:

• Dr. Anthony Achong for Innovation in the Science of Pan

• Dr. Stephan Gift for Innovation in the field of Electronics

• Mr. Buddie Miller for Diversity in Innovations

• Ms. Dolly Nicholas for Innovation in the field of Chemistry

The Prime Minister's Awards for Innovation and Invention has attracted international interest from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and countries around the world. The scheme is helping to strengthen scientific ties with other countries, as well as to promote public awareness of the importance of technological creativity as a vehicle for national development, and to stimulate the development of a scientific culture.

View the 2002 Winners' List here.

View the 2000 Winners' List here.

 

Mailing Address	43-45 Woodford Street, Newtown, Trinidad, W.I.
Telephone	868-622-7880, 868-622-2264
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E-mail	innovation@niherst.gov.tt