Makers Empire recently ran a Summer Explorers programme for Expo 2020’s school program, which aims to connect teachers and students throughout the UAE for a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience. The Expo 2020 event was postponed from last year to allow all participants to safely navigate the impact of COVID-19 and will run from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 in Dubai, UAE.
Makers Empire was introduced to the Expo 2020 organisers by Austrade. Emmet O’Sullivan, Global Engagement Manager at Austrade explains, “Austrade helps Australian exporters understand and expand in international markets by helping reduce the cost and risk of doing business. Austrade’s network of offices across ASEAN and the Middle East has assisted Makers Empire to explore and enter new markets and access opportunities such as Dubai Expo 2020.”
With Expo 2020 being based in Dubai, UAE, the Summer Explorer programme was an opportunity for Makers Empire to further ties to the Gulf State: Makers Empire has an ongoing partnership with Dubai based EdTech consultancy, Ibtikar and the UAE Ministry of Education. This pioneering, multi-year partnership involves supporting the Design & Technology Curriculum team at the MoE to embed Design Thinking and 3D design concepts in their Primary Curriculum and rolling out 3D technology and Makers Empire to 235 public primary schools throughout the UAE.
Makers Empire’s Summer Explorers programme theme was Water Week, which aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and encourages students to design solutions that will help conserve water.
“The Expo 2020 organisers asked us to put together an online program for students so we came up with a program focused on solving real-world problems relating to water. There are many similarities between Australia and the UAE in terms of the climate, environment and need for effective water conservation programs. So we thought this was a very relatable issue for students to tackle,” said Mandi Dimitriadis, Director of Learning at Makers Empire.
The Summer Explorers programme comprises four key activities:
Feedback from students who participated in the Summer Explorers programme was extremely positive, including:
- “This has been super fun.”
- “This was so amazing.”
- “I love this workshop soooooooooooooooooo much!!!!!!!”
- “Now I will visit Australia (at) Expo.”
- “Woahh that sure motivated me. This was such a fun experience thank u guys so much.”
Partners involved in Summer Explorers were similarly pleased with the programme’s activities and outcomes: