As tens of thousands of viewers tuned in to watch the launch of UTV Ireland on New Year’s Day last week, one college student from Ballymore was flying the flag for youth innovation.
Mechanical engineering student Keith Ward spoke of the engineering project he is undertaking with his university colleagues at the College of Engineering and Informatics at NUI Galway.
The feature was part of an hour-long documentary, Out With the Old – In With the U, which was presented by broadcaster, Pat Kenny. The show involved Mr. Kenny travelling the length and breadth of Ireland, meeting with a variety of high-profile personalities, engaging with expert contributors and ‘ordinary’ people with compelling stories to tell.
21-year-old Keith spoke of his love for Ireland, and how he hopes to be part of a movement to make it a completely renewable energy country, giving the example of the Geec car, a car efficient enough to drive from Galway to Dublin on less than €1 worth of electricity.
“I’d love to come back to Ireland and promote it as a 100% renewable energy country. Young people are seen today as being not as focussed as people think. The car we’re working on is being built by a group of people where the majority age is around 20. Young students have built Ireland’s first energy efficient vehicle. If we can do that, what can’t we do?”
Keith and his colleagues will now go on to complete in the Shell Eco-marathon challenges in Rotterdam, Holland later this year. The competition sees student teams from around the world come together with their innovative energy-efficient vehicles.
