The Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School’s third annual Business Idea Basket (BIB) contest took place on the evening of Tuesday, 8th February, at the Rodney McArthur Rey Auditorium. The competition showcased brilliant ideas of the Business Students.
Seven teams, two from Form 4, one from Form 5 and four from Form 6, competed in displaying to a captivated audience their own designs of an innovative, carbon-free transportation system that would benefit the people of the island by reducing carbon emissions into the environment. Therefore, seven different models of transportation systems were presented.
Three Ministers of Government and other officials formed the panel of Judges which included, in its entirety: the Honourable Minister of Infrastructure, Mr. Haydn Hughes; the Honourable Minister of Education, Ms. Dee-Ann Kentish Rogers; the Honorable Minister of Economic Development, Commerce & Information Technology Mr. Kyle Hodge; Mr. David Carty, Environmental Activist; Chief Education Officer, Bren Romney; Principal of the ALHCS, Rita Celestine-Carty; Architect Vanburn Brookes; and Director Disaster Management, Mr. Calvin Samuel.
Also present were the Premier, Dr. Ellis L. Webster, Opposition Member, Mr. Jose Vanterpool, and the Deputy Governor, Mr. Perin Bradley. Moderating the event was ALHCS Teacher, Ms. Avenella Griffith.
ALHCS Teacher, Ms. Lois Hazell, gave an overview of the Business Idea Basket (BIB), indicating its relevance and its purpose: “The rationale behind the BIB,” she said “is that Anguilla is growing and developing. Issues relative to the growth of our economy, protection of the environment, infusion of sustainability and preservation of our tranquility, are presenting themselves simultaneously. Anguilla’s bright useful minds are generally left out of national planning, and, importantly, even future planning.
“The ideas of our young people need to be showcased as they can inform and trigger off national investments that would ensure that Anguilla is ahead of the curve and proactive in addressing societal needs.
“The purpose of BIB, therefore, is to foster, promote and bring to practicality youthful creativity and innovation in application to real life issues in Anguilla.”
The first team to put forward their display was called “Eco Engineering” from Sixth Form. They would implement of a car-free zone in The Valley to avoid congestion and reduce air pollution. Persons moving around in The Valley would be required either to walk. or to use the eco-friendly transportation that would be provided, such as bicycles, electric scooters, or solar-powered golf carts and solar-powered buses.
The second team, “ALCV Transportation” from Sixth Form, devised a transportation system whereby solar-powered buses would provide public transportation across the entire island which would be divided into ten zones from Island Harbour to West End. There would be bus stops in each of the ten zones. Solar charging stations for the buses would be located at the Public Works Department facility in the Valley where the buses would be parked and maintained.
The third team from Sixth Form presented a transportation system that would provide a safe and environmentally friendly ferryboat service. The name of this team was “Sunshine Sea Ways”. Their ferryboats would use outboard solar-powered motors with energy produced by solar batteries. Charge controllers would be used to prevent the batteries from receiving more voltage than they are capable of handling.
Mr. David Carty who has manufactured many of the ferries that ply between Anguilla and St. Martin, humorously told the team. “That’s quite interesting. You are not cooking on gas, but on solar.” On a more serious note, though, he said, “This is the best way that we can save our marine environment.” He, however, had a word of technical caution for them in that batteries weigh a lot, and this can pose an impediment to the hull of the boat.
The fourth team, “Green Buzz”, which hailed from Fifth Form, proposed that The Valley would have to be remodeled to provide beautiful eco-friendly pristine parks in which workers interact with each other, and comfortably sit and have lunch at noon. In order to avoid pollution and traffic congestion, bikes and battery operated scooters would be the mode of transportation. For this system, roads in The Valley would be required to be closed to regular vehicular traffic.
Team number five from Fourth Form was “The Shakers”. This team proposed that Anguilla turn to a public transportation bus system, thus reducing the need for privately owned vehicles. The buses would be powered by solar-powered batteries. The team felt that riding in such buses would foster more social cohesion and enable people to relate more cordially with each other, instead of driving selfishly in their own private vehicles.
Team Six from Forth Form, was “AXA A Makers”. They suggested that the transportation system in Anguilla be transformed to a solar-powered aerial tramway kind of system called AXA Express. The Valley roads, in particular, would accommodate bikes only instead of motor driven vehicles, and that the tram system would be efficient and eco-friendly. In their own words, “We intend to transform The Valley into a town that is aesthetically pleasing. It will interest locals and attract tourists.”
Finally, Team Seven from Sixth Form was Eco-AXA. Their idea was that waste cooking oils generated by restaurant kitchens across the island can be collected and converted to bio-diesel to be used in public vehicles such as diesel-powered buses and trucks.
All seven teams presented a Revenue/Expense Analysis of their respective transportation system. Overall, they made their presentation in conformity with the recent COP-26 mandates which call for the reduction of emissions worldwide through less dependency on fossil fuels. Generally, the judges were quite impressed with all seven presentations. They asked pertinent questions on the teams’ proposals, made useful comments, and shared congratulatory remarks.
At the end of the competition, the Eco Engineering Team came in third, The Shakers Team got second place and AXA A Makers attained first place position. First place prizes were chrome books (laptops); second place prizes were Samsung tablets; and third place prizes were refunds for any monies that had been paid or will be paid for examinations.
