Josephians Win Top Honours at TASEK Climate Crisis Challenge
1 July 2026
A four-student team won Champion and Best Stage Presentation at SJI's first TASEK Climate Crisis Challenge with WindWise, a device improving hawker centre ventilation without electricity.
Four Josephians emerged as Champions at this year's TASEK Climate Crisis Challenge, marking SJI's first participation in the national competition. The team comprising Kynan Chen, Wang Zhenxuan, Nathanael Chia and Jonas Chang, also received the Best Stage Presentation Award for delivering the competition's most outstanding presentation.
The TASEK Climate Crisis Challenge brings together students from across Singapore to develop innovative and practical solutions to real-world climate challenges. Participants are assessed on the originality of their ideas, the depth of their research, the rigour of their design process and their ability to communicate their solutions to a panel of judges from industry, government and academia.
The SJI project, WindWise, impressed the judges with its simple yet effective approach to improving thermal comfort in Singapore's hawker centres. By harnessing natural airflow through fundamental physical principles, the design enhances ventilation without relying on electricity, offering a sustainable and practical solution for public spaces.
Among those impressed was Professor Veera Sekaran from the NUS Office of the President and Department of Biological Sciences. Professor Veera commended the sophistication of the team's engineering design and the quality of their thinking. Upon learning that the team comprised students aged just 14 and 15, he remarked that the design was of a standard he would normally expect from practising engineers, and encouraged them to explore patenting and commercialising their innovation.
The team's poster presentation also attracted significant interest, with mentors and experts from other participating teams stopping by. During the exhibition, our Josephians had the opportunity to present their work to Mrs Jane Ittogi, First Lady of Singapore, who engaged the team in discussion and was impressed by their confidence, depth of understanding and originality.
This outstanding achievement reflects SJI's commitment to nurturing future-ready Josephians who combine academic excellence with creativity, innovation and a desire to develop meaningful solutions that make a positive impact on society.