The STREAM Challenge 2023 was held again this year.

The STREAM Challenge is a programming contest aimed at helping the next generation of children use their creativity to solve social issues they have identified themselves, utilizing cutting-edge technologies such as robotics and AI. It is organized by Super SDGs.

I hear that MC Panther Ogata was looking forward to it without even knowing what the STREAM Challenge was, but I, of course, understand what it is and look forward to it every year.

This year’s Grand Prize went to “Pepper: Contributing to the SDGs” from Kakegawa City Kita Junior High School.

Although schools are undertaking various initiatives aimed at solving social issues, these efforts are carried out individually and lack a sense of unity. This initiative therefore reorganized and consolidated these efforts from the perspective of the SDGs, thereby raising awareness of the SDGs.

Specifically, we selected 10 initiatives already in place at the school and developed a program to revitalize them through collaboration—including setting missions aligned with the SDGs.

Using QR codes for personal authentication, the system records the missions each student has completed, such as “promoting recycling” and “reducing food waste from school lunches.” By having Pepper compile these records for each class, we’ve introduced a system where classes compete against one another. The system also incorporates thoughtful design features, such as measures to prevent duplicate point accumulation and the repeated presentation of the same quiz questions.

As a result, 75.6% of the school’s students became more aware of the SDGs, and the initiative reportedly led to a reduction of 5 liters of leftover milk and a savings of 3,600 sheets of paper over the course of five days.

Given the program’s strong results within the school, we are eager to expand it into a nationwide initiative involving schools across the country, such as by organizing inter-school competitions. Students account for 15.4% of the total population. We believe that if we can raise awareness among children, we can make a significant contribution to society as a whole.

It looks like we could expand this initiative to involve not just schools but the entire community as well!

I hear this is the third year they’ve been using Pepper for their activities. Consistency is key. It’s likely because they’ve been committed to this effort over the long term that they’ve been able to get the entire school involved.

The first project to receive the Excellence Award was “Re-using Books and Magazines with Pepper” from Seijo Gakuen Junior and Senior High School.

We began this initiative out of concern over the current situation, in which many books and magazines that could still be put to good use are being discarded. Upon investigation, we found that each school reportedly discards about 300 books.

The project began by first sparking people’s interest and collecting used books.

Request for cooperation with used book collection, sales at used book fairs, and sustainable operations. Pepper played a major role in all three phases.

As a result, they reportedly sold 376 used books for 27,650 yen and donated the proceeds to an international volunteer organization.

Next year, they plan to promote the “reuse” of used books across the entire school system, from elementary school through college.

I was deeply moved by how they turned items destined for the trash into money—and even made donations—and by how they sparked a “movement” to solve social issues while engaging so many people.

In their acceptance speeches, all of them expressed their gratitude to those who had supported them. It was likely this attitude that resonated with those around them and led to the growth of a major movement.

The second project to receive the Excellence Award was “Thinking About the SDGs with Aluminum Cans” by Fujieda Municipal Aoshima North Elementary School.

Pepper was used to increase the aluminum can recycling rate. By incorporating a game-like element—where people could draw a fortune slip when they brought in aluminum cans—the initiative reportedly collected three times as many aluminum cans as usual.

They say that the more aluminum cans you bring, the better your fortune slip will be.

Do something good for society and improve your luck! Isn't that the best?

I’d like to collect some aluminum cans and stop by to try my luck at winning a “Super Ultra Great Luck” prize, too.

Just doing good deeds isn’t enough to keep you going. It’s the element of entertainment that makes it possible to keep taking action. “This is fun! I want to do this again!” The two people who came up with a system that makes you feel that way were having more fun than anyone else as they worked on it.

Believe it or not, this team has won the Excellence Award for two years in a row. The members themselves seem more disappointed about missing out on the Grand Prize than happy about their achievement. Still, for elementary school students to win the Excellence Award two years in a row in a contest open to high school students is quite an accomplishment.

The third Special Award winner was "Pepper: Evacuation Shelter Management" from Kakegawa City Higashi Junior High School.

Life in an evacuation shelter is fraught with anxiety and stress. For people with chronic illnesses, the elderly, people with disabilities, pregnant women, and those who are injured or ill, these days can be even more grueling. To address this, a system has been developed to ensure that everyone can live in an evacuation shelter with peace of mind.Specifically, evacuees are provided with a micro:bit; when they feel unwell or need assistance, pressing a button sends a signal to the Pepper robot at the shelter’s operations headquarters. This allows evacuees to send an SOS at any time—24 hours a day—without having to worry about causing inconvenience to those around them, and simply carrying the micro:bit provides a sense of security.Meanwhile, for shelter operators—who are extremely busy—this system offers the benefits of automating health monitoring and centrally managing evacuees’ concerns. It serves as a tool to facilitate smooth communication between the shelter headquarters and evacuees. Other measures have also been implemented to streamline operations, such as sending notifications to evacuees to stay hydrated when temperatures rise above a certain threshold.

The design was carefully crafted to address the challenges faced on-site while taking into consideration the needs of people from diverse backgrounds.

The teamwork was excellent, and the skits explaining how to use the app were very easy to understand. I look forward to future feature additions and improvements!

The Special Award went to Terakoya LABO’s Fudōson Branch for “The Candy Store That Saves the World.”

"The Candy Store That Saves the World"—even the name alone is captivating.

It all started when they saw news reports about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and wanted to do something to help. What’s impressive about them is that they didn’t just stop at making a donation themselves—they came up with a system to encourage others around them to donate as well. They say this is because they felt the problem was that, even though many people were aware of the news, they weren’t taking action or didn’t know how to go about it.

That’s when they came up with the idea of selling cheap snacks and donating the proceeds. By allowing participants to purchase the snacks at a discount if they answered quiz questions correctly, they created a system designed to deepen understanding of the situation in Ukraine while encouraging donations.

It’s so unique that cheap candy has a connection to Ukraine. It’s wonderful how everyday items can serve as a window to the world. It might also be nice that the charity you donate to changes depending on the type of candy?!

As a result, all the snacks sold out, generating 3,065 yen in sales. The definition of success we set at the start was to generate at least 3,000 yen in sales. We successfully achieved our goal.

"Adding value increases donations," he reportedly realized.

Not only does he take action himself, but he also analyzes human behavior and encourages others to change their behavior. That's wonderful.

The Newcomer Award went to the “Let’s Connect Learning” Project at Kyoto Municipal Gosho-Minami Elementary School.

This project created a space for children to learn from one another. It is said that the COVID-19 pandemic was the catalyst.

Due to the pandemic, the opportunities for interaction with other grades and classes—which had previously been held during integrated studies periods—have been eliminated. However, we still want to share with each other what other students are learning! That’s why we launched the “Let’s Connect Our Learning” project.

When you press the button for each grade level displayed on Pepper’s tablet screen, Pepper will present the curriculum for that grade in an easy-to-understand way using speech, movements, and video. Pepper connects the curriculum across all grade levels.

Each grade level will summarize what they have learned in order to share it with others, which will deepen their learning. Students can share their ideas with one another on a daily basis and learn from each other. If these materials are properly archived, the learning can be passed on to the next grade level. They can also be shared with members of the local community, providing an opportunity for interaction.

As a result, it could be said that we have created a more fulfilling and enriching environment for collaborative learning than we had before the pandemic.

This is a great example of turning a crisis into an opportunity.

The Grand Prize in the AI category went to “Thermo-kun” from Iwate Prefectural Morioka Commercial High School.

Solving heatstroke incidents. Specifically, this initiative aims to establish a system to prevent incidents such as children being left behind in vehicles.The system integrates thermal imaging with real-time cameras and analyzes the camera data using AI for object recognition. This enables it to detect signs of rising body temperature and prolonged human activity after the engine has been turned off. The design is comprehensive and tailored to various use cases; in addition to heatstroke detection, the system is designed with the driver’s well-being in mind—for example, by automatically notifying the driver—to minimize their burden.

Mr. Panther says he’s hoping for an application where the MC can sense when a comedian has flubbed a line based on a rise in body temperature and treat them more gently as a result.

I hear the three of them will be attending different schools starting next year, but I really hope they’ll see this project through to completion.

The AI Division Excellence Award went to “Ranger” from Tome Comprehensive Industrial High School in Miyagi Prefecture.

The area where we live has many tourist attractions, but they are not being utilized. Why is that? I thought it might be because maintenance is lacking due to a shortage of workers. To improve this situation, which is starting to spiral downward, I considered introducing robots.

The team developed "AI Ranger," an AI system that detects and identifies trash.

Pepper detects, identifies, and collects trash as it moves around. By also incorporating features such as wayfinding and nighttime patrols, the system aims to kill three birds with one stone: “improving the environment,” “automating customer service,” and “crime prevention.”

Robots take over labor tasks, thereby reducing management costs. It seems that the adoption of robots has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic. This proposal aims to create a society where robots and humans coexist.

I really hope Pepper will also help raise awareness about not littering.

The Special Award went to Shimane Prefectural Izumo Commercial High School for “The Strongest Gesture Machine.”

This project took on the challenge of combining AI with health and welfare.

A study of the challenges faced by older adults reportedly found that many of them experience limitations in their mobility. Therefore, the goal was to improve their quality of life by using AI to support their mobility.

Specifically, we encourage older adults to use gestures to communicate their wishes, because making gestures serves as a form of rehabilitation and exercise.

"When I spread my arms out to the sides, I want it to help me sit up." "When I raise both hands, I want it to come to me." The AI recognizes those gestures.

An aging society is a global challenge. Since it does not rely on language, it can be used universally around the world.

Making gestures can help with rehabilitation and exercise, and at the same time, by storing the data collected by the camera, we can detect changes in a person’s physical condition; in the future, this may make it possible to provide personalized care.

I was concerned that Shimane ranked 47th in terms of name recognition. Please aim to become number one in name recognition as a prefecture leading the way in solving the challenges of an aging society.

A key feature of the STREAM Challenge is that children’s proposals receive advice from leading experts in various fields, and promising projects may even be implemented in real-world settings. It’s a project that encourages participants to seriously tackle social issues through the combination of technology and creativity while engaging with society.

We hope that every team will view this award as just the beginning and commit to seeing their projects through to implementation!

We focus on social issues, brainstorm ideas to address them, and use technology to solve them. We then test our solutions and make iterative improvements.

I believe that these children’s efforts will lead to the creation of a new society.