This week our students proudly took part in Brisbane Catholic Education’s annual STEM Make a Difference (MAD) Showcase, where young innovators from across Queensland gathered to design solutions for some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Waiben, partnered with St Finbarr’s School, Ashgrove, and St Thomas More College, Sunnybank, in a groundbreaking City-Country STEM initiative. Together, our students worked in mixed teams to tackle real-world issues affecting Zenadth Kes (the Torres Strait), including ghost nets, rising sea levels, plastic pollution, and food security.

Guided by the wisdom of Elders such as Uncle Gabriel Bani, and supported by Brisbane Catholic Education advisors, students combined First Nations knowledges with contemporary science to create innovative projects. Their ideas included floating filtration systems inspired by mangroves, sustainable transport designs, and conservation robots to protect turtle nests.

The experience has been transformational. Our students have not only developed skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, but also deepened their understanding of culture, community, and the importance of listening to Country. As Principal David Graham shared:

“Beyond STEM, this project is building strong connections between city and country students. We are seeing our young people grow in confidence, share their cultural knowledge with pride, and recognise the power of their voices to make a difference.”

The City-Country STEM partnership has been recognised as a model of best practice, showing how education can be both locally grounded and globally relevant. It reflects the Catholic values of acting for justice, stewardship of creation, and walking together in unity.

We congratulate all students who took part in this year’s STEM MAD Showcase. Your creativity, teamwork, and commitment remind us that even the youngest minds can design with hope, compassion, and purpose for the common good.