Youth Innovation Challenge empowers Unisa students to light up Tshwane

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The challenge aims to provide sustainable off-grid electricity to communities currently lacking it.

The city’s off-grid renewable Direct Current (DC) energy key objective is reducing the strain on the current Alternating Current (AC) power grid, pioneering the DC distribution of energy and their safety, to fulfill the constitutional right to basic electricity for all, to lower carbon emissions, and generate new employment opportunities in the renewable energy industry.

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Given the two goals of the collaborative initiative, the participants are required to develop practical, affordable, and scalable energy access solutions.

Participants are challenged to design innovative solutions in developing a micro, low-cost DC PV system to power a one or two-sectioned informal settlement or low-cost household.

The challenge has several phases:

• The call for proposals is between 1 July and 29 August 2025.
  
• Pre-selection, bootcamp.
  
• Submission of final application.
  
• Selection for finals.
  
• Final pitching at Unisa Innovation Festival in November 2025.
  
• Awards ceremony.
  
• The acceleration phase.

Three winners will be awarded their prizes at the awards ceremony.

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The purpose of this collaborative initiative is to provide a platform to develop, produce, and execute solutions that will address the growing demand for electricity in low-income areas and disadvantaged communities.

The resolutions to the challenge need to adhere to international standards like IEC and support the city’s attempts to mitigate climate change.