Bikeathon 2017: Prosperity Fund’s innovation in education in Mexico
British Embassy in Mexico’s Prosperity Fund and Jacaranda Education promoted an innovation in education activity with a mentorship project.
Bikeathon 2017
Jacaranda Education, with the support of the British Embassy in Mexico’s Prosperity Fund, organised its first Bikeathon, an innovative concept in which Mexican star-ups mentored young students from public schools in Mexico City to develop projects related to cycling. The main objective was to introduce the students to the maker education, invite them to acquire STEM skills, and approach them to the entrepreneurial world. The students worked on their proposals from February to April, 2017.
The students formed five working groups, and each group received the sponsorship and support from a start-up or expert institution in mobility or innovation. Each group pitched their proposal in front of an evaluating panel, including the valuable participation of Neko Mexico, an internationally prestigious urban design studio. Each group received feedback on the originality, viability and innovation of each proposal.
Detail of participants:
Bamboo Cycles and Technical School No. 77
Project: Nuevo Cero
Category: Product
The objective is to benefit limited resources communities with a clean transport system: the bicycle. The system also suggests the construction and distribution of wooden beds that can be towed with the bike. The beds also transport personal belongings, commercial goods and basic needs for those who don’t have a home. For instance, the prototype is targeted to displaced people for natural disasters, and provides a portable compost toilet, water collectors, solar stove and a solar panel.
Creative Design Solutions and Technical School No. 1
Project: Intelligent system for interactive transport
Category: System and product
The objective is to integrate the existing public transport services in Mexico City under a mobile platform so the user can visualise in real time the available options, including bike stations. In addition, the proposal includes the offering of locks for personal bikes in public subway stations.
Proyectil and Aztech Robotics from Fundación Azteca
Project: Binndes
Category: Product, system
Project that aims to reduce the distance between cyclists and cycle lanes and offers additional security in the way. The project proposal includes an innovative service to promote the use of bicycles in the city area. It is a system of buses that will cover new routes and will transport the users’ bikes, so they can get to the far away cycle lanes.
CIDI from the UNAM and Technical School No. 44
Project: BICI.ON
Category: Service
Its objective is to promote the bicycle use as a transport option through the creation of a community that collects and repairs disused bikes to give them to students. The programme works as an exchange, so the students receive a bicycle in exchange of their services promoting traffic culture, first aids and bicycles maintenance.
Spiele Bike Shop and Technical School No. 47
Project: Wireless system for proximity sensor
Category: Product
The project consists on a series of products that improve the safety of cycling in the city environment. The team designed and built a mobile phone carrier with 3D printers, a front light with LED lights using a CNC machine, a back light with LED turn signals, and a proximity detector that emits a high sound when a car is less than 1.5 meters away from the bike.