Professor Mrad, Saleh and al-Mehshadi at the Qatar casting of Stars of Science.
Stars of Science, Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF)’s “edutainment reality” TV programme on MBC4 that encourages science, technology and innovation, has shortlisted the region’s most promising Arab innovators for its seventh season.
Over the first three episodes, hundreds of talented students, entrepreneurs and professionals aged between 18 and 30 years presented their ideas to experienced jurors at castings across the Arab world.
The panel of jurors, whose permanent members are Professor Fouad Mrad, executive director of the United Nations ESCWA Regional Centre for Technology in Amman, Jordan, and Youssif Abdulrahman Saleh, general manager at Qatar Shell Research and Technology Centre, evaluated each idea in terms of its scientific sophistication and originality, market outlook and feasibility.
Only applicants whose ideas met the highest standards in each category were shortlisted.
The seventh season of Stars of Science features some of the “most diverse and potentially impactful ideas to date”, according to a statement.
Several of the shortlisted projects aim to foster a more sustainable planet by saving water and using solar energy. Others leverage smart technology to monitor and improve health, train athletes or enhance the quality of life for the physically disabled. A number of the ideas advance the fields of photography, communication, nutrition, computing and on-the-job safety and efficiency.
The upcoming Majlis episode will capture the moments in which the jury decides the fate of the shortlisted applicants – only 12 of which will be invited to travel to the Stars of Science laboratories at Qatar Science & Technology Park, a member of QF.
Once in Doha, candidates work with mentors to refine their ideas and build prototypes of their inventions. In prime-time episodes, viewers will see the number of candidates steadily decrease to a group of four finalists, who will share $600,000 in prize money.
“The quality of ideas submitted by these shortlisted applicants is proof of the high level of ingenuity the youth of this region possess,” said Professor Mrad.
In addition to casting in Egypt at the Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, further locations for casting included GE Aviation in Qatar and others. At each casting, the two permanent jurors were joined by a local professional, such as Abdulla Hassan al-Mehshadi, CEO of Msheireb Properties, Qatar.
The full journey of the 12 innovators will be chronicled through daily episodes starting on October 10 at 4pm on MBC4. The upcoming Majlis episode will be aired on October 9 at 7pm.
Khalid al-Jumaily has returned to host the seventh edition of Stars
of Science.
