JOHOR BAHRU, 27 Oct. — Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) students, Sam Chua Chun Hong, Lee Jia Ying, and Lim Kai Yi were announced as the Malaysia Country Champions in the 3M Inspire Challenge.

The 3M Inspire Challenge 2022 is a regional undergraduate case competition aiming for the most innovative ideas to create a positive world and add value to businesses and customers of a global science company, 3M. This year, three themes were highlighted: (1) Sustainable Materials, (2) The New Paradigm, and (3) Equity.

Calling themselves Team Wonder, the trio’s innovative solution focused on biodegradable sponges, which helped them clinch a cash prize of RM 9,400 and internship opportunities at local 3M offices.

“Through observation in our household, we see a problem with the kitchen sponge where it kept getting replaced every three weeks. But why? We found that this causes pollution to the environment, and therefore, we developed a conceptual solution for it using our knowledge as engineering students,” said the team representative.

The champion team was selected through the evaluation of the innovation, creativity, originality, replicability, and future-proofed content of the team’s solution, and Team Wonder indeed presented their solution wonderfully.

Ultimately, they will compete in the Asia Pacific Region against Australia, New Zealand, India, Korea, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam on 15 November 2022.

Congratulations! all the best for the coming regional final representing Malaysia!