Breath-taking! Twelve-year-old’s invention to clean toxic air wins national competition

The IET teamed up with global lifestyle brand HYPE. – challenging kids to supercharge fashion with STEM and invent a backpack that helps them do incredible things.

Eleanor Wood’s ‘Breathe Better Backpack’ – touchingly inspired by her mum’s experience with asthma – was chosen as the winning entry.

Her design featured a built-in air filter and fans, powered sustainably by solar panels and a dynamo.

Eleanor’s entry enthralled judges with its innovative ability to make a positive difference to people’s lives, and to the planet.

The design comes at a time when the topic of air purity is more relevant than ever, with respiratory illnesses such as Covid-19 in wide circulation.

In fact, analysis reveals that Google searches of ‘clean air’ were 850% higher in December 2022 compared to December 2018 (source: Google Trends).

Presented with her prize, a working prototype of her winning backpack during ‘Chilly January’, fittingly the deadliest month of the year for asthma sufferers, Eleanor commented:

“I was really shocked when I found out I’d won, I really didn’t expect anything when I entered the competition! I thought of my backpack to help clean the air because some of my family and friends have asthma and hayfever and it could help them. I’m very happy the judges chose my entry as the winner. I think it’s a great idea to have cleaner air anywhere you like!”

The judging panel included IET Fellow Professor Danielle George MBE, HYPE.’s CEO and Co-Founder Bav Samani, IET’s 2021 Young Woman Engineer of the Year Dr Ciara McGrath and Mira Nameth, founder of sustainable fashion brand Biophilica.

Runner-up places were awarded to The Travel Bag by Maria Hughes, aged 12 from London, which featured handy gadgets to make holidays a breeze, and the Candy Creator by Emelia Fry, aged 11 from Essex, which featured a candy floss maker powered by a piezoelectric disc.

Professor Danielle George MBE commented: “Alongside the more light-hearted ideas entered, it was wonderful to see so many of the kids’ designs featuring technology to make the world a better place. There’s so much potential for engineering to help tackle the societal and planetary problems that we face, and Eleanor has demonstrated exactly that with her Breathe Better Backpack. Taking an issue close to her heart and engineering a fantastic invention to provide a solution really is inspiring. The future is in good hands with ingenious inventors like Eleanor!”

The IET’s competition was launched with the aim to change perceptions, encourage more diversity within engineering and show children how they could combine a passion for fashion with a Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) related career.

It followed research which revealed only one in ten (10%) kids think that engineers work in fashion with just 16% understanding how science and fashion are related*.

The IET has highlighted the continued issue of the STEM skills gap, with half (49%) of engineering companies experiencing difficulties with a lack of skills available in the labour market. Only a third of businesses are taking action to improve the diversity of their workforce across gender (33%) or ethnicity (30%) reflecting that a lack of recruitment from a diverse talent pool may also be fuelling the problem (source: IET Skills Survey 2021).

Eleanor’s winning design will be displayed in HYPE.’s London Flagship Store, allowing kids to come and see how the idea has been brought to life by one of their favourite brands.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

*About the research:

• The research was conducted by 3Gem in August 2022 – surveying 1,000 children between the ages of 5-13 years old.

About Engineer A Better World:

• Engineer A Better World (EABW) is an annual campaign run by the IET that’s dedicated to celebrating STEM careers and getting young people passionate about becoming the inventors and creators of the future.
• For this year’s campaign, we looked at STEM through the lens of fashion to tap into Gen A’s passion for fashion to encourage an interest in exploring careers in STEM.
• For more information about EABW please visit: https://www.engineer-a-better-world.org/

About the IET

• We inspire, inform and influence the global engineering community to engineer a better world.
• We are a diverse home for engineering and technology intelligence throughout the world. This breadth and depth means we are uniquely placed to help the sector progress society.
• We want to build the profile of engineering and technology to change outdated perceptions and tackle the skills gap. This includes encouraging more women to become engineers and growing the number of engineering apprentices.
• Interview opportunities are available with our spokespeople from a range of engineering and technology disciplines including cyber-security, energy, engineering skills, innovation, manufacturing, technology, transport and diversity in engineering.
• For more information, visit theiet.org
• Follow the IET on Twitter.

About HYPE.:

In 2011 HYPE. set out on a mission of lifestyle dominance.

The words ‘Get Your Own’ inscribed onto a lighter, and a simple script over a floral-printed tee was the catalyst in turning HYPE. into a household name and becoming an instantly recognisable global brand.

HYPE.’s mission was born in Leicester but can now be found in over 175 UK stockists and 27 territories worldwide and counting.

Through conquering countries worldwide, HYPE. has been recognised in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 as one of Britain's fastest-growing private companies.

Fast forward 10 years, having featured in many media publications including: Hypebeast, High Snobiety, GQ, Men's Health, Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Complex and Wonderland; and with celebrities and high-profile personnel across the globe representing the brand: Jay-Z, 50 Cent & Winnie Harlow to Tom Hardy, Cara Delevingne & Maya Jama.

Coupled with their success over the last 10 years, HYPE. is doing everything they can to help improve the conditions of the planet where possible.

So far over 180,000 trees have been planted as part of their climate-positive change campaign and with every order will continue to plant a tree and grow the HYPE. Forest.

Sticking true to its roots, HYPE. are still fixed in Leicester with an office space to match the brand persona - modern mixed with nostalgia.

2020 birthed a new and improved update for HYPE. with the introduction of “JustHYPE.” on our Scribble set collections designed for adults with a more luxe feel and look.

2021 introduced the first-ever UK Flagship store in London’s thriving Carnaby Street. Catering to adults, kids and accessories with non-gender specific designs, expressing individuality and personality through HYPE. products.

Media enquiries to:

Rebecca Gillick
External Communications Manager
E: rgillick@theiet.org