Skopje, 20 September 2022 (MIA) – The Fund for Innovations and Technology Development (FITD) issued Tuesday a new public call “Young Innovators Challenge 5 – Green Projects” aimed at elementary and high school students from the entire country in order to encourage creative thinking among the youth and support research projects based on the scientific method. All elementary and high schools can take part in the public call by submitting research projects in the field of natural and technical sciences, which would be organized in teams of five to ten students led by one or two mentors. The research process should be based on the “scientific method”, i.e., it must include formulation, testing and confirmation/modification of the hypothesis by way of experiment or observation, while the results of the research project should be applicable in the preservation and improvement of the environment and biodiversity. “Through this public call, we want to underscore that every student has the ability to join the research activities process. I believe that we should give the youth a chance in order to encourage creative thinking, the potential they possess but also to offer support in the development of innovative solutions for certain issues that we face. I am especially glad that FITD is organizing the ‘Young Innovators Challenge’ for the fifth time already, which has thus far supported over 100 school projects and over 700 students and mentors,” said Festim Halili, Director General of the Fund for Innovation and Technology Development. Halili added that he expects there to be great interest in the call, as was the case in the past, and encouraged young people to apply and jointly create successful projects that will have a positive impact on the preservation and improvement of the environment. The FITD said that the total funds for the challenge amount to three million denars, and the prizes will be split in two categories, research projects from elementary schools and from high schools. The maximum budget for a single project proposal should be up to 200.000 denars. The teachers leading the student teams will receive a reward of 30.000 denars, intended for purchasing digital equipment to be used in the teaching process. Projects with an interdisciplinary character, which follow an inclusive approach in the formation of the teams, i.e., have equal gender representations, include children of different ethnicities, children with special needs, children of different ages, etc., are especially encouraged, as well as projects submitted by schools from rural areas. The activities of the proposed project should be in accordance with research and development activities, i.e., the proposed project should include activities which will test the defined hypothesis by way of experiment and observation. Each submitted proposed project will be graded according to its quality, the applicability of the research results, the compliance with the objectives of the public call and the capacity of the project team. The FITD said that the deadline for submitting projects is November 2, 2022. In order to support the teams during the process of preparing the project proposals, FITD announced it will hold multiple info sessions. ad/ba/