Group photo of participants in the 15th Hanwha Science Challenge 2026. [Provided by Hanwha Communications Committee] 사진 확대 Group photo of participants in the 15th Hanwha Science Challenge 2026. [Provided by Hanwha Communications Committee]

The final round and awards ceremony of the 15th Hanwha Science Challenge 2026, hosted by Hanwha Group and sponsored by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity, and the Korean National Commission for UNESCO, were held successfully from the 12th to the 14th at Hanwha General Insurance Life Campus in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province.

The Hanwha Science Challenge is a science competition for high school students that began with Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-yeon’s vision of fostering young Korean Nobel Prize winners in science. This year, a total of 1,088 teams from 214 schools nationwide took part. That was the largest field ever, up more than 43% from a year earlier.

The grand prize went to the Ajas Team, made up of students from Bucheon High School Kim Sang-yul and Heo Jin-woo, along with their mentor teacher Choi Jae-won, for their research on a “turning adversity into opportunity: a power-free wildfire response and restoration system based on snap buckling of balsam seeds.” The team proposed an eco-friendly disaster prevention and restoration system that mimics the snap-buckling structure in which balsam seeds are propelled outward by elastic force. It detects wildfire heat, sprays fire suppressant, and turns debris back into fertilizer.

The Ajas Team said, “It was a meaningful experience that taught us that research sparked by a small observation of a flower bursting open can become an idea that changes the world. We are deeply grateful to Hanwha Group for giving us this opportunity and to teacher Choi Jae-won for guiding us,” adding, “We will donate part of the prize money and continue to grow into people who contribute to society.”

Grand prize winners and Hanwha Energy Corporation CEO Lee Jae-gyu. [Provided by Hanwha Communications Committee] 사진 확대 Grand prize winners and Hanwha Energy Corporation CEO Lee Jae-gyu. [Provided by Hanwha Communications Committee]

The gold prizes went to the Mozaban the Brave Team, consisting of students from Gyeonggi Buk Science High School Kang Da-yul and Lee Kang-yeon, with mentor teacher Lee Da-hyun, and the Geudureun Munjeajiman Choegang Team, made up of Daejeon Daeshin High School Hwang Ri-geon and Daejeon Daeseong High School Jeon Chang-woo, with mentor teacher Bae Seong-hyeon. The silver prizes went to the PeeHD Team, consisting of North London Collegiate School Jeju students Kim Ji-eun and Lee Do-eon, with mentor teacher Derek Patenaude, and the Sanneomgo Mulgeonneo Team, made up of Gwangju Science High School Park Do-yul and Daegu Science High School Park Seon-yul, with mentor teacher Lee Su-jin.

The total prize pool for the competition was 200 million won, among the largest in the country. The grand prize team received 40 million won, while each of the two gold prize teams received 20 million won and each of the two silver prize teams received 10 million won. The five teams that won the grand, gold and silver prizes, or 10 students in total, will also be offered an overseas study program to visit leading science institutions and engineering schools abroad. All finalists will be exempt from the document screening stage when applying for jobs at Hanwha Group in the future.

At the awards ceremony, Yoon Jae-yong, head of the competition’s organizing committee, said, “This year’s competition, which drew the largest number of student participants ever, was remarkable for the scientific solutions and imagination young people offered to the challenges of climate change and the environmental crisis.” He added, “I am pleased that the Hanwha Science Challenge is establishing itself as a valuable place for growth for future Nobel Prize hopefuls, beyond being a simple contest.”

Lee Jae-gyu, CEO of Hanwha Energy Corporation, said, “I hope the time spent with the Hanwha Science Challenge helped broaden the students’ intellectual horizons and shape the way they see the world. Hanwha Group will always support the bold dreams and challenges of young people as they move onto the global stage beyond Korea.”

Over the past 15 years, the Hanwha Science Challenge has drawn a cumulative 9,300 teams and more than 18,000 high school students. Most past winners have gone on to universities in Korea and abroad and continued their research as future scientists.

This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.