Eco geniuses in uniform: SA school teams sweep National Youth Entrepreneurship Awards

South Africa’s schools are emerging as unexpected powerhouses in climate innovation, with learners building technologies and enterprises that mirror - and in some cases outpace - national policy efforts.

This was the clear message from the 2025 Step Up 2 A Green Start-Up National Youth Entrepreneurship Awards, held on December 9, at Protea Wanderers in Sandton, where nearly 14 000 learners competed for the country’s biggest school-based green entrepreneurship honours.

This year’s top winners reflected not only creativity but deep technical ability, as teams from township and peri-urban schools delivered solutions to unemployment, water scarcity, pollution, hazardous waste and climate-related risks.

Leap Science and Maths School in Ga-Rankuwa claimed first place with its Job Sweep App, a digital platform designed to connect unemployed youth to micro-jobs in their communities.

Judges praised the concept for combining climate-conscious principles with inclusive economic participation, noting that the app could be replicated nationally. For a school best known for academic excellence in STEM subjects, the victory reinforced its growing reputation for applied innovation.

Second place went to Thuto-Tsebo Secondary School in Orkney, North West, whose team developed Eco Flame, a green charcoal alternative aimed at reducing deforestation and household air pollution. Their product, made from agricultural waste, was lauded for its practicality and potential for immediate township-scale manufacturing.

The third-place category produced two winners, underscoring the competitive strength of the field. Marobathota High School in Boyne, Limpopo, took honours for Brainiacs, an organic fertiliser and pesticide solution made from locally sourced materials. Sharing third place was Eden Wear from Sophumelela High School in Weltevreden Valley, Western Cape, whose learners created plantable, biodegradable shoes that grow seedlings once discarded.

Beyond the top three, strong performances came from schools nationwide. Teams presented innovations ranging from water-from-air systems and rainwater harvesting technologies to recycled-plastic building blocks, solar-powered safety vests, and environmentally friendly bags and bottles. In every province, learners demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of both environmental pressures and market needs.

Programme organisers and government leaders emphasised that these school-based enterprises are more than academic exercises; they represent a growing youth-led climate economy.

“While the world debates climate commitments, our young people are designing practical solutions that can be deployed today,” said Martin Sweet, Executive Chairman and CEO of Primestars. “They are proving that the green economy is not a future promise — it is a present reality.”

Deputy Minister Narend Singh of the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment said the finalists demonstrated what climate adaptation looks like “when driven by communities, not conference halls,” adding that government now needs to match the pace set by learners and educators.

Deputy Minister of Small Business Development Jane Sithole called the awards “economic reconstruction in real time,” stressing that youth enterprises require not only applause but procurement, funding and meaningful market access.

With support from major corporate sponsors and The YouthStart Foundation, the Step Up programme continues to operate as one of South Africa’s largest green-entrepreneurship pipelines. For the winning schools and their young innovators, the 2025 awards underscored a national truth: South Africa’s next generation is not waiting for solutions - it is building them.