Five Filipino innovators recently joined the NASA Space Apps challenge where they won the ‘Galactic Impact’ award. Team iNON is composed of Revbrain Martin, Marie Jeddah Legaspi, Julius Czar Torreda, Matthew Concubierta, and Leandro de Guzman. The team beat 1,395 teams from all around the world and was awarded by the US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim.
Their app called ‘ISDApp’ aims to give fishermen real-time information about weather and sea conditions. The app is said to enable the local government to provide all necessary information to our fishermen.
U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim congratulates Philippine Team iNON for winning the NASA Space Apps Challenge Galactic Impact category. Team iNON members include (left-right): Matthew Concubierta, Revbrain Martin, Marie Jeddah Legaspi, and Julius Czar Torreda.
“I am deeply impressed by team iNON’s fantastic achievement in defeating teams from around the world to win first place in the Galactic Impact category of the NASA Space Apps Challenge. They can inspire other Filipino youth to develop innovative solutions to problems in their own communities,” says Ambassador Kim.
The team was sponsored by the U.S. Embassy when the challenge was announced in October 2018.
Deputy Chief of Mission Law, who served on the panel of judges, says, “Team iNON’s approach to getting important information out to members of coastal communities without internet connectivity struck me as clever and compassionate, and I’m pleased they received global recognition.”
Team iNON member Legaspi explains, “ISDapp is a simple solution with an important purpose, which we believe helped it swim to success. This is proof that even technology needs a heart.”
Martin adds, “We saw the problem, and figured we could do something to help the lives of coastal communities around the world.”
