ACES Mini Cooling Festival "makes STEM come to life" for Rwandan schoolchildren

By Raphael Henry

On Saturday 6 December, 132 students from Ntare Louisenlund School travelled to the ACES campus in Kigali for a "Mini Cooling Festival", a hands-on learning event that set out to "inspire students to understand refrigeration while they are still young".

The event took students through a series of interactive stations, with ACES experts providing a crash course in solar power, refrigeration, food safety, vaccines and more. Students participated in quizzes and discussions, completed refrigeration-themed puzzles, and got involved in activities such as making ice cream and powering a cooler box by cycling.

Nancy Uwicyeza, 13, said she had not had an opportunity to learn about cooling before. "Of course I had questions about why we have refrigerators at home, but I didn’t get an opportunity to learn about cooling," she said. "My key takeaway was I learned how refrigerators are made, and also how solar-powered refrigerators work."

She added that she thinks knowledge of cooling systems and renewable energy will help her achieve her dream of becoming an astronaut.

In one area, students explored how food moves through the cold-chain, from harvesting to transport to storage. They assembled Lego refrigerators, experimented with temperature sorting cards, and learned how incorrect storage affects food quality.

Nancy said the event made her think more about how food is lost in her area because of a lack of cooling. "It’s something which should be improved," she said. "We have restaurants and hotels which really waste food."

Ruterana Hugo Dax, 13, added that the lack of refrigeration in his area means he doesn’t trust produce from the local market. "When you go to the market, you can see some vegetables are starting to rot because they are not well preserved," he said. "I think this country really needs knowledge about preserving food using cooling."

He said he was "impressed" with the innovation and creativity on display in the cooling sector and added that he would consider working on developing cooling systems in the future.

"These students are the future engineers, manufacturers and entrepreneurs."

Dr. Jean Baptiste Ndahetuye, ACES Research Lead, stressed that the country must invest early in preparing young people for this sector.

"We want to inspire students to understand refrigeration when they are still young," he said. "As Rwanda transitions to a middle-income country, it will need cooling to sustain food systems, buildings, vaccines and businesses. These students are the future engineers, manufacturers and entrepreneurs who will meet those needs."

He added that ACES aims to train ahead of the market, not respond to gaps after they appear. "We don’t want to be reactive. We want to forecast future needs and prepare the workforce before the demand appears."

Students were introduced to various innovations, including solar-powered refrigerators, remote monitoring systems, and phase-change materials, all of which are integral to ACES’s aim of developing cold-chains that are sustainable and climate resilient.

Ian Ngoga, 14, was struck by the environmental implications. "For me, the most interesting thing was the transportation of goods at cold temperatures," he said. "They told us they use diesel [while the trucks are moving]. Diesel is not a sustainable product and it harms our environment, so I was asking myself if there is a way of changing it so that it uses solar energy instead of diesel."

He said the environment is "very important" to him and added that he hopes to do more research on solar alternatives.

ACES experts also walked students through various practical demonstrations, explaining how technicians use refrigerant analysers, copper-bending tools, and brazing torches to maintain complex cooling systems.

For students Agahozo Cheidy, 13, and Neumann Precious Imfurakazi, 14, the event inspired them to return to their communities and teach other children about cooling.

Both had first heard about cooling from fellow students who had attended the ACES Festival of Cooling in October. As a result, they said, they know first-hand how impactful it can be to talk to others about what they have learned.

Precious added: "I would consider working in this, because it’s very interesting and I think it helps a lot of people."

"They will understand the impact of the cold-chain on their lives."

Dr Gace Athanase Dalson, Academic Head at ACES, said he enjoyed seeing the students "become aware of the opportunities in the cold-chain area" over the course of the event. He added: "They will understand the impact of the cold-chain on their lives and the life of their communities, which is really important."

Reflecting on his own journey of learning about cooling, he said: "I was a person with a background in heat transfer, but I would disconnect my fridge to not use a lot of power at home. When I arrived here, that’s when I realised that what we are doing is not actually correct."

Igittozo Gatera Ariella, 14, came to the same conclusion while listening to an ACES expert explain how fridges work. "I realised that things are being done wrong in most families, like not maintaining the distance between a wall and the refrigerator," she said.

Ariella said she wants to use her newfound knowledge to "promote better refrigeration and cooling" in her community.

For many students, the highlight of the event was a demonstration of how to make ice cream at home with a hand-crank machine. "I like ice cream and it’s good to learn how to do things [yourself] instead of wasting money on it," Agahozo Cheidy said.

Others highlighted an activity that saw students pedal a stationary bike in order to cool down a cooler box.

According to Lisa Rucyaha, STEM Coordinator at Ntare Louisenlund, the festival offered students practical exposure that classrooms cannot replicate.

"It makes STEM come to life," she said. "Students now see why cooling matters for Rwanda, food, vaccines and their communities. The ACES team answered their questions very well, and the sessions were very interactive."

She encouraged more schools to partner with ACES, citing the need for early engagement in climate and engineering fields.