The Gold Coast community is being invited to cast its vote on the next generation’s bold ideas for the city’s future, with public voting now open for the People’s Choice Award in the 2025 Mayor’s Technology & Innovation Awards.
Vaping, flooding, ocean health and driver safety are among the main issues tackled by the top 10 local high school students shortlisted for the 12th annual awards.
The annual program invites students in Years 8–12 to create innovative, technology-driven ideas to tackle real-world challenges facing the city.
Acting Mayor Cr Mark Hammel said the Awards are a unique opportunity to platform bright ideas from young minds across the city.
“These awards are about encouraging bright young minds to tackle challenges facing our city and beyond. It allows us to unearth the next generation of entrepreneurs, change-makers and inventors who will carry our city forward,” the Acting Mayor said.
Experience Gold Coast CEO John Warn encouraged locals to rally behind the next generation’s big thinking.
“The People’s Choice Award gives the community a chance to get behind these students while showing support for the causes closest to their heart,” Mr Warn said.
Voting is open online until 13 October 2025, with the winner to be announced at the Mayor’s Technology & Innovation Awards Pitch & Awards Night at Bond University on 15 October 2025.
Finalists will also undergo a one-day mentorship bootcamp and two online mentoring sessions before battling it out for first place via a shark-tank style pitch presentation on 15 October.
Annabelle Sullivan from Merrimac State High School devised, OceanEye, a network of AI-powered bouys designed to collect and share data on ocean health. Annabelle said she hopes her invention will inspire greater care for the marine environment.
“We believe that making marine science visible will lead to better decisions and stronger community care for the local marine environment,” they said.
“OceanEye is our opportunity to act early, protect the coast we love, and make ocean health something everyone can understand and care about.”
After experiencing a near miss during Cyclone Alfred flash flooding, Jack Benson from Emmanuel College devised FLOOD-Mesh – an innovative, mesh network that monitors real-time flood levels across the Gold Coast to keep residents and first responders safe.
“During Cyclone Alfred, I made the decision to rush to my dad’s house before the roads started flooding In. Luckily, we just managed to make it 30 minutes before the roads flooded, but it was too close for comfort,” he said.
“This experience made it clear just how little real-time information is available to help both residents and potentially first responders to make safe, informed decisions during a severe weather event.”
View the finalist concepts and cast your vote HERE.
2025 Mayor’s Technology and Innovation Awards Finalists:
- SunPost - A.B Paterson College
- FallCast - Robina State High School
- OceanEye - Merrimac State High School
- Project Apollo - Driver Alert Detection - Assisi Catholic College
- Synedra - Somerset College
- FLOOD-Mesh: Flood-Level Observation & Off-grid Data Mesh - Emmanuel Collage
- QuitCloud - Helensvale State High School
- ECHOPODS - Upper Coomera State College
- Yummy - A.B. Paterson College
- Latelink - Queensland Academies for Health Sciences
CONTACT
Hannah Matchett | 0466 631 416 | Hannah.matchett@experiencegoldcoast.com
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
Experience Gold Coast acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we are situated, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region.
We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their continuing connections to the lands, waters and their extended communities throughout Southeast Queensland.