International Young Inventors from Canada Celebrated After Winning S&DR200 Challenge

Alexis Popovitch, Ariana Ajan and Hayley Liang, students from Somerset Academy in Markham, were selected as the only international winners among the five overall winning entries in the S&DR200 challenge, marking a truly special moment in the programme’s history.

Their imaginative invention, The Camp-Star, reimagines abandoned railway carriages as a futuristic, sustainable camping experience - blending creativity, environmental thinking and playful design.

From Sketch to Scale Model

As part of the S&DR200 programme, winning ideas were brought to life as physical models by professional makers. The Camp-Star was realised through a collaboration between Orbital FX and students from The Northern School of Art’s BA (Hons) Model Making & Props programme, who worked together to interpret the girls’ original sketches and transform them into a detailed scale model.

This process reflected a core principle of Little Inventors - that children’s ideas deserve to be treated with care, respect and professional expertise. The finished model was exhibited at Preston Park Museum in the UK as part of the official S&DR200 bicentenary celebrations.

A Civic Celebration in Markham

The girls’ achievement was recently recognised at a celebration event attended by the Mayor of Markham, Frank Scarpitti, who publicly congratulated the team and their school community.

In a post shared on his Instagram, Mayor Scarpitti said:

Proud to recognize Somerset Academy students Ariana Ajan, Hayley Liang, and Alexis Popovitch at Council for their outstanding achievement in a STEM challenge from Stockton & Darlington, England - selected as the only international team of the five winning entries.

He highlighted the ambition behind their idea:

Through the Little Inventors S&DR200 challenge, the students created The Camp-Star - an innovative concept that reimagines abandoned rail cars as a futuristic camping experience.

And celebrated how far their idea travelled:

Their idea was brought to life as a model by Orbital FX and was exhibited at the Preston Park Museum in England.

The Mayor concluded by recognising the wider impact of their work:

A great example of Markham students bringing together innovation, sustainability, and global thinking.

He also congratulated Katherine Kwok, Director of Somerset Academy, Principal Cathy Barogianis, and Jyothy Mathur, STEM Coordinator at Somerset Academy, whose dedication and support made the project possible.

A Truly Global Moment for Little Inventors

For Little Inventors, this moment perfectly captures what the S&DR200 challenge set out to achieve - connecting young people across borders through creativity, imagination and future-focused thinking.

Earlier in the project, a short film captured the joyful moment Alexis, Ariana and Hayley discovered they had been selected as winners. Huge thanks go to Andy Liang for beautifully filming that moment, and to Jyothy Mathur for hosting the event with her trademark warmth and enthusiasm.

Dominic Wilcox, Chief Inventor at Little Inventors, said:

We were thrilled to see an international team win as part of the S&DR200 challenge. Alexis, Ariana and Hayley’s idea was full of imagination and optimism - exactly the kind of thinking we hoped to spark. Seeing their invention brought to life by professional makers and celebrated both in the UK and in Canada shows just how powerful children’s ideas can be when they’re taken seriously.

Celebrating Global Young Creativity

The Camp-Star stands as a shining example of how young people’s ideas can travel far beyond the classroom - from an initial sketch in Canada, to a collaboratively made model by The Northern School of Art and Orbital FX in the UK, and finally to civic recognition back home.

We couldn’t be prouder of Alexis, Ariana and Hayley - and we’re honoured that the S&DR200 challenge helped create a moment of global connection, celebration and inspiration.