DJI and DigiDIRECT provided the sponsorships that put the incredible One Giant Leap Australia Space Camp 2020 Tour into the grasp of two Australian students. The process was gruelling, and the competition was tough. Luke Pringle from Cherrybrook Technology High and Georgia Diab from Cerdon College found they have the ‘Right Stuff’ and gained $3500 scholarships to assist them in achieving lifelong dreams to go with One Giant Leap Australia on their annual Space Camp USA Tour.
In his application, Luke highlighted the issue of interplanetary travel. “My dream is to one day walk on Mars and even though there are many difficult challenges to overcome such as fuel, finances, political issues, propulsion, habitation, sustainability, calculations etc. I believe that no goal is unachievable. Whether it is me or someone else standing on the red planet, I want to know that I have contributed in some way to this milestone in human achievement.”
Georgia was not confident in her application. Her mother kept telling her to ‘believe in yourself’ but Georgia kept thinking she would never get the scholarship, that others would be far better than her. She has now realised that you need to take every opportunity in life because if you don’t try you will never know. “I am determined to prove that as a participant of your camp, I can demonstrate how much your opportunity would change the course of my career.”
She wrote in her application, “I seek to one day look around and be conscious of what exists with us in the universe and be able to look upon future generations and know I contributed to their knowledge of space.”
To gain this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, applicants first answered several questions. The answers were scrutinised by the One Giant Leap Australia Foundation Student Ambassadors. They selected the top 10. These applicants then had a virtual interview with Jackie and Bob Carpenter from One Giant Leap Australia Foundation on Skype. For more than 30 minutes, contenders were questioned and grilled – answering many different questions and asked about the finer points of their applications. The top 4 were selected and then had a phone interview with Adam Bradley, the latest expert to join One Giant Leap Australia Foundation as an advisor. Adam said the job had been extremely difficult, but he felt that he needed to choose the two applicants would benefit the most from the experience and that the gaining of the scholarship would be something that would signify a great change in their lives.
“DJI is proud to support One Giant Leap Australia Foundation it is such a worthy cause, in helping our youth to achieve their dreams in science and technology. We congratulate Luke Pringle and Georgia Diab in winning the part scholarship, and hope the scholarship is a steppingstone towards their future dreams,” said Jeff Bethell.
One Giant Leap Australia has been taking Australians to Space Camp USA since 2008. This bespoke program occurs once a year and it is unique in the planning. Adults and students (aged 10 and over) have the most incredible experiences in the USA – from Disneyland and Universal Studios to the California Science centre and Space Camp USA – they also have a private dinner meeting NASA JPL scientists and engineers, visiting space companies and meeting other like-minded individuals. The annual One Giant Leap Australia Space Camp 2020 Tour should leave Sydney on 30th September and return on 11th October.
Not one small step, but one giant leap for Luke Pringle and Georgia Diab! Congratulations to these outstanding applicants!
Further information:
Jackie Carpenter
One Giant Leap Australia Foundation
0412326509
