A group of students from Rotorua have transformed native berries into energy-conducting solar cells in a novel superconductivity experiment.
The students from Rotorua Primary School, who call themselves Eco Warriors, used berries, fruit leaves and grass from their ngahere (forest) to create a sustainable alternative to traditional solar cell materials.
The experiment was part of a partnership with the Dodd-Walls Centre and researchers from Victoria University.
Scientists flew up to teach the students how to grind up the berries into juice and then to wedge the juice between two bits of glass that are treated so they're conductive.
The berry juice then absorbs sunlight and gives off electrons, which then give off electricity.
The students used the turutu berry, a bright blue blueberry that grows just down the road in Whakarewarewa. The berry is not edible by humans and may be poisonous if eaten in large amounts, but it is attractive to birds.
Calum Gordon, a scientist from Victoria University, said he was impressed by the students' curiosity and enthusiasm.
"I think really the main thing is showing that science isn't a bogeyman. Anyone can kind of do it, and it's really great that we can teach these intermediate students some quite complicated scientific ideas."
The Eco Warriors said they learned a lot from the experiment and had big dreams for their future. Hikaia, one of the students, said he wanted to be a technician or a high school teacher, while Maia said she wanted to become a doctor or an astronomer.
One local leader, anthropologist Hine Hirewini, hopes its use will now inspire young minds.
"I say awesome because I find with Māori, we don't have enough scientists, and if we can push our rangatahi towards this sort of thing, I'm pretty sure there'll be better for it."
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