03Challenge themes
Six pathways for real-world problems
Each team picks one theme at registration. A theme sets the territory; you choose the specific problem to solve within it. Every brief below is context, not an assignment.
Don’t start with a solution. Start with a problem.
You don’t need to arrive with a product. Watch a real situation closely: who runs into the problem, how often, and why it keeps happening. Look at what people already do about it and where those attempts fall short. Then define the one specific problem your team will take on.
- Observe
- Question
- Research
- Define
- Design
What are the challenges in Prodigy Ideathon?
Prodigy Ideathon has six challenge themes: Aqua Next (water), Circular Futures (waste and materials), Sustainability Frontiers (climate, energy and environment), EduNova (education), HealthForward (health) and Open Impact (any meaningful real-world problem outside the other five). Each team selects one theme at registration, then researches and defines its own specific problem within that pathway. The briefs below give the context to do that. They never prescribe a solution.
Aqua Next
Water conservation, quality, access, monitoring, efficiency and responsible use.
Why this matters
Water problems go well beyond scarcity. Communities also deal with leaks, contamination, wasteful use, unequal access and almost no visibility into how water is actually consumed. A small inefficiency in one home or one classroom looks trivial — repeated every day across a neighbourhood, it becomes a serious loss.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- Where and when water is actually being wasted
- Which activities consume the most water
- How leaks and quality problems are noticed today — and how late
- What stops people from changing an inefficient habit
- Where existing monitoring has blind spots
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- A school that cannot tell where its water is going
- A household that finds out about a leak only when the bill arrives
- A community with no simple way to know whether a water source is safe
- A farm irrigating on a fixed schedule rather than on what the crop needs
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- How might a school lower its daily water use without disrupting routines?
- What would help a household detect a leak or contamination problem sooner?
- How could farmers give crops only the water they actually need?
- How might people see their water consumption before it becomes waste?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- A school cannot tell where its daily water is going, so leaks and waste stay hidden.
- A household learns about a leak only when the bill arrives.
- A community has no simple way to know whether a drinking source is safe that day.
- A farm waters on a fixed timetable rather than on what the crop actually needs.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- How water use would be measured without expensive infrastructure
- Who would check, maintain and act on the information
- Whether the idea still works when pressure is low or supply is irregular
- Cost for a school, household or small farm
- Whether people would actually change a daily habit
What to research
- Observe when and where water is used over several days
- Read recent water bills or pump-hour logs if they exist
- Talk to the people who actually fetch, store or pay for water
- Map leaks, overflow and unused storage on one site
- Find out how quality or contamination is checked today
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- A simple measurement of litres used or wasted over a set period
- Photographs or notes of leaks, overflow or unused storage
- Quotes from students, staff, residents or farmers
- A comparison between current practice and one small change you tested
Suggested metrics for impact
- Litres saved per day or per week
- Time taken to notice a leak
- Share of taps or tanks that are monitored
- Reuse rate of suitable wastewater
- Number of people who can read the water information without help
Circular Futures
Waste reduction, segregation, recycling, reuse, circular systems and responsible consumption.
Why this matters
Most products are built for a straight line: take materials, make something, use it, throw it away. Valuable material is lost at the end because the systems for separating, repairing, reusing and recovering it are inconvenient or poorly joined up. A circular approach tries to keep material in use for longer.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- Which waste is generated most often, and where
- Why useful material ends up as waste
- Where segregation breaks down in practice
- What makes people skip reuse or repair
- Where incentives push people the wrong way
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- A locality where recyclable and organic waste keep getting mixed
- A school producing large amounts of single-use material
- A product thrown away even though most of it still works
- A repair network that is hard for ordinary consumers to reach
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- How might a neighbourhood keep wet and dry waste genuinely separate, every day?
- What everyday product could be redesigned to stay useful for longer?
- Why do people discard things that could be repaired or reused?
- How could local waste systems make responsible disposal the easy option?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- Wet and dry waste are mixed at the point of disposal, so recycling never starts.
- A school produces large amounts of single-use material every week.
- A product is thrown away even though most of it still works.
- People who could repair or reuse an item have no easy way to do so.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- Hygiene and smell in daily use
- Who collects, sorts or repairs, and whether they are paid fairly
- Whether recovered material is actually usable
- Convenience compared with throwing everything in one bin
- What happens when the idea leaves one street or one school
What to research
- Weigh or count waste from one location for a few days
- Watch where segregation actually fails
- Talk to waste workers, canteen staff or shopkeepers
- Trace one common item from purchase to disposal
- Find out what already exists for repair, reuse or recycling nearby
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- A breakdown of what is thrown away most often
- Notes from people who handle waste or repairs every day
- A small trial of a sorting, reuse or take-back step
- Before-and-after counts of mixed versus separated waste
Suggested metrics for impact
- Share of waste kept separate at source
- Kilograms diverted from mixed disposal per week
- Number of items repaired or reused instead of discarded
- Time or extra steps required of the user
- Quality of the recovered material for a second use
Sustainability Frontiers
Climate, energy, sustainable living, green technology, biodiversity and environmental resilience.
Why this matters
Climate and environmental pressures shape how communities live, move, use energy and cope with extreme conditions. Sustainability is not only about lowering impact — it is also about helping people, buildings and ecosystems stay resilient when conditions get harder.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- How extreme heat affects people in your area
- Where energy is being used without anyone noticing
- What makes a sustainable choice hard to make
- How the loss of green cover changes a place
- Which local environmental changes people can actually measure
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- A school that becomes hard to use during a heatwave
- A household that cannot tell where most of its electricity goes
- A neighbourhood steadily losing useful green cover
- A community with no simple way to prepare for climate disruptions
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- How might a community stay safe and functional through an extreme-heat week?
- What would help a family measure — and then cut — its energy use?
- How might a school make its sustainability visible and measurable?
- How can local biodiversity be protected in spaces where people already live?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- A school becomes hard to use during a heatwave.
- A household cannot tell where most of its electricity goes.
- A neighbourhood is steadily losing useful green cover.
- A community has no simple way to prepare for a climate disruption it already faces.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- Affordability for the people who would use it
- What happens in the hottest or wettest week of the year
- Maintenance after the first month
- Whether it needs behaviour change, hardware, or both
- Local conditions that a generic idea would miss
What to research
- Record indoor and outdoor temperatures or energy use for a few days
- Map shade, trees and heat-exposed spaces on one campus or street
- Ask families how they cope during extreme heat
- Read a recent electricity bill with the household
- Note which sustainable choices people skip because they are inconvenient
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- Temperature, shade or energy readings you collected
- A simple map of heat, green cover or energy waste
- Interviews with students, residents or facility staff
- A small trial that reduced heat exposure or energy use
Suggested metrics for impact
- Degrees cooler in a used space at peak heat
- Kilowatt-hours reduced per week
- Square metres of useful shade or green cover added or protected
- Number of people who can act on the information without extra cost
- Hours a building stays usable during extreme conditions
EduNova
Learning, accessibility, student experience, teacher support, educational technology and future-ready learning.
Why this matters
Schools serve students with very different needs, circumstances and access to resources. Many of the hardest problems are invisible from outside a classroom — missed learning, overloaded teachers, accessibility barriers, and study routines that quietly do not work.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- Why students fall behind, and when it starts
- Which teacher tasks eat time without adding value
- Where students struggle to reach learning at all
- What happens when a student misses several weeks
- Which parts of learning could adapt to the individual
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- A student coming back after a month away from school
- A teacher spending hours on repetitive administrative work
- A student blocked from learning material by an accessibility barrier
- A school that spots learning gaps only at exam time
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- How might a student who missed a month catch up without falling further behind?
- What would genuinely give a teacher back an hour a day?
- How might learning resources become usable for more students?
- How could a school identify learning gaps earlier?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- A student who missed a month of school has no realistic way to catch up.
- A teacher spends hours on repetitive work that does not help learning.
- A student is blocked from the same material as classmates by an accessibility barrier.
- A school notices learning gaps only at exam time.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- Teacher time: does this add work or remove it?
- Devices, connectivity and privacy at school and at home
- A wide range of abilities in one room
- Whether students can use it without constant adult help
- Cost for a school that is not already well resourced
What to research
- Sit with a student who has fallen behind and map where the gap started
- Ask teachers which tasks consume time without helping learning
- Watch how students actually use notes, homework and class tools
- Identify who cannot access the same materials as others
- Find out when the school currently spots a learning gap
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- A short case of one student’s gap and what was tried
- A time log of a repetitive teacher task
- Feedback from students who struggle to access materials
- A small trial of an earlier check or a catch-up step
Suggested metrics for impact
- Time for a returning student to reach the current class work
- Teacher hours saved on a named task per week
- Share of students who can use the resource without extra help
- How early a gap is noticed compared with the current exam cycle
- Completion or understanding on a small, defined skill
HealthForward
Preventive health, wellbeing, accessibility, awareness, healthcare systems and technology-enabled support.
Why this matters
Health problems are often much harder to deal with once they are noticed late. Prevention, awareness, early support and easier access to reliable information can change how things turn out — well before a situation becomes serious.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- Why people put off preventive care
- What makes reliable health information hard to find or use
- Where healthcare systems add friction that is not needed
- How a wellbeing concern could be noticed earlier
- Which groups face the steepest access barriers
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- People forgetting or delaying preventive check-ups
- Students without an easy route to reliable wellbeing resources
- Families finding it confusing to navigate healthcare
- People with disabilities facing barriers to health services
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- How might a school notice a student needs wellbeing support sooner?
- What would make a preventive check-up feel like a normal habit?
- How could health information become easier to understand and reach?
- Where do people lose time or clarity while navigating healthcare?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- A school has no early, practical way to notice that a student needs wellbeing support.
- Preventive check-ups are delayed until something is already wrong.
- Families find health information confusing or hard to trust.
- People lose time and clarity while navigating appointments or services.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- Privacy and who can see sensitive information
- Accuracy: the idea must not invent medical advice
- Access for people with disabilities or limited literacy
- Trust: why would a family believe this source?
- Clear limits: it must not diagnose or replace a clinician
What to research
- Ask students and staff how wellbeing concerns are raised today
- Map the steps a family takes to book or attend a check-up
- Compare two sources of health information for clarity and trust
- Note where people with disabilities hit a barrier
- Find out what the school is already allowed to do
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- An anonymised journey map of seeking help or a check-up
- Quotes about why people delay or get stuck
- A comparison of confusing versus clearer information
- A small, non-clinical trial of an earlier signpost or reminder
Suggested metrics for impact
- Time from first concern to a known support route
- Share of families who complete a planned preventive visit
- Number of steps removed from a booking or navigation path
- Whether the information can be used without a specialist reading it
- Uptake of a signpost to a qualified service, not a self-diagnosis
This theme is about prevention, awareness and access. Solutions must not diagnose medical conditions or stand in for qualified healthcare professionals.
Open Impact
Any meaningful real-world problem that does not fit neatly under the other five themes.
Why this matters
Not every important problem belongs to a category. This pathway is for the challenges you notice in everyday life — in public spaces, civic systems, livelihoods, safety, accessibility, culture and the way services do or do not connect.
Who / what is affected
Problem areas to explore
What to investigate
- A problem people run into again and again
- Who is affected, and how often
- What actually causes it
- What solutions already exist
- Why those solutions fall short
Constraints to consider
Example problem directions
- A public-space problem people have simply learned to tolerate
- An accessibility barrier that limits everyday participation
- A local livelihood problem that current systems handle badly
- A recurring community problem that no one owns
Examples of the kind of problem to look for — not problems you must solve.
Questions to start from
- What problem do you walk past every day that nobody seems to be fixing?
- Whose everyday life would change most if this were solved well?
- What system around you works poorly, even though everyone has adapted to it?
- What problem exists only because two groups or services do not connect?
Possible contexts
Example problem statements
- A public-space problem people have learned to tolerate rather than fix.
- An accessibility barrier that limits who can take part in everyday life.
- A local livelihood issue that current systems handle badly.
- A recurring community problem that no person or office clearly owns.
Starting points for observation. They are not problems you must solve, and they are not finished ideas.
What a strong solution might consider
- Who is affected, how often, and who is left out of the usual conversation
- Whether the idea creates a new problem for someone else
- Cost, adoption and who would run it after the pitch
- Local rules, safety and access
- Why existing attempts have fallen short
What to research
- Watch the problem at the time and place it actually happens
- Talk to the people who live with it, not only to officials
- Find what solutions already exist and where they stop working
- Count how often it occurs in a defined period
- Identify who currently “owns” it, if anyone
Evidence that could strengthen a solution
- Observation notes from more than one visit
- A count or simple map of how often it happens
- Interviews with affected people and, where possible, service staff
- A small test of one change in a real setting
Suggested metrics for impact
- How often the problem occurs after the proposed change
- Number of people who can complete the task who could not before
- Time, cost or risk removed from one defined journey
- Whether the people most affected would actually use it
- A clear owner for the next step after the pitch
Is this a good problem to work on?
Run a candidate problem through this before you commit. Teams are judged on the quality of their reasoning — not on how futuristic the idea sounds.
- It is a real problem, not a hypothetical one.
- You can name who experiences it.
- You can observe or research it directly.
- It happens often enough to matter.
- You understand why it happens.
- The solutions that already exist are not enough.
- You can realistically propose an improvement.
- You can explain why your solution should work.
You’re evaluated on the quality of your thinking. Expensive hardware, complex technology or AI do not make a solution better on their own — the reasoning does.
- Problem understanding
- Did you identify the right problem?
- Research
- Did you investigate the people, the context and the causes?
- Originality
- Does your approach add meaningful value?
- Solution quality
- Does the proposed solution actually address the problem?
- Impact
- Who benefits, and how?
- Defence
- Can you explain and defend your reasoning?
Take part
Pick a theme. Find a problem worth solving.
Registration opens the challenge for your school's teams. Each team chooses one of the six pathways when they register.