Solar team inspires students

Andrea Roberts
Times Contributor

 

The University of Calgary’s Solar Car team visited Strathmore schools on May 6.
The team spent the day chatting with students while showing off one of their solar cars, the Schulich Delta.
The visit was part of their community outreach program with the goal of engaging in community awareness and encouraging sustainability. The hope of the program is to educate students about renewable energy and inspire them.
“It is to push innovation into school and encourage scientific spirit,” said team member and Strathmore High School alumni Jonah Zankl.
He has been part of the team for two years and manages the business side of the team. He feels like the project is a fun and good way to give back to the community, which is why they came to Strathmore.
“I wanted to make sure that we went back to all the schools that I went to,” said Zankl. “We really want to involve science into the community.”
The team, which consists of University of Calgary students from all programs, has been building cars since 2004 in response to the North American solar car challenge that ended in Calgary. The cars are completely student run so all the design, sponsorship, fundraising building and driving is done by the University’s students. According to the team’s website, the Schulich Delta was built in 2012/2013 and took eight months to design, three months to mold and three months to build.