Boyacá students win top prize at STEM+ Colombia 2026 water‑restoration project
The team named “Artesanos del Agua”, composed of students from Instituto Técnico Nueva Familia – Sede Higueras in Boyacá, earned the highest score in the Category A Junior division of the STEM+ Colombia 2026 competition, beating more than 500 participating groups nationwide. Their award‑winning proposal is an automated incubator that produces clay spheres inoculated with beneficial microorganisms; the system incorporates solar panels, precise electronic sensors and micro:bit programming to control temperature and humidity. Once prepared, the spheres are placed in water sources to speed up natural decontamination and biological restoration of streams.
After ranking among the 100 best schools, the delegation will travel to Tenjo, Cundinamarca, to present the prototype in the competition’s on‑site phase and demonstrate its technical viability. Educational authorities and teachers praised the project’s transformative potential for public classrooms and pledged to replicate the model in other municipalities facing water‑pollution problems.
Entities: Artesanos del Agua · Boyacá Department · Instituto Técnico Nueva Familia – Sede Higueras · STEM+ Colombia 2026 · Tenjo, Cundinamarca
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 3 SOURCES] More than 500 groups competed in the STEM+ Colombia 2026 competition. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The winning project is an automated incubator for clay spheres loaded with beneficial microorganisms. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The incubator uses solar panels, precise electronic sensors and micro:bit programming to regulate temperature and humidity. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The team “Artesanos del Agua” from Instituto Técnico Nueva Familia – Sede Higueras obtained the highest score in Category A Junior of the STEM+ Colombia 2026 competition. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The team qualified among the top 100 schools and will present the project at the on‑site phase in Tenjo, Cundinamarca. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] The clay spheres are placed in water sources to accelerate natural decontamination and biological restoration of streams. (all)
- [● 3 SOURCES] Educational authorities praised the project’s transformative impact and pledged to promote the model in other municipalities with water‑pollution problems. (all)