KGS Students Win Gold at International Climate Olympiad in Russia

KARACHI: A four-member team from Karachi Grammar School (KGS) has won a gold medal for best team performance at an international Olympiad on climate change and the environment in Sochi, Russia.

The KGS students — Sharym Danish Kalia, Mohammad Aazan Khurrum, Abdullah Siddiqui Ghani and Mohammad Gardezi — also received the Ozon Limited Partners Award for Best Team Project at the Olympiad’s Festival of Projects.

The students shared details of their achievement at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club.

AI Model Explores Urban Heat Solutions

The team’s award-winning project used an artificial intelligence-driven research model to examine ways to reduce urban heat in Karachi and Sochi.

The model combined remote-sensing data, machine learning and microclimate modelling. It studied the potential impact of increasing urban tree-canopy coverage and installing reflective “cool” roofs.

The students said their research focused on data-driven and cost-effective measures to address the urban heat island effect and improve climate resilience in rapidly growing cities.

They added that the AI-based model could help identify suitable heat-mitigation measures in Karachi’s industrial areas. They also called for greater urban forestation across the city to help reduce summer temperatures.

Students Face Advanced Climate Assessments

The International Olympiad tested participants through theoretical examinations, practical field and laboratory work, and interdisciplinary team case studies.

The competition covered environmental science, climate chemistry, thermodynamics, ecosystems and carbon-cycle dynamics.

The practical component included environmental assessments and ecological data analysis in the Caucasus State Nature Reserve and Sochi National Park.

Russian Consul General Congratulates KGS Team

Consul General of the Russian Federation in Karachi Andrey Viktorovich Fedorov said Russia hosted this year’s International Olympiad on Climate Change and the Environment at the University of Sochi, with teams from different countries participating.

He said the Olympiad helped raise awareness of climate and environmental challenges while giving young people from different countries an opportunity to collaborate on potential solutions.

Fedorov congratulated the KGS team on winning the gold medal. He also said Russia continued to expand opportunities for Pakistani students seeking higher education.

KGS Principal Dr Carl P. Lander said he was proud of the students for representing Pakistan internationally. He said their project demonstrated how research, technology and creativity can be applied to challenges facing cities and the planet.