The Caribbean Science Foundation (CSF) held the third annual Caribbean STEM Olympiads (CSO) between January 13 and 19 January in a virtual format.

Individuals and teams representing educational institutions or themselves competed in math, computer coding, and robotics and electronics systems olympiads at three different age levels (12 – 15 years, 16 – 18 years and 19 – 21 years).

In the competitions, the focus was on rewarding inventiveness, as well as critical, logical and analytical thinking. In particular,

The math olympiad was held in a Jeopardy-style format and covered the fundamentals in topics ranging from consumer arithmetic to vector calculus. The computer coding olympiad tasked applicants with creating apps, games, and websites aimed at solving a challenge faced by Caribbean communities.

The challenges tackled by teams in the 2025 Olympiads included geohazards and climate change, cultural preservation, conservation science and ecology, inter and intra-country transportation, food safety and security, safe after-hours transport for women and youth, and financial education.

The robotics and electronics systems olympiad tasked the Level I applicants with building innovative systems from kits, whereas the Level III robotics and electronics systems teams were required to design and assemble their robots starting from the basic components level.

A total of 264 students from nine Caribbean countries registered for the 2025 Olympiads, making it the highest registration to date. After the preliminary rounds, 41 teams (98 students) made it to the finals. There were 34 finalists in the math olympiad, 39 in the computer coding olympiad, and 25 in the robotics and electronics systems olympiad.

Medal certificates and cash prizes of US$500, $400, $300 and $200 were awarded to teams winning platinum, gold, silver, and bronze medals, respectively. The medals and awards ceremony, held last Sunday (January 19), revealed that Jamaica led the medal count with 10 medals, followed by Belize and Guyana with four each; and Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago with each each.

In 2025 platinum medals were awarded to teams who received a final score between 95 per cent and 100 per cent, as the CSF continued to raise the standard of the Olympiads. “Pi Enthusiasts”, a team consisting of Chad Wright and Jaheim Smart who attend Campion College in Jamaica, but represented themselves, gave an outstanding performance and clinched the Level 1 Math Olympiad platinum medal (the only platinum medal awarded in 2025).

Jamaica also won two gold medals, four silver medals and three bronze medals.

Nishanae Williams, a student currently attending Howard University, won a gold medal in Level III of the math olympiad, while Kristian Coke, Ruwan Amarakoon, Demaria Walker and Joseph Udoudo impressed the Level III Computer Coding Olympiad judges with their food safety and security project “Nothing Nuh Grow Suh”, earning them a gold medal.

Nevaeh Scott, Kirabo Musaazi, Damia Sibblies, Leanna Webb who attend Immaculate Conception High School, but represented themselves, won a silver medal in the Level II Robotics & Electronics Systems Olympiad for their automated, solar-powered irrigation system “SolPump – Solar Powered Water Pump for a Small Irrigation System”.

Two of the other silver medals were won by teams in the Computer Coding Olympiad. In Level I, it was a team from Campion College consisting of Matthew Williams, Amari Cross, Tjon Smith and Tori Senior with their video game ‘Power Island‘ in which the player needed to manage a virtual Caribbean island with the goal of creating a sustainable, robust energy system while balancing the needs of the nation’s population, economy, and environment.

In Level III, it was Laraine Williams, a student currently attending the University of the West Indies – Mona, with her financial education game “Finance Fox”.

In Level II of the Math Olympiad, two teams who represented themselves, but attend Campion College, claimed both the silver and the bronze medal.

The silver-medalist team was “Team KSM” consisting of Kayla Wright, Malique Flowers, and Shandon McFarlane, while the bronze-medalist team was “Mathbats” with team members Cody Williamson, Srikar Garimidi, and Jonathan Shaw.

In the Level III Math Olympiad, Debra Amata, a student attending New York University, won a bronze medal, while Jordan Morais-Duke and Ajani Henry earned a bronze medal in Level III of the Computer Coding Olympiad for their project “HerWay Home”, an app designed to address the growing issue of unsafe after-hours transport for women and youth in the Caribbean.

Professor Cardinal Warde, the interim executive director of the CSF said, “I am impressed by the level of achievement of the participants. However, it is clear that the CSF needs to do more to enhance the quantity and quality of robotics and embedded systems in the region. To aid those Robotics & Electronics Systems teams that start early in preparation for the 2026 Olympiads, the CSF will issue a call for proposals to assist such teams in covering the upfront costs of components.”

The competing students also had a lot to say.

Chad Wright of platinum medalist team “Pi Enthusiasts” stated, “I would like to thank the CSF, sponsors and anyone else who contributed for this amazing opportunity. It really helped us to challenge ourselves and meet other people from the Caribbean. It was very fun, and we will be coming back next year.”

Ruwan Amarakoon of “Team 7”, a gold-medalist team, said, “Thank you to the CSF for the opportunity to compete in this competition. Thank you to the sponsors for making this possible. Thank you to the judges. We really appreciated your feedback. You were very detailed with it, and I don’t think we would have been able to get feedback that was that well-structured in other formats. Hopefully we’ll be here next year again.”

Silver-medalist Matthew Williams of “Island Swallowtails” said, “This award is not just a celebration of what my team has done, but a reminder of the potential of Caribbean students waiting to be unlocked, and I just wanted to say, let’s all continue to champion innovation and inspire the next generation of developers.”

Kirabo Musaazi of “Ohm’s Army” who won a silver medal stated, “The competition allowed us to show our passion for electronics, pushed us out of our comfort zone, forced us to try new things, and it was a lot of fun. So, I really enjoyed it, especially since opportunities like this really empower young minds across the Caribbean and really just prove that our region is becoming a global leader for innovation.”

Bronze-medalist Jordan Morais-Duke of “Twin” said, “This is our first year competing, and we must say it was very very competitive as you guys saw from the score sheets. Just wanted to take the time to appreciate the judges and sponsors for the environment created that allowed us, as well as our fellow contestants, to explore new coding languages and apply new concepts into solving relevant issues in our region.”

Institutional sponsors included CIBC Caribbean, Emera Caribbean, Peloton International, Sandals Foundation, and the US Embassy in Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean and the OECS.

The CSF is a regional, non-profit NGO with the mission of assisting with the development and diversification of the economies of the Caribbean Region by promoting STEM education reform and stimulating technology-based entrepreneurship.