Congratulations to Abigail Van Ballegooyen, a Year 7 student at Merici College, Braddon, who is the 2020 Origin Little Big Idea winner.

Origin Energy’s Little Big Idea is a national competition designed to foster creativity and innovation in young Australians. Twelve-year-old Abigail has been awarded $10,000 after being named the national winner in the Years 7 to 8 category. Selected from over 2000 entries, Abigail’s award-winning idea, Safety Sound, is designed to make school zones safer for children.

The Safety Sound features Bluetooth technology that sends voice alerts to drivers’ mobiles, reminding them to slow down as they approach a school zone.

Her idea was inspired by her own research into school zone accidents. Abigail realised one day while driving to school with her dad, speed signs could be easily missed. Initially she thought of a device that could be installed in cars that would mechanically slow down speeding cars in school zones.

“I realised how dangerous it could be to have a car slow down mechanically, without involving the driver” she said. “I had to think of a solution that would remind people to slow down. You can’t really miss a voice,” she said.

In October, Abigail was announced as one of the Top 12 inventors for 2020. She received an initial $1,000 towards her education, her ideas illustrated by a professional artist and mentoring support from the Little Big Ideas judges.