Seventy-five innovators, inventors, businesses, startups and initiative groups joined the contest for energy-efficient inventions announced by UNDP in July. The contest revealed everyday solutions that help reduce dependency on fossil fuels, increase the use of renewables and explore innovative ways to save energy and monitor its consumption.

Germany and Qatar supported the initiative as part of their broader assistance to UNDP’s Accelerator Lab.

Nick Beresford, UNDP Resident Representative in Georgia, Lidija Christmann, Head of Development Cooperation at the Embassy of Germany in Georgia, and Nasser Saad Al-Nuaimi, Second Secretary of the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Georgia, announced the winners on 1 November at an awards event attended by representatives of civil society, educational institutions, international organizations and the private sector.

Authors of the five best ideas received GEL20,000 each to prototype and shape their inventions and fast-track their development:

• An electricity generating system equipped with a hydro turbine. Author: Merab Chiraqadze
• A smart energy metre to monitor and regulate expenditures on electricity and gas. Author: Lasha Khutsishvili
• Vertical farming with a consolidated soil system. Author: Jacob Bitsadze
• A car equipped with a solar refrigerator for transporting agricultural produce. Authors: Eliso Ghviniashvili, Nikoloz Medulashvili, Sulkhan Saladze
• Energy efficient bricks. Authors: Amiran Grdzelishvili, Merab Baratashvili