Trip of a lifetime for Limerick student who is representing Ireland in Arizona, US

A LIMERICK student is in with a chance of securing a trip of a lifetime to represent Ireland on an international stage.

Arlen Casey-Nehrig, a transition year student in Limerick City East Secondary School in Castletroy, has won the prestigious EirGrid Cleaner Climate Award following his success at the SciFest@College 2025.

Arlen will now progress to the SciFest national final in November, for a chance to represent Ireland at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair in May 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona, US.

Students from schools across Limerick and neighbouring counties came together with their second-level student peers and teachers to compete in the STEM fair, exhibiting projects covering a broad range of topics and disciplines from health and physics to renewable energy and AI.

Arlen impressed judges with his project entitled Project Zephyr, which focused on generating energy from cars on our motorways using a vertical-axis wind turbine (VAWT) - a type of wind turbine where the axis of rotation of the rotor is perpendicular to the wind direction.

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Catherine Daly, sustainability programme manager at EirGrid, congratulated Arlen on his award.

“For 20 years, SciFest has been at the heart of inspiring innovation from secondary level students, and we are incredibly proud to continue to support this endeavour.

“As we work to ensure 80% of Ireland’s electricity comes from renewable sources, as per government targets, we recognise the importance of fostering a future generation of problem solvers and critical thinkers, to transition to a clean, renewable energy grid.

“EirGrid is playing a central role in achieving Ireland’s climate ambitions and the level of engagement from students at ATU Galway today showed the interest surrounding the environment and renewable energy.”

SciFest@College is a programme of STEM fairs for second-level students, taking place in 16 regional colleges across Ireland.

For two decades, SciFest has been a platform for second-level students to showcase their creativity, innovation and research skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

As a partner in SciFest, EirGrid, the operator and developer of Ireland's electricity system, delivers the Cleaner Climate Award as recognition of the critical role young people play in shaping a sustainable future.

The prize is awarded to the student or team whose project demonstrates both technical excellence and a tangible positive impact to energy and environmental sustainability.