It was such an honour to be invited as a guest speaker for the official opening of the SciFest 2025 National Final, speaking on the topic “From Curiosity to Creativity: How Kids Learn to Code.”
SciFest is Ireland’s largest STEM fair for second-level students, and being asked to open the National Final was a genuinely special moment for me and for The Code Lab. I shared the evening’s speaker line-up with broadcaster and science communicator Philip Smyth, Dr Pınar Arpaçay of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany, and Professor Luke O’Neill of Trinity College Dublin’s School of Biochemistry and Immunology, a line-up I still find hard to believe I was part of.
My talk explored how curiosity and creativity drive the way children learn to code. Growing up surrounded by technology, many young people today are skilled users of it, but rarely understand how it actually works. I spoke about how coding transforms them from passive consumers into active creators, helping them think critically, solve problems, and approach technology with curiosity and confidence rather than simply consuming it. Drawing on my own background in the software industry and my years working in schools across Ireland, I talked about how making coding accessible and fun can empower the next generation of digital creators, something I get to see first-hand every week at The Code Lab. Watching a child move from their very first line of code to building something entirely their own is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do, and it was a privilege to share that journey with an audience so deeply invested in the future of STEM in Ireland.
The National Final itself brought together some of the most talented young scientists and innovators in the country, with exhibition and judging taking place at the Marino Institute of Education in Drumcondra, and the Award Ceremony broadcast live to audiences across Ireland.
Thank you to SciFest and to Sheila and George Porter for the invitation, and for creating a platform that gives young people across Ireland the chance to explore, question, and create. Being part of an event that celebrates curiosity at this scale is exactly why The Code Lab exists, to help every child discover what they’re capable of building.
