Carlow TY students crowned winners with their impressive new innovation for farmers
Students Katelyn Dempsey and Conán Mulvihill emerged as overall winners with their project, Spray Smart
Agri Aware and BiOrbic crowned students from Tullow Community School in Carlow as the National Champions of the transition year programme Environmental Innovators for 2026.
The event was held last Friday May 8th at the Bord Bia Global Hub in Co. Dublin.
Students Katelyn Dempsey and Conán Mulvihill emerged as overall winners with their project, Spray Smart, a spraying suitability website designed to support farmers in navigating pesticide and nitrate regulations.
The judges were particularly impressed by the platform’s design, innovation, and practical application within the agricultural sector.
Katelyn and Conán developed the website as an accessible tool to help farmers better understand and comply with environmental regulations, with the aim of reducing land pollution and river runoff.
Ten finalist groups were selected from 105 schools to attend the event at Bord Bia Global Hub, where they showcased their projects to leading agri-food stakeholders.
Agri Aware Chairman Shay Galvin said of the event: “We are delighted to once again attend a successful Peer Day for the Environmental Innovators programme.
"This year’s event showcased outstanding knowledge and innovation across 10 finalist projects. Tullow Community School were deserving winners, and congratulations to both the students and their teacher on their achievement. Finally, sincere thanks to our partners, BiOrbic, and the supporting agrifood stakeholders who joined us to celebrate the occasion and select our National Winner for 2026.”