Innovation4All 2025 Winners Announced

by | Jul 9, 2025 | Innovation4All | 0 comments

Innovation4All 2025 winners photo. Tech4All Trustees - Lucy Rogers and Stefan Kukula by Mark Witter photography
The 2025 Innovation4All award took place at the Engineers Trust Awards Dinner at Goldsmiths Hall, where Tech4All awarded two winners. Left to Right: Dr. Lucy Rogers, trustee at Tech4All, and one of the judges. The winners, in the middle, Sarah Cottee of Immi Health and David Baulis of Chimneys for Africa. Dr. Stefan Kukula Tech4All Trustee. Photo courtesy of Mark Witter Photography.

For 2025, two outstanding projects were recognised with awards worth up to £20,000 each: Sarah Cottee of Immi Health Ltd and David Baulis of Chimneys for Africa

Winner: Sarah Cottee, Founder & CEO, Immi Health Ltd

pictured above receiving her Award from Dr Shini Somara with Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN [photo courtesy of Mark Witter Photography]

Pictured above receiving her award from Dr Shini Somara, alongside Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP, and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN.
[Photo credit: Mark Witter Photography]

Project – “It’s Time to Know”

(Empowering young women with a simple, innovative solution)

Across the globe, 1.9 billion women menstruate, yet many still have limited understanding of their menstrual cycles. This knowledge gap is even more significant in low and middle-income countries, where over 900 million women lack access to mobile internet and modern contraception. As a result, misinformation can lead to unintended pregnancies, missed school days, and long-term health risks. Each year, an estimated half a million girls aged 10–14 and over 12 million girls aged 15–19 give birth.

While much effort has focused on providing sanitary products, there has been less emphasis on helping women track their cycles effectively. Traditional tracking tools — like paper charts or necklaces — are static, require manual calculation, and don’t adapt to an individual’s cycle.

Immi Health’s breakthrough is a first-of-its-kind, low-tech digital watch that works independently of smartphones or apps. It learns each user’s unique cycle, giving timely alerts for upcoming periods and indicating their most fertile days. This simple device helps women take charge of their menstrual and reproductive health in a way that’s accessible, culturally appropriate, and tailored to their needs.

Pilots run with UNFPA in Burkina Faso and Moldova have shown remarkable impact: nine out of ten girls reported that the watch has changed their lives. In Moldova, knowledge about periods and fertile windows doubled; in Burkina Faso, it quadrupled. Many girls now feel more prepared, knowing when to carry pads or spare underwear.

The new funding will support expansion across West Africa, working alongside UNFPA and UNICEF to introduce the watches in Liberia and explore social franchising as a scalable, sustainable model for this vital innovation.

Winner: David Baulis, Co-Founder and Designer, Chimneys for Africa

David receiving his Award from Dr Shini Somara with Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN [photo courtesy of Mark Witter Photography]

Pictured above receiving his award from Dr Shini Somara, with Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP, and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN.
[Photo credit: Mark Witter Photography]

Project – “Chimneys for Africa”

(Protecting health and extending lives by tackling household air pollution)

Over 900 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa — and about one-third of the world’s population — still rely on open fires or inefficient stoves for cooking. The resulting household air pollution claims around 3.2 million lives every year, including 237,000 children, making it deadlier than AIDS and malaria combined. Indoor fires, while deeply rooted in tradition and valued for the taste they impart to food, expose families to harmful smoke that can cause birth defects, respiratory illness, and vision problems.

People continue this practice due to cultural traditions, the unique taste of food cooked over open flames, the unreliability of modern fuel sources in many regions, and the fact that wood or charcoal gathered locally is often free compared to purchased fuel or electricity.

Working closely with local communities, Chimneys for Africa has created a simple yet effective chimney design that fits seamlessly into traditional cooking practices. Easy to make and install with local materials, these chimneys dramatically cut indoor air pollution without requiring families to change how they cook.

The award funding will help develop a long-term plan for local manufacturing and training, empowering communities to build, install, and maintain the chimneys themselves — driving sustainable adoption and improving health for generations to come.

About the Innovation4All Grant

Launched in 2023 by Tech4All; a UK-based charity, in association with the Worshipful Company of Engineers. This charitable grant rewards the most innovative engineering solutions aimed at tackling poverty.

The Worshipful Company of Engineers Charitable Trust (Engineers Trust) champions excellence in engineering research and education.

Source: Innovation4All Award 2025

Since 1996, the Tech4All has supported a wide range of impactful charitable and social enterprise initiatives and provides grants, and works to reduce poverty.

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