Multimedia Student Wins Imagine Cup

Faculty of Information Technology student, Long Zheng was part of the Oz Dream Team who took out the prestigious Microsoft Imagine Cup this year.

Imagine a world where technology enables a sustainable future. This was the challenge set for participants in the 2008 Microsoft Imagine Cup. Regarded by many as the IT equivalent of Australian Idol, students are given a chance to showcase their talent and get a kick-start into the industry.

Berwick multimedia student Long Zheng and his colleagues from the Oz Dream Team took out the top prize in 2008 with a system that's taking on the drought. SOAK (Smart Operational Agricultural Kit), a combination of hardware and software, is designed to assist drought stricken farmers manage their water resources effectively.

Knocking off some of the top university teams, traditionally mentored by senior academics, Oz Dream Team went it alone, worked largely online, had no previous farming experience, and stunned the judges with SOAK's sophistication, affordability and commercial development readiness. "It's not just conceptual, it's functional," said Mr Zheng.

Long will head to Paris this July to represent Australia in the Microsoft Imagine World Cup.

Stay tuned for the Imagine Cup in 2009!

Further information on the winning project