Agastya International Foundation (Agastya) and Honeywell  India have partnered to launch Honeywell Science Experience—an integrated learning program to cultivate curiosity, nurture creativity, and instill confidence among middle and high school students in government schools. Honeywell India will support 11 science centers, 10 mobile science labs, and 1,100 young instructor leaders, benefiting more than 48,000 students and 200 teachers in Bangalore, Gurgaon and Delhi from 2016 to 2019.

Curiosity, creativity, and confidence are critical life skills that can help children and teachers to excel in life. The program aims to spark, nurture, and instill these qualities to help develop creative-thinking and problem-solving abilities in children. Through its uniquely scalable, hands-on teaching-learning methods, the program aims to foster child and teacher participation in experiential learning, and boost science education.

Speaking at the launch, chief guest Dr. Mylswamy Annadurai, Director, ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC), Bangalore, said, “It is important to understand the basic concepts in science. Science teaches us to be curious, learn about how things function, and understand the world around us. It improves critical thinking, and the very ability of a child to be a better person and succeed in life. I congratulate Agastya and Honeywell on this initiative, and hope the program will change the way education is imparted and received in the country.”

Ramji Raghavan, Founder and Chairman, Agastya, said, “We run one of the world's largest hands-on science education programs for economically disadvantaged children and teachers. Support from partners like Honeywell helps us create the right infrastructure, and get practical technology inputs to make such a program sustainable and effective.”

Mehul Patel, Country Leader, Honeywell Technology Solutions, India, added, “As a global technology leader and a top recruiter of technology talent with more than 8,000 engineers in India, Honeywell understands the importance of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. We are excited to work with Agastya to inspire the next generation of innovators and scientists in the country.”

Agastya believes that innovative, fun, and student-friendly solutions are needed to enable scientific learning among children, especially those in rural and remote regions. The foundation’s programs have already benefited more than eight million children and 200,000 teachers in 18 states in India.