FGC Team Albania is a group of eleven young engineers aged 14-18, who have all been involved in various FIRST programs or robotics competitions before: Arlin Cobo (15, Programmer and Builder), Arlind Tandili (17, Builder and Social Media Manager), Blerti Zotaj (16, Mechanic), Dea Dervishi (17, Mechanic), Ditri Collaku (17, PR and Programmer), Eda Rrushi (Programmer and Mechanic), Ersa Rrushi (Programmer and Mechanic), Joana Cobo (15, Programmer), Joni Sina (3D Design), Klesta Ademaj (Mechanic) and Skerdiland Bilibashi (3D Modeling and Mechanic). The students are all truly passionate about robotics and have attended various international robotics and programming competitions, including Technovation, FTC, FLL, and previous FGC editions. They are guided and supported by Eda Peshku (Technical Mentor) and Juljan Grori (Team Manager), who voluntarily made themselves available to share their knowledge in the field of robotics with the students. Through hard work and dedication, Team Albania’s main goal is to foster the development of STEM within the Albanian youth community, in order to help Tirana become an important innovation centre in Eastern Europe.

This year’s theme particularly, Hydrogen Horizons, is more significant than ever as we face the annually increasing threats of climate change, and therefore generating as much renewable energy as possible presents a potential solution to that through the aim of mitigating climate change. Renewable energy sources provide little to no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, helping to reduce our carbon footprint and limit the impacts of climate change. For Team Albania, this fits in very well with the already existing energy providing practices in our country, which fully relies on renewable energy through our hydro power plants. Having abundant water resources, hydropower is the primary renewable energy source in our country. However, FGC’s emphasis on renewable energy this year throws light at the issue of diversifying sources and not being limited from climate dependent ones such as hydropower, but instead also looking at wind and solar energy.

The team can’t wait to show the world what it is capable of doing and is looking forward to seeing their fellow young engineers in this year’s Solution Challenge for the FGC!

Blerti Zotaj: My name is Blerti and I am a Secondary third-year student at Tirana International School (TIS), Albania. I was always interested in robotics and when I joined TIS as a Secondary third-student I participated in my first robotics event, CEESA robotics. Future fields of study that I am interested in are computer science, physics and engineering. In this event I am a team builder.

Arlind Tandili: My name is Arlind and I am a senior at Tirana International School (TIS). I have previously been a part of the TIS robotics team that competed in CEESA. My skills and interests lay in building. Recently, I also took over the team’s official social media accounts and I’m currently managing them. In the future, I intend to pursue a career in medicine, and I’m hoping to use robotics to advance medical technology and improve the lives of my patients.

Dea Dervishi : I’m Dea, a rising senior at Tirana International School. I’m excited to return to the FIRST Global Challenge in 2023, following my participation in the previous year’s event focused on Carbon Capture. My journey into robotics began when I first took technology and programming classes at the age of 12, and my involvement in a robotics competition further ignited my passion for the field. I’m proud to be part of a team of young builders and engineers representing my country on the global stage. Having the role of a builder, I wish to work collectively with my teammates, bringing both technical expertise, problem-solving skills and a keen eye for innovation. As I look ahead to my future, I’m particularly interested in exploring the realm of medicine. With my sights set on this field of study, I aim to utilize my skills in robotics to make meaningful contributions to the healthcare industry.

Ditri Collaku: Hi, I’m Ditri and I’m a senior at Tirana International School (TIS), Albania. I’m a returning participant at the FIRST Global Challenge and I’m excited for my second year as part of this event! I became interested in robotics when I first attended robotic/programming classes at the age of 8. Future fields of study that I’m interested in are medicine and engineering. This year I am one of the team’s programmers as well as in charge of PR.

Klesta Ademaj: Hello, I am Klesta Ademaj. I am 17 years old and I finished the second year at the “Turgut Ozal” High School. As for the activities, I participated in many activities inside and outside the school. I have been at TUMO for about 2 years, where I have successfully completed more than 12 workshops in fields such as animation, game development, programming, film making, graphic design. In addition to workshops, I have completed clubs with diverse themes such as Metaverse Club, Drawing club, Cipher Party Club and Character Creation. I participated in many Hackathons and Mock Debates. I also participated in the national Informatics Olympiad. I won 3rd place in Web Design in the ASEF competition and first place in Game Design. Other international competitions in which I participated are OWLYMPIA and World Scholars Cup , where I received gold medals for debate and essay. I am part of a volunteer organization “New Vision Organization” where I recently started an internship for the marketing part. I also did many trainings on Soft Skills and Leadership. I was part of an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange in Berlin which was part of a project called “Becoming Digitally Conscious” where we learned how to use technology in the best way.

Arlin Cobo: Hello! My name is Arlin and I am a Secondary third-year student at Tirana International School (TIS), Albania. I became interested in robotics when I participated in CEESA robotics at 13 years old. Ever since then I have developed an interest in programming. This is my second year participating in First Global and I am a programmer for the team but I also help with building. Future fields of study I am interested in are microbiology and biotechnology.

Joana Cobo: Hello, I’m Joana and I am 15 years old. This is my second year participating in FGC. I chose to be part of robotics because I enjoy seeing how my program translates to a robot and how everything is put together. I first joined robotics when I was 11 and have been passionate ever since. I am the team’s programmer.

Eda Rrushi: Hello! I’m Eda and I’m 16 years old. I’m a freshman at Ismail Qemali High School. I’m excited about this new experience in FIRST Global Challenge. As you’ll read below, I don’t have proficiency in Robotics therefore I find my first experience in FGC thrilling and a good opportunity to improve my skills. My most preferable subjects in school are physics and technology. My passion for technology started at the age of 13 when I began taking programming classes. I first took classes in C++, which is my most-liked programming language. After attending this course I realized technology developed into a passion of mine and decided I should augment my capacity in this discipline. I’m also trained and capable of programming in languages such as Java, HTML, CSS, and Python. I’m acquainted with Graphic Design specifically in Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator, and also familiar with robotics. This past year I’ve been participating in a pilot module organized by Intel for highschoolers, which aims to introduce students who are passionate about technology to the latest AI. Since I got into this field, I’ve participated in different hackathons, including here NASA Space Apps, in which I have won Second place for two years in a row. I’d call myself open-minded and curious considering I’m a person who likes to try every new and different thing in all fields. Here are some other activities I’ve participated in during the years. I have been a professional volleyball player for KS Tirana’s U18 team for 5 years, captaining my team for the last 2 years. I recently participated as a Delegate at the 5th Regional Selection Conference, Tirana 2023, organized by EYP Albania. I have been a Volunteer at Tirana Marathon 2022. Winning Finance BootCamp 2021 has been a beneficial experience for me, but also participating in Eco Fest: “Choose the planet, not the plastic” has been a helpful and educational project for me teaching me much more about the importance of a clean environment. Onward I want to pursue a career in medicine and with my use of medical robotics, I can bring greater efficiencies to hospitals and clinics.

Ersa Rrushi: Hello ! My name is Ersa, and I am 16 years old and a freshman at Ismail Qemali High School. This is my first time competing in Robotics and the FIRST Global Challenge, and I couldn’t be more excited about the experience. I have been programming since I was 13 years old. My go-to language is C++ , but I am also proficient in Java and Python and have experience with C language , HTML and CSS. I have good knowledge of Robotics and Graphic Design. I have been taking an Artificial Intelligence module at school for 8 months, organised by Intel. During the years, I have participated in hackathons, such as NASA Space Apps, in which I have won the Second place for two years in a row, but I have also tried different Startup Hackathons. Robotics is a field I’m interested in and passionate about, but I haven’t tested myself yet, so I am looking forward to this new challenge and improving my skills. Some projects related to volunteering, debating, and public speaking I have taken part in are: I have been a professional volley player for KS Tirana’s U18 team for 5 years. I have recently participated as a Delegate at the 5th Regional Selection Conference, Tirana 2023, organised by EYP Albania. I have been a Volunteer at Tirana Marathon 2022. Winning Finance BootCamp 2021 has been a beneficial experience for me, but also participating in Eco Fest: “Choose the planet, not the plastic” has been an eye-opening event. Lately, I was a Speaker at the “Challenges of the New Generation” conference organised by the Student Union and a Finalist at the National Debate: “Sfidat e Gjenerates se Re” organised by EDYN Albania. Through these projects, I intend to develop my skills and grow further. I am aspiring to study Biotechnology or Medicine, so I can help create robots to improve medical procedures.

Skerdilaid Bilibashi: I’m Skerdilaid Bilibashi, a 14-year-old with a huge passion for technology. My inclination towards this field is closely intertwined with my deep passion for the sciences, which are my favorite major subjects in school. of my skills and knowledge. One of my earliest projects was “Do you have an Idea?” The project in 2017, where our task was to show the technological innovation of children in technology. I was privileged to be part of a group of children and our mentor who won the first prize, a testament to our innovative ideas. Another project was Teknofest, which was held in Turkey in 2023, where it was not necessary to complete some minigames to qualify then for the construction of some robots that would be done in the final. But I participated in the Bibliotek Challenge in 2022. This is for miniature robots in mini or even a website with the theme of technology. In addition, I created an intelligent machine intended to facilitate the actions of people with the skills that you can find a language in different programs, I have skills in both the software and hardware fields. designed by Unicef on Cyberbullying and Cybersecurity where I further strengthened my understanding of the issue and how it should be done in both directions. As in the national STEM days, I presented a topic in the field of robotics at the Academy of Sciences in Albania, where the Ministry of Education, teachers and students from various schools and students from universities participated. Beyond the field of technology and science I have various long-standing interests. Since 2019 I have been playing the guitar. For several years I have been following my 2 favorite sports, basketball and swimming. My favorite hobby is chess.

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