Sixteen-year-old Louise Izere has become the first known Rwandan to reach the North Pole, the northernmost point on earth, after completing a 10-day scientific and educational expedition aboard a nuclear-powered icebreaker. Izere, a student at Rwanda Coding Academy, was among young people from 22 countries who travelled aboard the nuclear-powered icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy on a 10-day route from Murmansk, Russia, to the North Pole and Franz Josef Land before returning to Murmansk on August 13. ALSO READ: Rwandan students among winners of Rosatom nuclear science contest Izere and the other participants returned to their respective countries afterwards, with her Father Louis Musitafu arriving back in Kigali on August 16. She said the journey offered a rare opportunity to experience the Arctic while taking part in scientific activities with researchers and other young people from around the world. “Reaching the North Pole was an experience I will never forget. Seeing the endless ice and snow with my own eyes made me realise how much of our planet remains to be explored,” she said. “I was especially proud to make this journey representing Rwanda. The expedition showed me that science can take you to places you once thought were impossibly far away, and it has inspired me to dream even bigger about my future.” Izere’s father told The New Times that her selection came as a surprise because his daughter had applied for the competition without telling him. “I only found out when she was selected. I was impressed, but at first, I did not think it was a big deal,” Musitafu said. He said the family only began to understand the scale of the opportunity after organisers created a WhatsApp group for parents and explained the arrangements for the trip. “They said each student had to be accompanied by a parent and that all the costs would be covered. That is when we started preparing her documents, and I realised that this was something serious.” “Izere has always been a bright student. She was also very good in primary school. So, hearing that she was the Rwandan student who had been selected made me very happy,” he said. ALSO READ: What's next after Rwanda, Russia sign nuclear energy deal? The parents accompanied the students as far as the edge of the Arctic before the participants continued with the expedition. The expedition was designed not only as an Arctic trip but also as a hands-on scientific and educational programme aimed at exposing young people to science, technology and nuclear technologies. During the voyage, participants worked with scientists and took part in experiments, including the launch of a radiosonde designed to provide communication in hard-to-reach areas of the Arctic and along the Northern Sea Route. They also participated in the testing of what Rosatom describes as the world’s first recoverable stratospheric platform. The expedition included an aerospace laboratory aboard the nuclear-powered icebreaker, giving the students an opportunity to engage with technologies beyond the classroom. Izere earned her place on the expedition through an international selection process that attracted about 5,000 students from 22 countries. The competition began on May 5 and involved three stages. The first stage was a science quiz covering natural sciences, breakthrough technologies, nuclear energy and Arctic exploration. The second stage involved webinars delivered by experts from the nuclear industry. Ten finalists from each participating country then advanced to the final stage, where they presented creative projects on the theme, “How Nuclear Technologies Are Changing the World Today.” The finalists were assessed by an international jury comprising representatives from the nuclear industry, science, education, Arctic affairs and science communication. The Icebreaker of Knowledge programme is aimed at promoting natural sciences and nuclear technologies, identifying talented young people and providing career guidance. Over seven seasons, more than 470 schoolchildren from around the world have taken part in the programme’s Arctic expeditions to the North Pole.
