12-Year-Old Inventor’s Solar-Powered Backpack Brings Warmth to Glasgow’s Rough Sleepers. (CREDIT: Thales / CC BY-SA 4.0)
Cold Glasgow nights gave Rebecca Young a problem she could see clearly: people sleeping outside had no reliable way to stay warm. At 12, she answered with a backpack, a heated blanket and solar power.
Young, a pupil at Kelvinside Academy, designed the device for the Primary Engineer competition. More than 70,000 pupils entered ideas aimed at solving social problems. Her solar-powered blanket backpack stood out, eventually moving from a drawing to a working product.
The invention later helped earn Young international recognition. Time magazine named her among its Girls of the Year, calling her an “Innovator.” The recognition also brought an unusual honor: a Lego minifigure made in her likeness.
“The idea came from seeing how hard it is for people living on the streets of Glasgow, especially during winter, and wanting to create something that could make a real difference. At first, it was just a drawing – I never imagined it would actually be made.”
Young’s concept combines a foldable solar panel, a battery pack and an electric blanket. During the day, the panel can collect solar energy. The battery stores that energy so the blanket can provide heat later, when temperatures fall.
The system folds into a backpack, making it easier to carry for people moving between streets, shelters and other locations.
She described the idea simply: “Seeing all the homeless people, it made me want to help – it’s a problem that should be fixed.”
Young also explained how she expected the system to work. “During the day, the heat from the sun can energise the solar panels and they go into a battery pack that can store the heat. When it’s cold at night people can use the energy stored in the battery pack to sleep on.”
“In Glasgow it can be freezing at night and they [homeless people] will have no power, so I thought the solar panel could heat it.”
Engineering company Thales, a partner of Primary Engineer, took Young’s design beyond the competition. The company developed a working prototype and continued refining it with her involvement.
Those changes included additional heat settings and safety features intended to better protect people using the blanket. The final prototype was showcased in May 2024 at the Scotland West regional award ceremony at the University of Glasgow, where Young received a silver medal.
Thales later manufactured units for homelessness organizations in Glasgow, including Homeless Project Scotland, with further production planned.
Colin McInnes, founder of Homeless Project Scotland, said the blankets had already proved useful when shelters could not accommodate everyone.
“When somebody is having to rough sleep because the shelter is full, we can offer that comfort to a homeless person, of having a warm blanket to wrap around them during the night.”
“We would 100% take the opportunity to have more of them.”
The project eventually reached Time magazine’s first Girls of the Year list, which highlighted 10 girls from around the world. The initiative was created with Lego Group as an extension of its She Built That campaign.
Nine honorees were reimagined as Lego figures for the magazine’s digital cover. Young described seeing herself as a minifigure as “really cool and crazy.”
Other girls on the list included fantasy novelist Rutendo Shadaya, Olympic skateboarder Coco Yoshizawa and organ donation advocate Naomi S DeBerry.
Time senior editor Dayana Sarkisova said: “These girls are part of a generation that’s reshaping what leadership looks like today. Their generation understands that change doesn’t require waiting for adulthood – it starts with seeing problems and refusing to accept them as permanent.”
Young’s mother, Louise, said: “I couldn’t be more proud, it’s fantastic. It’s obviously all come from a drawing and going from that to it actually being made is amazing.”
The blanket project has also moved into wider production with help from the Royal British Veterans Enterprise, which focuses on employment, homes and communities for veterans and people with disabilities.
Each blanket is assembled and sent out by veterans or people with disabilities. The organization is also matching sales by pledging to donate an additional blanket to charities.
Thales UK and the Royal British Veterans Enterprise have continued working to produce and distribute more of the heated backpacks.
For Young, the project has not locked her into engineering as a career. She continues her studies at Kelvinside Academy and has said she would like to become a musician.
Her advice to other young people remains tied to the idea that started the project. “If you see a problem you think you can fix, you can do something about it.”
She also told BBC Scotland News: “If you have an idea like I did, then join clubs and talk to people about it, it helps.”
Young’s design shows how a school engineering project can move into direct use when professional manufacturers and community organizations become involved. The backpack format also addresses a practical problem for rough sleepers because the heating system can be carried with the person who needs it.
The solar panel and battery reduce dependence on a fixed electrical outlet, an important feature for people sleeping outdoors. Added heat settings and safety features also show how an early idea can change during professional prototyping before wider distribution.
The project does not solve homelessness or the shortage of shelter space. It addresses one narrower problem: helping people stay warmer when they are outside in cold conditions.
For Young, that practical focus remains central. “Knowing that something I came up with is helping others makes me feel really proud. By seeing themselves as builders, girls can challenge norms, pursue any passion and shape the world. It’s easy to fall into thinking that building just means construction. It’s so much more than that.”
The original story “12-year-old inventor’s solar-powered backpack is keeping Glasgow’s homeless warm” is published in The Brighter Side of News.
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Rebecca Shavit
Writer
Based in Los Angeles, Rebecca Shavit is a dedicated science and technology journalist who writes for The Brighter Side of News, an online publication committed to highlighting positive and transformative stories from around the world. Having published articles on MSN, AOL News, and Yahoo News, Rebecca’s reporting spans a wide range of topics, from cutting-edge medical breakthroughs to historical discoveries and innovations. With a keen ability to translate complex concepts into engaging and accessible stories, she makes science and innovation relatable to a broad audience.
