Vidya students demonstrate leadership and critical thinking by winning first place at Maria Philip Future Leaders’ Debate 2025.
| Aiming to strengthen analytical thinking and communication abilities, Vidyam students enhanced their critical thinking, public speaking and argumentative skills through participation in a structured debate. |
| The Maria Philip Future Leaders’ Debate 2025 was held on 25 November 2025 at St. Thomas College (Autonomous), Thrissur, and was organized by Xavier’s Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship (XIME). The event witnessed participation from 13 teams, with Vidya Academy of Science and Technology being represented by V A Nahala Abdul Latheef (S3, ECE Dept) and Aysha Shafeek M M (S3, CSE Dept) The competition followed a two-member team format, with one speaker arguing in favor of the motion and the other opposing it. |
| It is with a great sense of pride that the Editorial Team of News & Events shares the happy news that the team’s outstanding performance earned first place in the competition, thereby qualifying them for the state-level round. The judges also provided valuable feedback, emphasizing the importance of balancing pathos, logos, and ethos, maintaining a coherent flow of content, and ensuring a holistic, engaging presentation throughout the debate. |
| The debate topic was “The global campaign against climate change is a lost cause”. Aysha spoke for the motion, arguing that despite three decades of global climate campaigns, including the Paris Agreement and numerous COP summits, tangible progress remains insufficient, creating only an illusion of action without meaningful change. Nahala spoke against the motion, countering that the term “lost cause” is inappropriate as data indicates measurable year-on-year progress, and that the real issue lies in weak enforcement mechanisms and the absence of strict penalties; he proposed stronger carbon border controls and accountability measures to ensure compliance with climate commitments. |
| The Editorial Team of News & Events joins the entire Vidya fraternity in extending heartiest congratulations to Nahala and Aysha on this well-deserved success that develops effective communication and leadership skills, encourage teamwork, strategic argumentation and gain exposure to competitive debating at an intercollegiate level !!! |
