“Don’t tell yourself no before the world does.” These are the words that have guided Bubune Biana Bottozah M’28, a graduate of the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Tarkwa, throughout her life. As an undergraduate student, Bottozah founded the Eureka STEM Club to introduce junior high school students in Tarkwa to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) through mentorship and hands-on activities such as robotics and coding. She also provided academic support to students preparing for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).

Her passion for solving problems in her community led her to the Miss Geek Ghana competition, a technology competition for young women across Africa. Her project, EcoWatch, an illegal mining detection system designed to identify mining activity in real time, won at the national level and placed second at Miss Geek Africa.

EcoWatch uses underground vibration sensors to detect drilling, blasting, and excavation activities. Machine learning models distinguish mining-related vibrations from normal environmental activity, triggering alerts to enforcement teams through a mobile app. Bottozah is now assembling a small team to develop industry-grade sensors for pilot testing.

As the project grew, Bottozah began to consider the skills and environment she would need to scale her work. She found the Ashesi–ETH Zurich Master’s in Mechatronics, with its focus on real-world problem-solving, to be a natural fit. “It’s a good environment for any engineer,” Bottozah says. “You get to know what other people are thinking, and that’s what engineering is about.”

In five years, Bottozah sees herself “at the intersection of STEM education, sustainability, and the responsible use of AI.” For now, she is focused on learning and making the most of what the Ashesi–ETH Zurich partnership offers. Through it all, she carries the same resolve that started her journey: not waiting to be told yes and never telling herself no first.