Now in its seventeenth year, the E&T Innovation Awards gives recognition to people, projects and organisations that are revolutionising our world through excellence in engineering and technology. This year’s awards, hosted by television presenter Fran Scott at Savoy Place in London, included a range of new categories, such as ‘Future Mobility’ and ‘Trust and Truth’, to reflect the societal challenges that rely on engineers and technologists for their solution.

Dr Esther Ngumbi, an assistant professor of entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, won the top prize (E&T Difference Maker of the Year) for her inspiring work as a researcher, author, public servant, entrepreneur, and educator. Born in a rural farming community along the Kenyan Coast, Ngumbi studied hard at school with the drive to rescue her family and community from poverty and to be a role model for many young African girls.

In 2012, Ngumbi and her parents founded...