Attention Students: SoCal Edison Needs Bright Ideas

Updated 1:46 PM PST, Mon, Oct 5, 2009

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Edison International is asking students whether they have any bright ideas.

The company urged students to submit projects in a science competition co-sponsored with the University of Southern California. Team registration for the fourth annual Edison Challenge opens Thursday and ends Oct. 29.

The competition is open to student-teacher teams in grades six through 12 from schools in the service territory of Southern California Edison, a subsidiary of Edison International. Professional science development workshops are provided for teachers.

Teams can submit projects focusing on energy conservation, energy efficiency, environmental protection and sustainability, renewable energy sources, air and water quality, and alternative transportation.

Judges will select first- and second-place teams in both middle school and high school categories. Winning teams will earn trips to the USC Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island and SCE's Big Creek Hydroelectric facility in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Teachers of the teams that reach the finals will receive stipends of up to $500.

Edison International funded the program with a $1 million grant over four years and partnered with the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies, a unit of the USC College of Letters, Arts & Sciences, to develop it.

USC's Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies supports marine and environmental science and education. The institute manages laboratories on Catalina Island and provides facilities and opportunities for students to conduct scientific research.

Students from more than 60 teams submitted projects during the 2008-2009 competition. Final projects are due by March 8, and winning teams will be announced next April.