The KidWind Challenge and ACEP in the Community Programs Travel to Sitka and Angoon

ACEP’s Chris Pike is visiting Sitka and Angoon, Alaska, this week as part of ACEP’s KidWind Challenge and ACEP in the Community program.  While in both communities Chris will be visiting classes to judge their wind turbine designs to determine this year’s KidWind Challenge champion.  Additionally, he will be meeting with community members to learn about  local energy concerns.

The KidWind Challenge is a student oriented wind turbine design contest in which students learn about wind energy through designing and constructing their own wind turbines.  Students learn the science of wind, the basics of wind energy, and the importance of working collaboratively to accomplish goals.  ACEP administers the statewide challenge by providing supplies to create the wind turbines and by providing researchers to act as judges for the top three scoring schools in the State.

ACEP in the Community is a developing program that augments ACEP’s research efforts.  ACEP in the Community engages communities, schools and residents by providing energy information that is relevant in their lives. ACEP is a statewide, university-led, applied research program that focuses on research related to community -scale power generation and transmission. Whenever ACEP researchers travel to a community, they will endeavor to reach out to the local school and community energy leaders. By engaging Alaska’s communities, we hope to learn about local energy concerns with the goal of addressing those energy needs.  ACEP can provide stakeholders with information and independent expertise needed to help communities make informed decisions.   

For more information on the KidWind Challenge, visit http://acep.uaf.edu/outreach-education/kidwind-challenge.aspx.  If you would like to learn more about how ACEP can partner with your community, please contact Max Frey at 907-474-1143 or mefrey@alaska.edu

Photo: Sitka, Alaska. Courtesy of alaskancruiser.com.