Arctic Innovation Competition accepting submissions

September 12, 2017

UAF Photo by JR Ancheta. Vincent Castro, left, and Eric Solie hold their winning check from the 2016 Arctic Innovation Competition.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks School of Management will award $30,000 in cash prizes through its annual Arctic Innovation Competition.

The competition, presented by Usibelli Coal Mine, is now in its ninth year. Competitors propose new, feasible and potentially profitable ideas, which are evaluated by a panel of judges. The deadline to submit an entry is 11:59 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22, 2017.

In 2016, submitted ideas covered a broad range of subjects. Winning ideas included a malleable nose and cheek cover for use during outdoor recreation in winter, footwear designed specifically for people with swollen feet, and vertical center supports for heavily insulated arctic doors. Last year’s $10,000 grand prize winners were Vincent Castro and Eric Solie for their idea, Attently. A cloud-based software service, Attently uses a video feed of an audience to calculate both the number of faces in view and the percentage of those faces that are actively paying attention in the direction of the camera.

The competition is open to the public, there is no entry fee and ideas do not have to be related to the Arctic. Three divisions are now accepting submissions: Main Division (ages 18 and up), Junior Division (ages 13-17) and Cub Division (ages 12 and under). Individuals or teams are encouraged to enter, and multiple ideas are accepted. After the initial screening process, up to 32 winners will be selected to receive cash prizes ranging from $25 to $10,000. Finalists will showcase their ideas to judges from 3-5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21, at the Wedgewood Resort, with a reception to follow. The public is encouraged to attend.

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Tammy Tragis-McCook, 907-474-7042, tammy.tragis@alaska.edu

ON THE WEB: www.arcticinno.com