Hi everyone! I watched as the papers came through and heard that the website ran slowly because SO MANY of you were trying to upload your paper very close to the deadline. Some even missed the deadline because they waited too long. I hope that in the future, you’ll all try to upload your paper at least a day before the deadline and not AT it. But I digress…

The judges were sent their assigned papers on the 17th and some have already started scoring! Each of the 270 papers that were submitted must be scored three times each so when you do the math that’s 810 total papers that must scored! Over the next two-plus weeks, our judges will be BUSY. Keep in mind many of them are preparing to administer final exams for the classes they teach (MANY are professors at universities around the world), juggling work and life related things. So if you get to work with one as a mentor, consider thanking them 😉 Without them, I’m just a guy with a collection of your papers. But what to do? 

Ugh! I don’t know about you but I hate it when I have to wait and there’s nothing I can do. 

Sometimes I get stressed, others I as cool as the other side of the pillow. I’m betting most of you are the former, I know I am. I find it very stressful waiting but if you’re like me, take heart, our judges are doing their job. You did yours, let’s try to relax and them do theirs. 

But what to do while you wait for May 7th when the semi-finalists are announced? Well I’m sure you have school work to do, fun to be had and chores that your parents are making you do. Go, do all of it but come back on the 7th, to this site to see if you’re a semi-finalist.

The judges will have their scores in by the 6th of May and I’ll be culling them down to the top 30 semi-finalists. From all the scores, the Semi-finalists will be announced  May 7 and those selected to the Final will be announced May 14. Both will be done here as well as with emails.

Now if any of the selected Finalist teams cannot make the Final, as has happened in the past, one of the 20 semi-finalists teams will be elevated to a position in the final. Teams ranking in places 11-15 may be named as Alternate Finalists. So if your team isn’t initially selected, try not to get too dejected, there is always the possibility of taking the place of a team who can’t go. 

Tom Petty was right when he sang “…the waiting’s the hardest part…” but good things come to those who wait. Who knows, maybe come the 7th, you’ll get an email from me stating you’re a semi-finalist?!

From there, if your team accepts a position in the Final, we’ll talk more and a decision will have to be made fairly quickly about whether or not your team will be heading to Stony Brook University to showcase your idea to our judges and to the world! But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

So… try to be patient… It’s something I’m having to do as the judges continue to work on their papers but we’ll all get there together and it’ll be you who will show the world how you’re Solving Climate Change.

 

-Frank (Clean Tech Administrator)

Welcome to the 2018 Spellman High Voltage Electronics Clean Tech Competition! This is a brief post officially welcoming our registrants with some information and reminder for your team.

Info: For the competition, an acceptable form of communication is email and there are emails going out to the provided email address. Some are already being bounced back for various reasons like “…wasn’t found at gmail.com”. Please ensure that you speak with your team and make sure they know that CleanTech@cstl.org is not spam. Check your spam folders and make sure your email server knows it’s not spam as well. I’d hate to know you missed out on information because of your email. If you ever have questions you can email that email address or call me at +1-516-764-0045, I am in my office from 8:00am to 4:00pm (16:00) each Monday to Friday to answer questions. If you think there was a mistake please contact me and I can update my list.

Reminder: Your paper is due Friday April 13^th NO LATER than 4:00 PM (16:00) Eastern (New York) time in a PDF formatted file at this website. You only get one chance to upload your paper so make sure it is 100% EXACTLY how you want it before you submit it. No exceptions will be made.

More emails will be sent in the coming days and weeks, but like I said, please talk to your teammates and team leader to ensure all members are receiving my emails. I can also update the email addresses for your teams but you must contact me to do so.

Once again, welcome and good luck! I’m looking forward to seeing your paper come through. If you have questions do not hesitate to contact me.

Have a great day!

 

-Frank

…Registration is now closed.

 

Thank you to all who registered!

You are now part of something incredible! Something bigger than yourself, our planet and the care of it.

You should be proud of what you’re doing.

 

Keep in mind you may modify your registration until April 7th and your paper submissions are expected here on Friday March, 13th, by 4:00 PM (16:00). No exceptions will be made. Bear in mind you may only submit your paper in a PDF formatted file and you only get one chance to submit your paper. Ensure it’s exactly as you want it before you submit it. 

 

Best of luck to you all!

If this doesn’t ring a bell, that’s okay. Let me give you some knowledge before I make this incredible announcement! 

From the conference’s website: 

The Organizing Committee of the World Congress on Climate Change 2018: Impacts & Responses invites you to participate in the congress, which will be held on Sept 13-15, 2018 at Rome, Italy. The conference will be the culmination of a momentous twelve months in the climate debate and needs a breakthrough in the form of a roadmap for a future climate change deal. Early in the year, scientific evidence of global warming, as set out in the fourth assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), put the reality of human-induced global warming beyond any doubt. What we are facing is not only an environmental problem, but has much wider implications: For economic growth, water and food security, and for people’s survival – especially those living in the poorest communities in developing countries.

Climate Change 2018 is designed to bring together of leading academicians, scientists, researchers, graduate students from the field of Geosciences, geology, Meteorology, Volcanology, Atmospheric Science, Global Warming and Environmental Sciences. Discussions throughout the three days-long conference will culminate in the development of a new Action Strategy for Nature Conservation, guiding conservation efforts for the next 5 years.

 

*But Frank, you said there was an announcement.*

Yes I did and this is where you come in. In working with the Committee of the World Congress on Climate Change, they have invited the winning team to be guests at the conference! They’re even going to pay for your hotel! Now don’t worry about the costs of getting to and from Rome, we’re working on that as you read this, but in order to be there, you’ve got to be in the Competition!

Ever wanted to see Rome? Wanted to see the Colosseum? How about the Trevi Fountain or St. Peter’s Basilica? Piazza Navona or the Pantheon? (All are beautiful, I know, I’ve been there.) Well, get your team and register! The only way you stand a chance of seeing it and being a guest at the Conference is being part of Clean Tech with a paper submitted no later than April 13.

Oh yeah, another gift to you…We’ve extended the registration period not one but TWO weeks! Yup! It now going to close on March 30th! HURRY! Do not let this extension go to waste! Go to www.cleantechcompetition.org to register your team!!

First things first…

Can you believe it!? The registration deadline is almost here! March 16th will be here before you know it so if you haven’t already done so, go to www.cleantechcompetition.org to register! 

Just as a reminder, this is the registration deadline: March 16.

You do not have to submit your paper when you register but in order to submit that paper you MUST be registered by the Friday, the 16th of March. 

As another reminder, you’ll have just under a MONTH to write, proof and submit your paper because, it isn’t due until Friday, April 13th. Also, you only get one chance to submit your paper so make sure it is EXACTLY THE WAY YOU WANT IT TO BE before you submit it here.

Second things second…

I am thrilled to tell you that thanks to the efforts of your teachers and you the students, we now have more countries signed up than we did in 2017!  Here’s the list…SO FAR…because as you already know, registration doesn’t close for another 13 days: the Bahamas, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, France, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Lesotho, Malaysia, Moldova, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United States. Some of which (the ones in bold are participating for the first time in the history of Clean Tech! That’s 28 in case you didn’t want to count 😉 With your help disseminating, we’ll see even more, so help spread the word, tell your friends and neighbors, classmates and teacher, tell everyone you know who might be interested! Which brings me to…

Third things third…

If you’re on Facebook or Twitter, so is Clean Tech! It’s where you can get important information, contact me (as I run both accounts) and get announcements regarding the Spellman High Voltage Electronics Clean Tech Competition. You can even find Spellman’s Twitter and website if you’re interested in learning more about the technology behind their high voltage equipment…They do pretty incredible things there at their HQ, I know, I’ve seen it myself!

Last things last…

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Of all the things I am, husband, friend, astronomy fiend, Competition administrator, I’m not a mind reader. I can’t help until you ask for it, so don’t wait until the last minute. Have a question? Ask it. CleanTech@cstl.org or +1-516-764-0045

Best of luck! I can’t wait to see what you come up with!

 

Wonder. Create. Amaze.

Frank DiGiovanni
Spellman High Voltage Electronics Clean Tech Competition Administrator
Center for Science Teaching & Learning

When I wrote the “Big, BIG news” post back on May 12 of 2017, it was because the Clean Tech Competition had found a partner. In the post, I’d written about Spellman High Voltage Electronics Corporation becoming our title sponsor and partner for 2017 and 2018. Here at CSTL we’re elated to find a company as dedicated to innovation as the Clean Tech Competition is. Well, 2017 was a smashing success and with 17 different nations already signed up, 2018 promises to be the same success! Which brings me to promises.

After a successful meeting of the minds, Spellman has continued its commitment to the young inventors across the globe and the Clean Tech Competition! I am thrilled to announce that Spellman has signed on to be a part of the Clean Tech Competition until 2020! Not only is there a wonderful bond made between the leaders and employees of CSTL and Spellman, but when two organizations work together for a common cause, both get stronger! And in this case, it’s the students who will benefit.

For the foreseeable future, Spellman High Voltage Electronics Corporation and the Center for Science Teaching & Learning will work together to ensure that high school students have a free-to-enter, STEM-based innovation contest, a competition to showcase these bright young minds, capable of addressing problems like Solving Climate Change, Feeding the World, Making An Impact or ensuring Clean Water for All. These young minds are going to be the ones who solve these and any number of undiscovered problems our global society will have to address.

 

Wonder. Create. Amaze.

“From Young Minds Come Fresh Solutions”

 

There has been a change in the date of the Final event.

 

The original date of the Final had been Friday, July 13, 2018… The Final is now going to take place on Thursday, July 12, 2018. The location has not changed, it will be at Stony Brook University but please note the change of day. We didn’t change it all willy-nilly but the reason behind this is for those at the Final and especially the winning team; they will be privy to exactly why this change has been made. 

No other dates have changed.

• Registration deadline is still March 16.
• Papers are still due on April 13.
• Semi-Finalists will still be announced May 7.
• Finalists will still be announced May 14.

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at +1-516-764-0045 or at CleanTech@cstl.org

So registration has been under way since the November 20 and I’m thrilled to tell you that we already have four different countries! France, Moldova, the United States and Singapore have all submitted teams and Moldova is in Clean Tech for the first time in the competition’s history! (Yeah, having new countries make me happy 🙂 ) But I’m greedy when it comes to this stuff, I admit that, I want more!

For 2017, there were 26 nations, even though there were fewer students than there were in 2016, the number of countries made me very happy. There are more nations and more students to take on the challenge of #SolvingClimateChange. But I’m not going to be able to do it by myself, I’m going to need help. If you’re reading this and are a high school student, if you know a high school student or are a science teacher, please consider sharing this. I mean I LOVE having schools submit teams year after year like Catlin Gabel School in Portland, Oregon (USA), The Bronx High School of Science, Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary) in Singapore or Bishops (Diocesan College) in South Africa, but there are more ideas just waiting to be created from schools that are still unknown to Clean Tech.

 

Well I’ll continue to do my thing like finding more schools, sending emails, answering questions and wondering who’s going to adopt this little kitten.

You keep doing what you do, going to class (or teaching class), learn new things, work on your idea (or lead your team) and brainstorm your paper idea (but don’t forget, you’ve got until April 13 to upload it). If you have questions, you can always contact me.

Best of luck to you and your entire team, I really hope I get a chance to meet you at Stony Brook University come July 2018! Oh and if you know someone who wants a kitten or you yourself want him, he’s free to adopt 🙂 

-Frank

THappy Holidays! T

So…guess what? Clean Tech 2018 is coming and I can’t wait for all of you or your students to be a part of it!

The opening day for registration is November 20, which is two plus weeks away so I’ll let you in on a little secret…We’re taking on climate change! Yup, the topic that some deny is very real and VERY important. It needs addressing because there are so many problems associated with climate change, which is why I LOVE this competition so much! Yes, we are giving you a BROAD topic but with that, you’ll find something that is important to you and that’s one of the key things about the Spellman High Voltage Electronics Clean Tech Competition.

The official title of 2018’s Competition is “Solving Climate Change” and I’m THRILLED to announce that along with the topic, we’ll be heading back to Stony Brook University for the Final on July 13th of 2018!! And I’m working on something fun for those who make the Finals and come to Long Island the day before, but I’m not telling you anymore about that 🙂 Your team will have to make the Final first 🙂 

Gather your team members and start thinking about how you would Solve Climate Change, because you’ll have from November 20 to March 16 to register. And I know you’ll think that’s a long time; it’s not, trust me on this one 😉 Look for more information coming really soon on the OFFICIAL challenge page which will include all pertinent dates, rules, rubric, etc. Don’t worry, your teachers will be getting all the information in case you can’t find it.

 

I can’t wait to see how many nations, students and teams sign up for this one because there is NO DOUBT in my mind that you will come up with incredible ideas to Solve Climate Change. 

That’s an easy question, isn’t it? I mean our 2017 winners headed back to High School, as did our second place team, our third place finisher started his first year at Harvard! Me? I’m busy planning 2018’s competition, have been since the 15th of July; that’s the day after the Finals took place in case you didn’t know 😉

As the days grow colder here on Long Island, New York the plans continue to take shape for 2018. The challenge has been decided upon, but you’re going to have to wait for an OFFICIAL announcement but I’ll give you a hint…think, why would sea levels rise? Hmmm.

I hope that whatever you’re doing, that you are able to enjoy it. Although I understand that might not be always possible, happiness is where you find it… Even if that’s an organic chemistry class or a statistics class. Take any success and learn from it, take any failure and learn from that too. Science is a reflection of life, it’s not always easy but it’s succeeding in the face of difficulty that shows us what we’re made of.

Enjoy your October, best of luck in your school year.

Oh yeah!… Check back for more information about the 2018 challenge come November of this year. Registration for Clean Tech opens November 20! Start thinking, gather your team and get ready to make an impact on the world. A big ask yes, but I’ve already seen what you high school students are capable of. I’ve seen finalists in the last two competitions head back to High school or go off to Ivy League schools. I KNOW you can be the next winning team and the next to make the next big thing that helps the world!

See you in November! 🙂