Lethbridge College is gathering southern Alberta’s brightest and youngest wind energy engineers on May 17.
Lethbridge College’s International Wind Energy Academy (IWEA) will be hosting Grade 9 to 12 student teams from St. Michael’s (Bow Island), Catholic Central High and Immanuel Christian School (Lethbridge), Picture Butte High, Kainai High (Cardston) and Sterling School in Canada’s Second Annual BMO KidWind Challenge.
The event runs from 9 a.m. until noon on May 17 at the University of Lethbridge on the track surface of the 1st Choice Savings Centre for Sport and Wellness.
This year’s event takes place during the Canada Wide Science Fair. At the same time and in the same location, there will be more than 800 students from across southern Alberta making wind turbine crafts.
The KidWind challenge gives students the opportunity to take part in friendly competition and learn about wind technology in a hands-on format. Students are encouraged to design, build and test their two-foot wind turbines in a fabricated wind tunnel. Teams will be evaluated based on how much energy their turbines produce, unique designs, as well as reports and their knowledge on wind energy.
Judges from Lethbridge and area who have a background in engineering, wind and renewable energy will evaluate the student’s work. Industry partners include: Vestas Wind Systems, TransAlta, Energy Smart Canada, Bullfrog Power, GE Energy, Greengate Power Corporation, the Canadian Wind Energy Association, AmeriSpec, AltaLink, Greener Homes, EBA Engineering, Mike Spencer Geometrics Ltd., Stantec, the City of Lethbridge and Park Place Mall.
Backgrounder:
BMO
BMO believes in the future of sustainability and has invested in Green Careers with Lethbridge College to encourage the discussion about renewable energy. BMO is committed to helping improve the quality of life in the communities where we live and work. Established in 1817, BMO Financial Group serves more than 12 million personal, commercial, corporate and institutional customers in North America and internationally.
Kid Wind
KidWind was set up to inspire teachers and students to learn about clean energy, science and technology. The organization was founded by Michael Arquin in 2002 and began its first workshop in 2004 with 30 participants. The organization has grown to become an international project that has trained over 7,000 teachers and impacted more than 500,000 students. In 2011, a team member from the International Wind Energy Academy became Canada’s first Kid Wind Senator. www.kidwind.org
International Wind Energy Academy at Lethbridge College
Lethbridge College’s International Wind Energy Academy (IWEA) mandate is community capacity building for wind energy development in southern Alberta. IWEA’s team has worked with students, landowners, municipal leaders and industry stakeholders to encourage the discussion and adoption of renewable energy. The team has hosted a variety of events in the region including community assessments, small wind and solar photovoltaic education, presentations on myths and facts on wind energy as well as speaking at international conferences. Since that time, the IWEA team has hosted a youth camp, a science camp and has educated more than 600 students across southern Alberta. www.iwea.ca