Edison International and USC Launch Edison Challenge Competition

Rosemead, CA:  Students with creative ideas about solving energy and environmental problems are encouraged to submit projects in the fourth annual Edison Challenge, a science competition co-sponsored by Edison International and the University of Southern California (USC). Team registration opened Oct. 8 and ends Oct. 29.
The Edison Challenge competition is open to student-teacher teams in grades six through 12 from schools in the service territory of Southern California Edison (SCE), 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. In addition, teachers of the teams that reach the finals will receive stipends of up to $500.
The Edison Challenge is one of the utility’s signature programs demonstrating its long-standing commitment to education, protecting the environment, and encouraging the development of innovative energy use and development. Edison International funded the program with a $1 million grant over four years. The company partnered with the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies, a unit of the USC College of Letters, Arts & Sciences, to develop the Edison Challenge in 2006.
USC 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, and hundreds of students, parents and teachers attended the awards ceremony in March.
Final projects are due by March 8, 2010, and winning teams will be announced in April 2010. Visit www.sce.com/challenge < http://www.sce.com/challenge>  to register for the competition, and to see videos, winning projects and get more program information.
About the USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies
The USC Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies in USC College unites more than 80 USC scholars from the natural sciences, the social sciences and professional schools. Established in 1995 as the centerpiece of the leading environmental and marine science programs at USC, the institute creates innovative solutions to complex environmental issues while preparing undergraduate and graduate students to make connections between their research and potential improvements to the human condition.
About Edison International
Edison International (NYSE:EIX), through its subsidiaries, is a generator and distributor of electric power and an investor in infrastructure and energy assets, including renewable energy. Headquartered in Rosemead, Calif., Edison International is the parent company of Southern California Edison, one of the nation’s largest electric utilities, and Edison Mission Group, a competitive power generation business and parent company to Edison Mission Energy and Edison Capital.

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