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By ASU News Service
A team of students from Appalachian
State University comprised of Justin Henry, left, Spencer
Price, Ryan Klinger and Andrew Drake has won the national
Juicy Ideas Entrepreneurial/Environmental Contest for
a bicycle they created from plastic drink bottles. They
are pictured with Chancellor Kenneth E. Peacock.
Photo by university photographer Marie Freeman
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When Ryan Klinger, Andrew Drake, Spencer Price and Justin Henry
created a working bicycle from plastic drink bottles, they didn’t
know their creation would take them to California.
The Appalachian State University industrial design majors
have won the first national Juicy Ideas Entrepreneurial/Environmental
Contest, a competition in which college students from across
the United States created something of value from an item that
is typically thrown away as trash.
The students learned of their status as national award-winners
from Mary Radomile, Google program manager, who notified them
via Web conference held on campus.
Joining in the surprise celebration were Appalachian’s
Chancellor Kenneth E. Peacock, representatives of competition
sponsors AdvantageWest and DigitalChalk, and a cheering squad
of friends, classmates, faculty and others.
In a letter presented to the winners, Radomile said, “We
are thrilled to have you visit us at the ‘Googleplex’
in Mountain View, Calif., Feb. 18-20, 2009. During your visit,
you’ll experience a full tour of our facilities, meet with
innovators from within the company, and even have a chance to
present your video to us. We are very proud to be a part of
the Juicy Ideas competition.”
Appalachian’s Center for Entrepreneurship worked with
AdvantageWest to organize the regional competition. Additional
sponsors were American Green and Jute.
The competition was organized as a way to encourage entrepreneurship
and communicate a message of environmental responsibility.
“This competition illustrates the collaborative relationship
between our faculty, staff and students in the areas of sustainability,
design and entrepreneurship,” said Kenneth E. Peacock,
chancellor at Appalachian. “These students, with their
creativity and team work, are a reflection of the future of
our nation. They are thinking globally and of ways they can
impact the world.”
The team was among 14 finalists from colleges across the country.
Each participating region had a different “throwaway”
item from which students had 10 days to create something of
value and upload a video of their project to YouTube for judging.
The top three teams from each region advanced to the national
competition. The team from Appalachian was the regional winner
in Western North Carolina. Their winning video can be viewed
at www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3-tKX446VM.
A panel of judges evaluated the entries in terms of originality,
creativity, entrepreneurship, innovation and environmental responsibility.
According to Dale Carroll, president and CEO of AdvantageWest,
entrepreneurship continues to play a major role in the global
economy and is increasingly important to the long-term health
and growth of rural regions across America.
“As the economic development commission for the 23 counties
of Western North Carolina, AdvantageWest continuously explores
new and innovative paths to encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship
as part of its economic development strategy,” he said.
“We believe one of the best ways to accomplish this is
by encouraging the use of technology and stimulating creativity
in the youth of the region – beginning in kindergarten
and continuing
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