CalWave congratulates our community of young energy champions for their accomplishments through the 2022-2023 FIRST Lego League Challenge, an international educational program, created by FIRST® and LEGO®, designed to inspire youth ages 9-14 to tackle scientific, real-world challenges through hands-on STEM education. For this year’s SUPERPOWERED theme, students sought to explore how energy is generated, stored, distributed, and consumed as the demand for electricity soars. Our team is pleased to recognize the growing interest in wave energy among youth, and we were honored to speak with eight teams, consisting of over 40 students, to inform their projects and learnings as subject matter experts.

Highlighting Talents of the Next Generation for Wave Energy 

CalWave is proud to spotlight the accomplishments of Team #55918 from Design39Campus, an innovative TK-8 school within the Poway Unified School District. For this team’s Innovation Project, they researched wave energy and reached out to CalWave, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and the US Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office upon learning about our pilot in their hometown of San Diego, California. We’ve been delighted to support them on their journey and celebrate their accolades, which include winning 2nd Place for the Innovation Project related to wave energy at their Regional Tournament and two Breakthrough Awards for a combination of their Innovation Project, Robot Design, and Core Values via the Qualifying Tournament and Championship Tournament.

“CalWave has been so helpful to our team of 6th and 7th graders in providing first-hand knowledge about this new and cutting-edge technology for renewable energy. The students have been so excited to learn more and are so inspired,” said Co-coach May Lin. “CalWave has also participated in EarthEcho International‘s educator training to inform the development of teaching curriculum for students about wave energy. We are now connected to this effort to help share wave energy learnings with other students!”

“Ensuring that all students and educators have access to the resources and opportunities to participate in the transition to clean energy is crucial for creating a sustainable world,” said Julie Mai, CalWave’s Head of Communications and Public Affairs. “The International Energy Agency predicts that the marine energy industry will create 680,000 direct jobs by 2050, and we are excited to see youth exploring the potential of wave energy. We look forward to expanding partnerships to provide pathways for them to enter this growing sector.”

Check out videos of the wave device models created by the team, which will be shared with students in the US, UK, and Australia as part of the teaching curriculum that is being developed for wave energy. More information on the wave energy curriculum for students and educators by EarthEcho International and Team #55918 will be shared once available.

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About CalWave
Founded in 2014, CalWave is a California-based wave energy developer on a mission to provide reliable and cost-effective ocean wave technologies for sustainable energy access. CalWave’s vision is to unlock the power of ocean waves to secure a clean energy future.

The company is a member of the International Electrotechnical Commission’s U.S. Shadow Committee for international standards on marine energy, and a member of NHA’s Marine Energy Council, which is calling for domestic marine energy deployment targets of 500 MW by 2030 and 1 GW by 2035.

About FIRST®
FIRST® is a robotics community that prepares young people for the future through a suite of inclusive, team-based robotics programs for ages 4-18 (PreK-12) that can be facilitated in school or in structured afterschool programs. Boosted by a global support system of volunteers, educators, and sponsors that include over 200 Fortune 500 companies, teams operate under a signature set of FIRST Core Values to conduct research, fundraise, design, build, and showcase their achievements during annual challenges. An international not-for-profit organization founded by accomplished inventor Dean Kamen in 1989, FIRST has a proven impact on STEM learning, interest, and skill-building well beyond high school. Participants and alumni of FIRST programs gain access to education and career discovery opportunities, connections to exclusive scholarships and employers, and a place in the FIRST community for life. Learn more at firstinspires.org.

 

Contact
Julie Mai
Head of Communications & Public Affairs
julie@calwave.energy
www.calwave.energy/pressroom
(657) 243-0112‬