~Contributed by Kay Molkentin, UP Director Entrepreneurship
Over the past six weeks two University of Portland student teams participated in the 2021 Invent Oregon Bootcamp and Competition. Our two teams – Carver Tools with Ben Messerly ’21 and Nick Robinson ’21, and rePLA with Melissa Tran ’23, Evangeline Muyano ’21, Rachel Hu ’21, Addie Zhao ’21, and Brytney Young ’22 – competed in the Pilot Venture Challenge to earn the right to represent UP at Invent Oregon.
The Invent Oregon Collegiate Challenge is Oregon’s only statewide invention competition made possible with the support of sponsors including The Lemelson Foundation, which supports inventors making a positive impact around the world. Lemelson helped launch the competition in 2016 and continues to lend programmatic and financial support.
The Invent Oregon Finals were held virtually on June 25th, with 22 teams from 15 Oregon colleges and universities competing for $30,000 in cash prizes with innovations that target our region’s most pressing problems related to climate change, healthcare, transportation and housing.
Both UP teams made it to the final round, with Team rePLA walking away with the Visionary Award for envisioning a biodegradable plastic that could transform 3D printing. The award, sponsored by Horan MediaTech Advisors, comes with $2,500 in cash to help the team carry on their product development work.