USU Horizons Competition Showcases Student Innovation on Water, Higher Education & Space Travel

The second annual Horizons Competition at Utah State University gave more than 60 undergraduate competitors the chance to tackle pressing societal challenges — from long-term spaceflight to rethinking higher education and balancing Utah’s growth with a finite water supply.

Twenty finalists delivered 10-minute pitches on the stage of the Eccles Conference Center on April 3, with cash prizes of up to $3,000 awarded across five categories.

Winners

• First Prize: Mya Bills, Lauryn Marshall and Regan Waldron — a tool to enable fast, informed decisions about the potential water impacts of proposed developments.
• Most Impactful Solution & Audience Choice: Lauren Knox, Eliza Bonzo and Jake Ralph — a proposal to rethink the value and application of higher education through recognition of lifelong learning.
• Outstanding Presentation & Best Innovation: Elijah Olson, Warren Hewlett, Kyler Wilkey and Natalie Morgan — a novel solution for producing artificial gravity on long-term space missions.

“The Office of Research thanks the mentors and judges who volunteered their time and expertise to make the event so valuable for the students,” said Will Gold, the program lead from the Office of Research.

Judges represented a diverse set of organizations, including Chevron, the Centre for Anticipatory Intelligence