University of Colorado Boulder, $5,000
This team is developing a solar drip irrigation system for small-plot farmers around the world. Current small-plot farming practices depend on the use of costly diesel engines to run irrigation pumps to water fields. The inefficiency of diesel has caused a shift towards drip irrigation on a global scale, which has led to an increase in crop yield and a decrease in water usage. These decreases have paved the way for SolVia Solar, a solar-concentrated drip irrigation system. While having a higher initial cost than current diesel engine pumps, the reliability and low maintenance costs of a concentrated solar system could provide both financial and crop yield benefits.