PBS's Design Squad, along with Intel and BKFK, Announce Trash to Treasure Contest to Launch with April 2008 TV Premiere

Kids at home are challenged to recycle, reuse, and re-engineer everyday materials into out-of-the-box inventions

BOSTON, MA- January 22, 2008 – Imagine transforming materials from your recycling bin into the next big thing, and winning a $10,000 cash prize for your innovative design. Design Squad, PBS's popular engineering and design competition show, and Intel have joined forces with By Kids For Kids (BKFK) to give kids the opportunity to do just that. Hosted by BKFK, a company dedicated to inspiring young innovators to create and share their ideas, the nationwide Trash to Treasure competition will launch at www.bkfk.com on April 1, 2008 (to coincide with the television series' season two premiere on PBS) and will run through June 30, 2008. The grand prize-winner will receive a $10,000 cash prize provided by the Intel Foundation and a trip to the development lab at Continuum, an award-winning international design and innovation consultancy, to build a prototype of his or her Trash to Treasure design.

The Design Squad Trash to Treasure contest will challenge kids of all ages to take everyday discarded or recycled material and re-engineer it into functional products. The product can move things or people (Mobility), protect the environment (Environmental), or be something kids can play with inside or out (Play).

Some of the repurposed materials kids might use in their innovative designs are fabric, paper, plastic, small electronics, wheels, clamps, springs, batteries, hardware, wood, bike parts, string, rubberbands, cardboard, kitchen gadgets, etc.

"We are eager to see kids' ideas and everyday items transformed into innovative and intriguing inventions. What a great way to inspire a fresh approach to recycling, not to mention a new crop of engineers and designers!" said Brenda Musilli, Worldwide Director of Intel Education and President of the Intel Foundation.

Reminiscing about his own childhood inventions, Design Squad host and twenty-something inventor and mechanical engineer Nate Ball adds, "What I created as a kid, from weekend home improvement projects with my parents to Lego masterpieces on our living room floor, shaped my interest in engineering and the design process. Invention is infectious. With the Trash to Treasure contest, we are hoping to inspire the next generation of innovators and engineers."

"We are delighted to manage this competition on behalf of Design Squad and Intel," commented Norman Goldstein, founder and CEO of By Kids For Kids Co. "In fact, our mission of making teens' ideas a reality couldn't be more aligned. We hope this contest inspires, motivates, and stimulates the innovative spirit within all young people."

About Design Squad on PBS

Design Squad is a reality competition show aimed at kids and people of all ages who like reality or how-to television. Its goal is to get viewers excited about engineering and the design process. Over the 13 episodes, eight high school contestants tackle engineering challenges for real world clients—from creating cardboard furniture projects for IKEA to designing a gravity bike (no pedals or cranks!) for Extreme Game champion Tom Whalen. The new season of Design Squad premieres on PBS in April 2008. In the final episode, the top two scorers battle for the Grand Prize—a $10,000 college scholarship from the Intel Foundation. The Design Squad web site goes "behind the scenes" with cast interviews, photos, outtakes, and the inside scoop on each Design Squad challenge. Online, visitors may watch full-length streams of Design Squad episodes, share their thoughts, and learn more about the role of engineers in society via www.pbs.org/designsquad.

Design Squad is produced by WGBH Boston. Major funding for Design Squad is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Intel Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, United Engineering Foundation (ASCE, ASME, AIChE, IEEE, AIME), Noyce Foundation, Northrop Grumman, the IEEE, and the Intel Corporation.

About the Intel Foundation

Intel Foundation has been developing and funding educational and charitable programs since 1989. Its mission is to advance science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education to fuel tomorrow's innovators, with a particular focus on inspiring women and under-represented minorities to be full participants in these fields. The Foundation, funded solely by donations from Intel Corporation, supports Intel employee volunteerism and philanthropy as part of Intel's efforts to be a good corporate citizen both locally and globally.

About By Kids For Kids Co.

By Kids For Kids, a closely held corporation based in Stamford, Connecticut, is the leading global marketing, branding, and licensing company dedicated to making kids' ideas a reality. Its mission is to inspire, motivate, and stimulate the innovative spirit within all kids. In addition to providing free support and educational resources to the world's children, BKFK provides entrepreneurial experiences for young inventors and supports the entire ideation through commercialization process. Learn more at www.bkfk.com.

Contacts:

For Design Squad on PBS: Kathryn Hathaway | (617) 300-5305 | kathryn_hathaway@wgbh.org

For By Kids For Kids: John Forrester | (323) 702-3684 | media@bkfk.com