In February, the Cooper Solar Decathlon team participated in the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2023 Design Challenge Competition. The Solar Decathlon team presented their expansion of the New York Harbor School. Out of the 57 teams, the Cooper team ranked as one of 10 finalists under the "Education Building Division" and will advance to the Solar Decathlon Competition this April at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado.

In the Solar Decathlon Design Challenge, students collaborate in multidisciplinary teams to develop innovative and high-performance building designs that tackle real-world issues related to climate change, affordability, and environmental justice. These teams work on a residential or commercial design project for one or two academic semesters, culminating in the Solar Decathlon Competition Event held at the NREL. 

Later this week Cooper Solar Decathlon will present their designs to expert jurors, network with industry professionals, and exchange ideas with fellow participants from all over the world. The competition offers winning teams the opportunity to gain international recognition and have their projects showcased through Solar Decathlon and U.S. Department of Energy channels. 

At last year’s competition, the team received the Excellence in Industry Engagement “Smooth Operator” Award. Read more here.

We gratefully acknowledge the generous contributions of Alan Fortier ChE’79 and the President's Office Innovation Grant Program which supported the participation of students at the event.