AAPG’s annual Sustainable Development in Energy Competition—hosted by AAPG’s Sustainable Development in Energy Committee (SDEC)—aims to generate practical and achievable ideas within energy industries across the world. The 2025 winner will be announced via Zoom on Thursday 19 June.
AAPG Foundation and Chevron are proud sponsors of this year’s competition.
The program consists of three phases:
- Students and young professionals ideate, research, and submit proposals for sustainable energy projects that could help reshape energy sectors across the world. They can compete as individuals or teams.
The 2025 competition opened with a free webinar hosted by AAPG SDEC and OSU College of Arts and Sciences and led by research experts. The webinar introduced STEM students and young professionals to the knowledge and skills required to craft compelling and competitive scientific funding proposals.
Applicant teams and individuals then had a little over a month to complete and submit their proposal for consideration. Judges select the top ten teams from the pool of proposals. This year, finalist teams came from countries including India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malawi, and Colombia.
- The top ten finalists spend 12 weeks working through the Venture Lab. Inside the Venture Lab, finalists receive faculty-led coaching, collaborate with industry partners, and learn about investment readiness. They work hard to perfect their project pitches and develop their ideas to be commercially scalable. The 2025 Venture Lab is led by Pro Ally.
- Finalists pitch the judging panel and a winner is selected. Teams and individual’s are evaluated on originality, sustainability, and applicability. The first prize winner receives $5,000 to develop and implement their project; Second place receives $3,000; Third place receives $2,000. The winning project must be capable of implementation within one year of receiving funds.
2025 Finalists and Projects
Solar-Hydrokinetic Recharge and Resurgence Hub (SHRRH)
Presented by: Team Aureate Engine (India)
The SHRRH project innovates by merging solar-powered pumping and hydrokinetic turbines to generate clean energy, along with recharging aquifers with 26,000–34,000 liters annually. Recharge trenches and a resurgence hub provide 400 liters per day of clean water, addressing Mauranipur’s water scarcity and power cuts.
The project also empowers women by reducing their five-to-six-hour daily water-fetching burden, enabling them to form cooperatives and earn $50–$100/month through ventures like herbal cultivation.
Eggshells for Sustainable Mining: REEs and Hydroxyapatite as Byproducts of Geothermal Energy Systems
Presented by: Juan David Palma Montealegre (Colombia)
This project introduces a novel methodology integrating REE recovery and hydroxyapatite synthesis into geothermal systems using recycled eggshells. It offers environmental benefits by reducing waste and invasive mining and offers social benefits through community engagement and local resource reuse. Its circular, low-impact approach bridges clean energy and sustainable mineral extraction.
Bioenergy from Cacao & Coffee Waste: Advancing Rural Sustainability in Colombia
Presented by: Team Network-Bioenergy (Colombia)
The project converts agricultural waste into biogas and biofertilizer through biodigestion, coupling low-tech engineering with high-impact community outcomes. Its innovation lies in integrating geoscientific diagnostics, rural pedagogy, and health co-benefits into a circular, decentralized energy model. By enabling farming families to become energy producers, the project promotes energy sovereignty, soil regeneration, and clean cooking. This model is designed for scale and long-term resilience across Colombia’s cacao and coffee regions.
Design and Development of a Modular & Mobile Food Waste Digester for Biomethane & Biofertilizer Generation
Presented by: Team CH4Gen1 (Phillipines)
CH4Gen1 is the world’s first mobile and modular food waste digester. Over a few days, CH4Gen1 transforms household and community food scraps into two products: clean biomethane for energy use and premium biofertilizer for agricultural growth. It provides savings to users while reducing environmental impact.
Sustainable Energy and Clean Cooking: Harnessing Methane from Animal Waste for Combustion and Thermoelectric Power Generation
Presented by: Khumbo Mindiera (Malawi)
This project converts animal waste into clean biogas for cooking and recovers waste heat to generate electricity using thermoelectric modules. A dual-purpose system designed for off-grid and rural households in Malawi, it uses locally available materials and a pay-as-you-go model for affordability and sustainability.
Biomass Valorization
Presented by: Team ENERGON (India)
The project converts agricultural waste into bio-products such as bio-paper, bio-cutlery, green hydrogen, and bio-fertilizers through perovskite photocatalysis. It helps curb stubble burning and plastic pollution and reduces air pollution and deforestation, promoting environmental sustainability.
Autonomous Precision Irrigation with Solar-Tracking Motorized Panels for Avocado Crops
Presented by: Team Agrotech (Colombia)
This innovation fuses solar energy and smart mechanics in an irrigation system that follows the sun and aims to revitalize rural life. An autonomous technology, it brings water where it was previously scarce, empowering farmers with a sustainable tool that connects engineering, nature, and community.
HYDROLITE: Portable Mini-Hydro Solution for Off-Grid Geotourism Areas
Presented by: Team Love Birds-Hydrolite (Indonesia)
HydroLite aims to revolutionize rural electrification with a portable, dam-free mini-hydro system. Using an optimized Archimedes Screw Turbine, it generates power even in low-head rivers. Lightweight, modular, and scalable—it brings clean energy where the grid can't reach. This innovation is reliable for powering off-grid geotourism and remote communities.
BERS (BioChar Energy Recovery System)
Presented by: Team Ecoinnovators (India)
This project’s innovation is the first mobile pyrolysis system that turns farm waste into biochar, renewable energy, and bio-oil—all at once. Unlike typical biochar setups, it’s trailer-mounted and can easily serve multiple villages.