Project

The Project

• Identify a problem when people and animals interact
  
• Design a solution that makes the interaction better for animals, people, or both
  
• Share your problem and solution with others
  

For ANIMAL ALLIES, think of people and animals as allies in the quest to make life better for everyone. Sometimes people help animals and sometimes animals help people. Your Project mission this season is to make our interactions with animals better – hopefully better for all of us.

Identify
Think about all the different ways that people interact with animals. Sometimes it happens on purpose and sometimes it happens by accident. Pick a situation when people and animals interact, then identify a specific problem you want to solve.
After you select a problem, find out about the current solutions. Why does this problem still exist? Why aren’t the current solutions good enough? What could be improved?
In the ANIMAL ALLIES Challenge, an animal is any member of the scientific animal kingdom (besides humans) that is currently alive today.

Design
Next, design a solution to your problem. Any solution is a good start. Your ultimate goal is to design an innovative solution that adds value to society by improving something that already exists, using something that exists in a new way, or inventing something totally new.

Share
Think about who your solution might help, share your idea with at least one person. Present your solution to people who own, sell, or care for animals. Maybe share with
a professional or someone who helped you learn about your problem. Can you think of any other groups of people who might be interested in your idea?
Finally, prepare a presentation to share your work with the judges at a tournament. Your presentation must be live and may include posters, slideshows, models, multimedia clips, props, costumes, and more. Be creative, but make sure you introduce your problem, solution, and how you shared your idea.