SAN DIEGO, April 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The 74th California Science and Engineering Fair (CSEF) took place April 12–13 at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, bringing together 900 of the best of 1st place winners from regional competitions covering 58 counties across the state, including the Greater San Diego Science and Engineering Fair (GSDSEF). GSDSEF students earned 42 awards at the event, including one of only two highly coveted spots to the prestigious Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Ten students earned 1st Place awards in the categories of Earth and Environment: Air, Mammalian Biology, Environmental Engineering, Environmental Engineering: Pollution, Microbiology, Plant Biology, Behavioral and Social Sciences, and Computational Systems: Medical. In addition, one student earned a Kindeva Innovative Award, for an outstanding project in science and engineering that demonstrated excellence through innovative ideas. CSEF is the oldest science fair west of the Mississippi River and the highest level competition in the state.
Top winners were:
Anju Chandra, Grade 11, Canyon Crest Academy, Kindeva Innovative Award, “Immobilization of Cyanobacteria Within Hydrogels for Purified Protein Drug Delivery”.
Steven Chen, Grade 9, Canyon Crest Academy, 1st Place, Earth & Environment: Air, “Nature-Inspired Living Device to Degrade Organic Pollutants in Water”.
Saanvi Dogra, Grade 11, Del Norte High School, 1st Place, “Uncovering Molecular Mechanisms for Treatment of Congenital Heart Defects through High-Content Genetic Perturbation Screens”.
David He, Grade 11, Westview High School, 1st Place, Environmental Engineering: Pollution, “An Integrated Computational and In-Vitro Analysis of Marine Polyurethane Microplastic Degradation with Novel Genetically Engineered Bacterial Biofilms”.
Ricky Lim, Grade 11, 1st Place, Microbiology, “Development and Evaluation of Nanoantibody-based Disease Diagnostics”.
Anna Luo, Grade 11, ISEF Finalist, 1st Place, Plant Biology, “Allelopathic Effects of Cynara cardunculus on Native Coastal Sage Scrub Species”.
Eva Monpays, Grade 7, San Diego French American School 1st Place, Environmental Engineering: Pollution, “DIY Beach Cleaning Robot”.
Olympia Sternson, Grade 7, The Rhoades School, 1st Place, Behavioral & Social Sciences, “Generational Effects on Resilience from Gen Z to the Greatest Generation”.
Julianna Swigart, Grade 7, San Diego French American School, 1st Place, Environmental Engineering: Pollution, “DIY Beach Cleaning Robot”.
Kayley Xu, Grade 10, Grand Award, The Bishop’s School, “Wearable Stethoscope Array and Localization Diagnosis of Cardiopulmonary Sounds”.
Austin Zhang, Grade 11, Del Norte High School, 1st Place, Environmental Engineering, “Smart Park Management: A Drone-Based AI Solution for Vegetation Health Monitoring and Wildfire Risk Mitigation”.
Full results and project showcase available online.
About the GSDSEF
Since 1955, the Greater San Diego Science and Engineering Fair (GSDSEF) has provided an inspiring experience in science and engineering for tens of thousands of San Diego and Imperial County students, motivating them to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. This regional competition challenges students to go beyond classroom studies to do independent research – to ask compelling questions, to design and implement innovative solutions, and to present and defend results to judges who are professionals in their fields. The GSDSEF brings together 800 of the best middle and high school students, 400+ judges who are professionals in their fields and over 60 professional societies and organizations, with $40k in prizes awarded.
The GSDSEF fosters creativity and innovation through inquiry, celebrates students’ STEM achievements, and showcases how young minds can make an impact in the present and future. Many of these student scientists are conducting world-class research and conducting groundbreaking experiments in fields ranging from Astronomy to Zoology, such as the discovery of cures for diseases, formulations of new vaccines, cancer research, applying AI to enhance medical diagnoses, using biomimicry for water conservation, novel drone technology, advances in micro robotics and autonomous driving technology. The GSDSEF is the highest-level STEM competition in the region and one of the oldest, most respected and competitive in the world. The GSDSEF is a 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at gsdsef.org and follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.
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