The pair will also encourage young Canadians to enter a special design competition on how best to save the environment. Top prize will be a call to the winner from an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.

Benjamin Sanders and Eric Vieth, both fourth-year majors in electrical engineering, plan to recharge any battery-operated devices they use on the journey -- such as their wireless BlackBerries and global positioning system receivers -- with hydrogen fuel cells, portable power generators and solar panels mounted on two bike trailers. They also hope to use the alternative power to prepare meals when camping along the way.

The two plan to visit more than 10,000 students at 29 high schools in all 10 provinces during their 7,900-km gruelling trek from Victoria, B.C., to St. John's, N.L. The goal is to encourage students to consider a future in science, engineering and environmental fields.

The 68-day tour begins today in a kick-off event to be held from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Mount Douglas secondary school in Victoria.

"Clean energy is our key theme," says Sanders. "Concern for the environment is on everyone's mind these days which has prompted a renewed focus on clean forms of energy."
 

The name of their interactive website -- link -- sums up the project's purpose: to engage the next generation of scientists and engineers in building a world using next-generation technologies, as exemplified by UW research expertise in alternative fuels and fuel cell technology.

Visitors to the website can follow the journey thanks to the GPS-enabled BlackBerry technology and the site's built-in mapping software. It will feature a daily blog and streaming photos, as well as information on the environment, power generation and post-secondary education. The website provides a list of schools to be visited on the tour.

"We want to show high school students how technology in science and engineering can solve environmental problems, how it can effect real change and help bring about a more environmentally sustainable world," Sanders says.

That's why it's important to exhibit small hydrogen fuel cells and portable power generators supplying the renewable energy needed during the trip for such everyday tasks as cooking. "It will attract the attention of curious high school students and promote science and engineering as a career," Sanders says.

"We want to teach young Canadians about energy consumption and encourage them to re-think the way we manage our resources," adds Vieth.

The cycling tour has received the support of professors, researchers and students in UW's faculties of engineering, science and environmental studies.

Local high-tech companies, such as Research In Motion, ATS, G-Tech and Infusion Development, have played key roles contributing technology and custom software for the cycling tour.

So far the students have raised more than $20,000 in financial and equipment support, mainly from campus sources and local companies.

Sanders says he and Vieth have benefited from rewarding experiences during their academic and co-op terms at UW. "We really believe we can help to give a little back by going on this journey and by engaging young people in the pursuit of science and engineering."