The Northwest Washington Sustainability Challenge has extended the deadline for team registration until April 8, according to an announcement from the Northwest Innovation Resource Center, which is running the competition.

The challenge will assemble teams from regional colleges to pitch proposals to a judging panel made up of investors and experts in the fields of sustainability and technology. Judges will select winners, with $25,000 in cash prizes and business support at stake.

More information is available online at www.nwsustainabilitychallenge.com.

The challenge is open to students, faculty, alumni and staff at participating colleges, which include: Bellingham Technical College, Edmonds Community College, Everett Community College, Northwest Indian College, Skagit Valley College, Washington Engineering Institute, Western Washington University and Whatcom Community College.

Inventor Insights

The Northwest Innovation Resource Center will also host its April edition of Inventor Insights, a monthly brown-bag lunch series featuring expert speakers who will discuss a range of topics related to entrepreneurial success.

The free events will cover topics such as intellectual property, manufacturing and licensing, among others.

The next edition will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 2, in the Dorothy Haggen Conference Room at 2211 Rimland Drive in Bellingham.

It will feature Lisa Heisey, a market research specialist, will talk about how market research can help refine an entrepreneurial product or business by laying groundwork for targeting customers and launching in the market.

People interested in attending can RSVP at www.builditnw.com/events.