Top Geography Students to Test Skills At State Geographic Bees on April 5

WASHINGTON (March 25, 2013)-On Friday, April 5, young geography whizzes across the United States and U.S. territories will participate in state-level Geographic Bees, competing for a spot in the 25th annual National Geographic Bee in Washington, D.C., in May. Organized by the National Geographic Society, the 2013 National Geographic Bee is sponsored by Google. At the state level, the Bee is also sponsored by Plum Creek.

Up to 100 fourth- to eighth-graders in each of the 50 states, District of Columbia, U.S. Atlantic and Pacific territories and Department of Defense Dependents Schools have qualified for the state Bees. Each state winner will receive $100, The Complete National Geographic on DVD and an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for the national finals May 20-22 and the chance to be crowned the 25th National Geographic Bee champion.

First prize in the national competition is a $25,000 college scholarship and lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society. Second- and third-place finishers receive $15,000 and $10,000 college scholarships, respectively. Additionally, the national winner will travel (with one parent or guardian), all expenses paid, to the Gal pagos Islands to experience geography firsthand through up-close encounters with the wildlife and landscapes of the islands on an expedition aboard the National Geographic Endeavour. Travel for the Gal pagos voyage is provided by Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic.

The top 10 national finalists for 2013 along with last year's top 10 will be eligible for selection for the three-person team to represent the United States at the National Geographic World Championship in July, to be held in St. Petersburg, Russia.

John Fahey, National Geographic Society chairman and CEO, said, 2013 is a special year for us as we celebrate two important anniversaries: the Society's 125th and the National Geographic Bee's 25th. As we look to the future - and an exciting new age of exploration - our work of fostering young talent who will be the scientists, explorers and brightest minds of tomorrow is more important than ever. Through the National Geographic Bee and our other activities, we hope to encourage a lifelong passion for learning about the world and its many wonders, challenges and opportunities for exploration and discovery.

Google is sponsoring the Bee for the fourth year. Because maps are such an integral part of how we live and do business, it's important that we invest in geographic literacy and education. The students who participate in the National Geographic Bee have demonstrated an impressive understanding of the world around them, and we're thrilled that young minds across the globe are using Google Geo products to learn and collaborate. In this 25th year of the competition, we're proud to sponsor the program and encourage the next generation of explorers and innovators, said Brian McClendon, vice president of engineering, Google Earth and Maps.

The Geographic Bee is an outstanding program that provides students a unique opportunity to better understand our world and the events happening around them, said Bob Jirsa, president, Plum Creek Foundation. Education is one of the focal points of our Plum Creek Foundation, so we're pleased to continue our partnership with the National Geographic Society's Geographic Bee program to sponsor state Bees across the United States.

The state Bees are the second level of the annual National Geographic Bee. The first level began last November with contests in nearly 11,000 U.S. schools, in which millions of students participated.

The preliminary rounds of the national contest will take place on Monday, May 20. The championship round featuring the top 10 finalists - moderated by Jeopardy! quizmaster Alex Trebek for the 25th year - will be held on Wednesday, May 22, at the National Theater in Washington, D.C. For the first and only time, tickets for the national finals are on sale to the public at http://nglive.org/geobee.

National Geographic Channel and Nat Geo WILD will air the final round at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 23. It will be aired later on public television stations; check local television listings for dates and times.

Visitors to the Bee section of the National Geographic Society website, www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee, can hone their geography skills with the GeoBee Challenge game.

The National Geographic GeoBee Challenge app, with more than 1,000 questions culled from past Bees, is available from the App Store on iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, or on Google Play.

National Geographic developed the National Geographic Bee in 1989 in response to concern about the lack of geographic knowledge among young people in the United States.

Note to Editors: Press resources on the 2013 National Geographic Bee can be found at http://bit.ly/GeoBee2013 (username & password: press).

About National Geographic

The National Geographic Society is one of the world's largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge, the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 450 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic, and other magazines; National Geographic Channel; television programs; music; radio; films; books; DVDs; maps; exhibitions; live events; interactive media; school publishing programs; expeditions; and merchandise. National Geographic has funded more than 10,000 scientific research, conservation and exploration projects and supports an education program promoting geographic literacy. For more information, visit www.nationalgeographic.com.

About Plum Creek

Plum Creek is the largest and most geographically diverse private landowner in the nation with approximately 6.4 mil

LINK:	http://press.nationalgeographic.com/2013/03/25/top-geography-students-...
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