Application Deadline Approaches for Marketplace Inventors Contest

Grand Forks, ND ~ November 2, 2007:  Senator Kent Conrad and North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson are calling on aspiring inventors to compete in the 4th Annual Marketplace/Northern Plains Inventors Congress Invention Contest.

"The Inventors Congress competition showcases some of North Dakota's most creative and innovative thinkers while providing the tools necessary for these burgeoning business leaders to turn their visions into reality," Senator Conrad and Commissioner Johnson said in a joint statement.

The Invention Contest is slated for January 15-16, 2008, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks. Finalists will compete for more than $5,500 in cash prizes.  The deadline for entry is December 14, 2007. All inventors, entrepreneurs, businesses and service providers are invited to attend this free, annual conference, which attracts individuals from across the United States.

Additionally, a Youth Innovator competition will be held in an effort to promote creative thinking and an entrepreneurial spirit in North Dakota's youth.

For 18 years, Marketplace has served as the place for people to exchange ideas, discuss the latest innovations, and share skills and technology.  Often described as "a supermarket of ideas" Marketplace gives participants the tools, encouragement, advice and support they need to boost incomes, strengthen their communities, and explore business opportunities in North Dakota.

To find out more about the Inventors Congress competition and Marketplace for Entrepreneurs, please visit http://www.marketplaceforentrepreneurs.org/.