Rebel wins Governor’s Cup

June 1, 2009 by Tessie Perkins 

Recent UNLV business college graduate wins prestigious competition

Students are always thinking up ways to protect the environment, but a recent UNLV graduate took it to the next level. 

UNLV graduate Steve Perkowski won first place and $20,000 in Nevada’s 2009 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup competition and went on to compete in the tri-state contest Thursday, versus students in Nevada, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Perkowski graduated from UNLV this spring with a degree in business administration with an emphasis in real estate and a minor in economics. He competed in the undergraduate category with his business plan to create a vertical farm that would grow organic produce hydroponically.

According to the Governor’s Cup Web site, the contest is designed to encourage Nevadad students to act use their ideas and talents to advance future business.

Perkowski got involved in the competition by attending an information meeting about the Governor’s Cup and through workshops held by Janet Runge, assistant professor and interim director for the UNLV Center for Entrepreneurship.

Perkowski created a business plan to build a vertical farm that would produce organic crops with mineral solutions instead of with pesticides or artificial fertilizers. 

“[A vertical farm is] essentially a large tower with multiple levels that grows crops via hydroponics,” Perkowski said. He explained that hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil, using mineral nutrients solutions and artificial light.

Perkowski said there are many reasons why he chose a vertical farm for his business plan.

“The benefits of building a vertical farm in Las Vegas are two-fold,” he said. “First, growing crops in an enclosed environment allows us to grow crops 365 days a year without any potential crop damage from outdoor elements. More importantly, hazardous chemical runoff created from traditional farming operations are eliminated with vertical farming because pesticides are not used.  

“Secondly, there are clear environmental benefits such as the reduction in carbon emissions created by shipping crops into Las Vegas from out of state farms.”

Perkowski went on to say that fighting environmental pollution is a goal and benefit of this type of farming.

“Las Vegas Vertical Farm’s goal is to substantially reduce the carbon footprint created from transporting crops into Las Vegas, thus contributing to the fight against global warming,” he said.

The vertical farm that Perkowski proposed would be 130,000 square feet and would produce a wide variety of lettuce and herbs. 

Runge, who helped Perkowski with his project, said Perkowski’s drive helped him win.

“His intense focus and incredible attention to detail clearly set his business plan apart from the competitors,” he said. “He distilled highly technical concepts and a very complex business model into a plan that is innovative, approachable and engaging.”

As for what’s to come in Perkowski’s future, he said he would like to continue his success in the field.

 “I realize that I have simply won an academic competition,” he said. “And the next step for me is to launch a real business that achieves profitability.”