The need for new approaches to control and prevent obesity is clear. The challenge of childhood obesity is particularly daunting, with far-reaching and long-term adverse health consequences not only for the US, but worldwide. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has long been dedicated to overcoming this challenge, with a commitment to reversing the nationwide epidemic of childhood obesity by 2015. Now, the American Journal of Preventive Medicine is working with the Foundation’s Pioneer Portfolio to complement those efforts, with our own Childhood Obesity Challenge – an online competition for innovators of all backgrounds to submit promising solutions to this epidemic.