ISRI and JASON Learning announce the winner of the nationwide 2020 Youth Video & Poster Contest designed to promote the value of recycling among youth. Second-grader Lexi Bosar, from Northport Elementary School in Northport, Alabama, won the 2020 grand prize with her video submission.
“Combining STEM education with creativity and imagination through art provides a unique opportunity to engage students in recycling,” said ISRI President Robin Wiener. “Each year we are impressed by the quality of entries from students of every age. Lexi’s video demonstrates just how bright the future is. We congratulate her on a job well done.”
The theme of this year’s contest was “Recycling: Then, Now, & Into the Future.” Having been a part of human history for centuries, recycling has evolved and adapted over the last 200 years to keep up with the different materials entering the recycling stream. Students were challenged to imagine the future of recycling and create innovative solutions for real-world problems that pollution and landfills create. From Paul Revere owning a scrap metal yard to families during the great depression reusing flour sacks to make new clothes, recycling has transformed and been a part of our lives throughout time. Over 125 teams of students in grades K – 12 submitted videos and posters for the contest, from all over the world including Canada and Germany.
“Making a difference in the environment happens when recycling is essential,” said President and CEO of JASON Learning Dr. Eleanor Smalley. “JASON’s partnership with ISRI reaches millions of students every year. Helping those students understand why recycling is essential. I am so excited that Lexi Bosar won the 2020 ISRI JASON Recycling Poster/Video Contest. Congratulations to Lexi and ISRI for making a profound difference in the world.”
Lexi’s video submission notes the United States’ low recycling collection rate and suggests that robots could collect and sort recyclable material retrieved from U.S. landfills. Judges evaluated entries on the interpretation and clarity of the theme to the viewer, the persuasiveness of the message, creativity and originality, the quality of the entry, and the overall impression of the entry. Lexi was recognized on November 20 during an award presentation at ISRI member CMC Recycling’s Spartanburg, South Carolina facility.
ISRI and JASON Learning are currently accepting entries for the 2021 Youth Video and Poster Contest. The 2021 theme is “Recycling is Essential.” Entries are due December 18, 2020.