Recycling Ideas

Every year, Metro, our regional government organization that protects open spaces and parks, plans for land use and transportation and manages garbage disposal and recycling for 1.3 million residents, organizes a billboad competition for the region's schoolchildren.

This year there were more than 3,000 entries from kids in grades K-12 focusing on recycling, reducing and reusing products and packaging, as well as helping to make life better for everyone through conscientious consumption. It gives teachers and schools the opportunity to explore the issues around recycling, what it means to be a responsible citizen and what that means for the other people and organisms we share the planet with.

I was asked to be on the judging panel for the competition this year and I've got to say it was a tough job winnowing down the entries to the four winners (one from each age group) that will be made into billboards, rotating around the region for the next year. It's a great program, and one we can all be proud of!