Plastic Ring Work-Around: Redmond Students Named Finalists in National Environmental Contest

A team of students from the STEM High School in Redmond are finalists in the 2013 Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge.

Team Project Perforation was named a finalist for its project on preventing the deaths of seabirds and other marine animals that get stuck in plastic soda rings. The team included Teri Guo, Amy Zhang, Emily Yang, and Timothy Atkinson with mentor Melissa Wrenchey.

High school students from across the country participated in this year’s competition and were challenged to address an environmental issue related to energy, biodiversity, land management, water conservation and cleanup, and/or air and climate. Under the guidance of a teacher, STEM High School students created sustainable, reproducible improvements for their community and their world using web-based curriculum tools powered by Discovery Education.

The finalists from Redmond worked on preventing the deaths of seabirds and other marine animals by perforating the plastic rings that bind soda cans, making them easier for the animals to tear should they become ensnared in the litter.

As part of a three-part judging process, a panel of environmental advocates and science educators selected finalists based on the project’s ability to creatively present a viable solution to some of today’s greatest environmental challenges.  Each member of the Project Perforation Team will receive a finalist certificate and a Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge green prize pack. STEM High School will also receive a congratulatory Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge banner. 

The national K-12 challenge is designed to encourage students to tackle environmental issues in their own communities and seek solutions to those problems. More than 80,000 of today’s youth have participated in the Challenge since it was introduced, proving themselves as “Agents of Change” in their own communities. In the past, Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge winners and participants have run grassroots campaigns to reduce energy consumption at their schools. Others designed a pilot program to recycle food waste to create energy and tested the program in their town.

As a result of the Challenge, past students have been able to change their schools’ policies, open up their neighborhoods to new ideas and even inspired politicians to craft green legislation on both the state and national level.

For more information on the Challenge, the state finalists and their projects, visit www.wecanchange.com.