The winners were chosen from dozens of highly qualified applicants based
on their academic record and commitment to recycling and protecting the
environment. A committee comprised of College and University Recycling
Council (CURC) members and NSDA staff selected the winners. They are:
Mykel Bybee, a senior at Utah State University, a fisheries and wildlife
major who has taken courses in natural resources management, founded a
student environmental organization which conducted the first major waste
audit at his school's campus. He hopes to use what he learns at the
conference to improve their campus recycling program.
Emily Celano, a biology and environmental science double major at
Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania, was hired by her school's facilities
department to reevaluate the campus recycling program. Her duties also
include developing flyers, pamphlets, and other public education
materials for the school's recycling program.
Nathan Ontrop, an industrial engineering major at the University of
Toledo in Ohio, has taken courses in materials and manufacturing
processes and facilities planning. He is currently performing research
at a lab at his university on the subject of waste minimization for
companies.