MILWAUKEE, March 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Matthew Belz, a sixth-grader at Hastings Middle School in the Upper Arlington (Ohio) City School District, is one of three national student winners of the Igniting Creative Energy Challenge -- an educational competition that encourages students to develop ingenious ways to live a more sustainable life and protect the environment.
The contest is sponsored and funded through a grant by Johnson Controls, Inc., with additional support from Philips and the United States Energy Association and is administered by the National Energy Foundation.
Matthew learned that he won during a Publishers Clearing House-type surprise announcement in his classroom on Thursday, March 13. Representatives of Johnson Controls, school officials and Matthew's parents were on hand to congratulate him on his accomplishment.
The Challenge asked students to submit projects that demonstrated ways of practicing energy efficiency and sustainability at home, at school, or in the community. Matthew's winning project is a documentary highlighting his journey to find an environmentally-friendly alternative to the polystyrene trays used in his school's cafeteria. His extensive research led him to discover that trays made of sugar cane fiber are similar in cost and more environmentally conscious than polystyrene trays. School officials, including the Director of Finance and Food Service Director, are reviewing Matthew's findings to explore the possibility of changing the trays in the school's cafeteria.
"I was motivated to enter this challenge because I have a passion for recycling," explains Matthew. "As you can see, the project has had an impact on my life. I learned about polystyrene, landfills, biodegradable products, cost analysis, and even how to make a movie on my computer!"
The winners -- three students and a teacher -- will receive a hosted trip to Hawaii, March 26 - 30, 2008 as well as the opportunity to participate in the Energy Efficiency Forum in Washington, D.C., June 10 - 11, 2008, where they will share their Challenge entries and ideas with government and energy leaders. The other winners will be announced soon.
The Igniting Creative Energy Challenge is open to all students in grades K-12 in the United States and Canada. Students are asked to submit entries that reflect the competition theme, Igniting Creative Energy, and demonstrate an understanding of what an individual, family, or group can do to make a difference in the places they live or travel. In addition to the three student winners, there is also one teacher winner. The teacher with the highest average score of student work from 15 or more qualifying entries is named the national winner.
The winning entries for 2008 will be posted at http://www.ignitingcreativeenergy.org. There also will be links from the National Energy Foundation's and Johnson Controls' Web sites.
About National Energy Foundation:
The National Energy Foundation is a unique 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to the development, dissemination, and implementation of supplementary educational materials, programs and courses that relate primarily to energy, water, natural resources, science and math, technology, conservation and the environment. These teaching resources recognize the importance and contribution of natural resources to our economy, our national security, the environment and our quality of life.
About United States Energy Association:
The United States Energy Association is the United States member of the World Energy Council. USEA is composed of approximately 150 public and private energy-related organizations, corporations and government agencies.
About Philips:
Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands
is one of the world's biggest electronics companies and Europe's largest, with sales of $37.7 billion (EUR 30.4 billion) in 2005. With activities in the three interlocking domains of healthcare, lifestyle and technology and 161,500 employees in more than 60 countries, it has market leadership positions in medical diagnostic imaging and patient monitoring, color television sets, electric shavers, lighting and silicon system solutions. News from Philips is located at http://www.philips.com/newscenter.
Johnson Controls is the global leader that brings ingenuity to the places where people live, work and travel. By integrating technologies, products and services, we create smart environments that redefine the relationships between people and their surroundings. Our team of 140,000 employees creates a more comfortable, safe and sustainable world through our products and services for more than 200 million vehicles, 12 million homes and one million commercial buildings. For additional information, please visit http://www.johnsoncontrols.com/.
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