Pennsylvania kids are helping keep their communities clean and litter free through the Litter Hawks Program. Kids in grades K through 6 are creating posters, essays or videos on how to keep their community litter-free for the 2025 award program hosted by Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.
The Litter Hawk Youth Award Program was started decades ago, but after a hiatus returned three years ago to involve kids in environmental clean up. Inviting youth to participate can help develop good clean up habits for the future, said Stephanie Larson, the communications and program manager for Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.
“Then we find that those carry over and that they care more about, you know, where they live and where they work, and, you know, it’s just about developing good habits and being good stewards of our lands,” Larson said.
Larson said the program is seeing the kids’ concern for their parks and the animals living in them while she has seen kids come back year after year and change their friends and family’s minds.
“They’re trying to spread the word just just like everybody else, like just like the adults in their life,” Larson said.
The program received almost 1,000 projects last year and are hoping to receive more in 2025. Larson said the program, which opens on Oct. 31 and closes Jan. 31, receives most of its projects in the last two weeks.
Kids in grades K-4 submit posters, fifth graders submit essays, and sixth graders submit posters. This year the program is supporting Keep America Beautiful’s 3-year campaign, The Greatest American Cleanup.
Each entry is judged on creativity how well it follows this year’s theme: “Join the Greatest American Cleanup! Show us how you can keep your community litter-free for America’s 250th birthday.”
Each project will be reviewed by a retired teacher who selects a number of projects for a panel of judges who then choose a project for first and second place in each grade. The winnings entries are displayed at the Pennsylvania State Capitol building for the month April.
“At the beginning of April, the beginning of the display, we invite all the winners, their parents, guardians, teachers, to come for a little ceremony, where we hand out the certificates that they achieved,” Larson said.
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This year the program is focused on America 250, the nonpartisan initiative celebrating America’s 250th birthday. At the ceremony, a representative from America 250 will speak to the winners and their families.
The program offers the displays to the winners’ local legislator. Often the local municipality will have its own ceremony to recognize the winner and more legislators are catching on to celebrating their winners, Larson said. The kids and their entries are posted on social media and the Keep PA Beautiful website until next year’s program is announced.
“We want the kids to get as much recognition as they can around the program and their achievement,” Larson said.
Kids have time to submit an entry before the deadline on Jan. 31 with the potential to be recognized for their creativity and hard work to keep their community clean.
“I just love seeing all the projects, all the effort and thoughtfulness that goes into, you know, all the posters and reading all those essays and and watching those videos,” Larson said.
WHO: All Pennsylvania students in grades K – 6 are welcome to participate, including individuals, school classrooms, homeschoolers, scout groups, clubs and other organized groups!
WHAT: Submit a poster, essay or video that shows how you can keep your community litter free. First and second place entries in each grade will receive certificates. All participants will receive a Litter Hawk sticker. Categories are: Poster (K-4), Essay (5) and Video (6).
WHEN: October 31, 2024, through January 31, 2025. Winners will be announced in April 2025 in coordination with an awards ceremony at the PA State Capitol Building where all winning entries will be on display as part of the 2025 Litter Hawk Youth Exhibit. All winners and their families, guardians and teachers are welcome to attend. Special guests will include representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection and America250PA.
WHY: To inspire others to take action and keep Pennsylvania communities litter free! Click here to learn more about the Greatest American Cleanup. DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES IS JANUARY 31, 2025.
For more information visit https://www.keeppabeautiful.org/grants-awards/awards/litter-hawk/.
