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NWF Youth Win Big

This year, four youth engaged in NWF's education programs were named as finalists or winners of the Brower Youth Awards, a prestigious youth environmental award program.

From a pool of hundreds of applicants nationwide, Brower Youth Awards are given to 10 finalists and 6 winners ages 13 to 22. National Wildlife Federation extends its congratulations to the outstanding students recognized by this highly selective program.

Supported by NWF staff, each of the students below has put service before self, showing a dedication to their schools, their communities and their environments that make them role models for students nationwide. Read their stories!

Whitney Cushing, Homer, AK
Julian Dautremont-Smith, Portland, OR
Ron Schildge, Middlebury, VT
Rose Peterson, Gunnison, CO


Whitney Cushing, 16, Homer High School, Homer, AK
WINNER: 2003 Brower Youth Award

Whitney Cushing, President of the Homer Chapter of Alaska Youth for Environmental Action (AYEA), an environmental education and leadership program of the National Wildlife Federation, is mobilizing his peers take action on waste reduction.

He pioneered recycling programs at Homer High School, and worked with community leaders to make type 1 plastic recycling available throughout the Kenai Peninsula. He also led students in other environmental action, from keeping oilrigs out of the lower Cook Inlet to educating first graders on recycling.


Julian Dautremont-Smith, Junior Year Campus Ecology® Fellowship Project - 01-02, Lewis and Clark College, Portland, Oregon
FINALIST: 2003 Brower Youth Award

Julian ran a successful campaign to raise student fees to purchase enough greenhouse gas offsets (off-campus emission reductions) to make the college meet the specifications of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming.

After inventorying 1999 and 2000 campus emissions, Julian researched and secured a supplier of high quality offsets and calculated that the program would require a $10 increase in student fees.

He placed his student-fees initiative on the student ballot and secured 83% in favor with the highest voter turnout in an Associated Students of Lewis and Clark election!


Ron Schildge

Ron Schildge, Junior Year Campus Ecology Fellowship Project 01-02, Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vermont
FINALIST: 2003 Brower Youth Award

Ron designed and built an operational refinery at Middlebury College for the production of biodiesel fuel. This working site used vegetable oil from dining services to produce over 90 gallons of biodiesel.

Ron educated his community, as well, hosting workshops in collaboration the Middlebury Institute for Sustainable Development, participating in regional educational events, and procuring a biodiesel test vehicle to be used for educational purposes.


Rose Peterson, Junior Year Campus Ecology Fellowship Project 01-02, Western State College, Gunnison, CO
FINALIST: 2003 Brower Youth Award

As a junior, Rose designed and implemented a cold-weather composting program for Western State College. The system diverted nearly 3 tons of prep and salad bar waste over the course of the 2002-2003 school year, equaling about 5-7% of the waste stream.

She also recruited numerous volunteers, produced a five-minute video on composting and co-founded a regional coalition of schools from the western part of the U.S. called Rockies STEP (Students Towards Environmental Protection).



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