The news is out and I am happy to announce I have been nominated and named in the top 5 for Time Magazine & Nickelodeon’s Kid of the Year! This is such a huge honor and I want to thank everyone who has taken time to help me along the way. I wouldn’t be here without my amazing family and friends who have always let me explore my passion and helped me in so many ways.
This won’t change my work or my motivation, actually, it will make me push even harder knowing people see what I’m doing and that I can make a difference.
January 1st, 2022, I hosted a cleanup with my good friend and State Representative, Greg Vital. I truly appreciate people who believe kids can make a difference!
Last year I met so many amazing people and have been so inspired that I know what I’m doing matters. I know my voice is being heard and my actions are being seen and they matter!
Starting the year off with a cleanup has become a family tradition for my family but being joined today by people who represent my state makes me so proud and happy!
This year has been busy but so fun! I’ve been scuba diving several times with my best friends! (Does it really get any better than that?!)
I have removed about 4,000 more pounds of trash bringing the total to 14,000! I hit the 1 ton mark in aluminum recycling! Ella & I won a few awards but best of all…. we were able to be together and meet Sylvia Earle!!!!
Stay tuned for next year….. it’s going to start off with a bang.
A few weeks ago, after almost a year of work on aluminum can recycling , I hit the 1 TON mark! I keep track of how many pounds each time I take them to be recycled and it took 10 months to recycle 1 ton of aluminum.
The cans I pick up are from Play.Wash.Pint. A local dog play park where people meet, gather, hang out and their dogs can play in a safe space. This Business hated to see all of this potential just to the trash so I partnered with them and pick up all their aluminum and some plastic for recycling. The money I make from these cans goes to make my monofilament bins that are placed along the Tennessee River. There are now 17 out and I couldn’t have done it without this partnership. If you have an idea, and don’t know where to start or how to find it, look in the trash, who knows, you may find an idea? And you can help the planet too!
If there’s something I love, it’s the Tennessee River so today, I am celebrating World Rivers Day. The Tennessee River and it’s tributaries supply drinking water to about 5.1 million people. It’s also the nation’s fifth-largest river system and one of the most biodiverse rivers in North America. With that said, it’s also the tested higher for microplastics than any other river in the world to date. Why?! Landfill waste! We have got to do better with what we dispose of and where it goes. Our health and well being literally depend on it. . .
This month has been super busy and it doesn’t look like next month is going to lighten up. I’m not complaining, I LOVE it. I love being able to raise more and more awareness for our great planet, for our waterways and our wildlife.
I was able to visit Yellowstone National Park as well as Grand Teton National Park and be immersed in wildlife and nature and it was such a beautiful time! Moose, Bear, Wolves, and Bison were all on my list and I saw all of them.
Ella & I, as The Cleanup Kids, were honored to be named in the top 25 for the prestigious Gloria Barron Prize for young heroes. When we hear if being just nominated for these awards, it confirms we are making a difference and our voices are being heard.
The same day, we also learned we are finalists for the GoBlue awards with the Loggerhead Marine Center in Florida. Ella & I have both been there and researched sea turtles and have even done full videos on turtles if you want to check it out in our YouTube channel.
I also have some other things in the works that I can’t say yet but it’s turning out to be an exciting year and I am so thankful for the support of my parents as well as the people who have given so much to help me learn and grow and pursue ocean and river conservation.
I know I’m just a kid, but we can make a difference! We can and WILL change the world!
I did my first podcast interview and it happens to be with my friend and fellow Prudential spirit of community award winner. Go check it out and let m know what you think!
I was named as a state honoree for the state of Tennessee. Each state had 1 honoree for high school level and 1 for middle school level from each state. After a long weekend of zoom calls and meeting other state honorees, they named 10 national honorees. There were some amazing youth doing wonderful things and I was happy to be among those 100 kids recognized but my weekend got even more amazing when I was named one the top 10!!!!
Check out the link below! This is such an amazing honor and I am more than thrilled but humbled to represent Tennessee in the best way!
I was able to see an amazing beautiful bird this week, the Snowy owl! I live in Tennessee so these birds are not normally seen here. This is the first one in my city/county and only the 15th seen on our state. It’s thought that females will wait until they know there’s enough food so when they do have chicks, there’s more than average and they need to expand their territories so they sometimes go further south.
This beauty isn’t the biggest owl but one of the heaviest because of the thick feathers, which keep them warm in cold climates like the arctic.
The Conservation Kid 