The Casella Calendar Contest celebrates nearly 20 years of inspiring and educating third-grade students across the Northeast about sustainable waste management practices. What began as a local initiative has now expanded to include thousands of students across six different states.
“The Calendar Contest is a way to connect with the younger generation,” says Municipal Account Manager Talya Bent. “The education that goes along with it equips them with the knowledge and values needed to make positive contributions to the environment and society throughout their lives.”
The annual contest started as a passion project developed by Vice President of Transportation Al Sabino, whose children inspired him to create an educational opportunity addressing the process of recycling. Today, the competition is executed through the work of countless members across Casella’s operating footprint and spearheaded by Administrative Office Specialist Sue Ahearn.
Each year, participating third-grade teachers are provided educational recycling resources and encouraged to engage their students in material highlighting green practices and habits. Students can then choose to depict their learning through art and submit their final pieces as part of the calendar competition.
After an extensive judging process, 12 students’ artwork is selected from each state to be included in location-based Casella calendars.
“The schools love that we do this outreach in the community,” says Territory Sales Representative Megan Miley. “Teachers and students are proud of their work. They are proud to tell me about what they did for Green Up Day and how they work with their parents to sort waste accurately at their homes.”
The contest has grown significantly over the years, with over 26,000 entries received from more than 13,000 participating schools. Casella representatives visit participating schools to present student awards, deliver framed artwork, and connect with the next generation of sustainable leaders.
“I feel the true purpose of the contest is to not only connect with the community on a deeper level but also to educate young students to develop habits that will last a lifetime,” says Bent. “They learn the importance of making environmentally conscious choices, such as reducing waste, reusing items, and recycling in a fun and engaging way, that they can then share with their peers, parents, and other community members to adopt recycling practices, multiplying the positive impact.”
Casella Waste Systems, Inc., headquartered in Rutland, Vermont, is one of the largest recyclers and most experienced fully integrated resource management companies in the Eastern United States. Founded in 1975 as a single truck collection service, Casella has grown its operations to provide solid waste collection and disposal, transfer, recycling, and organics services to more than one million residential, commercial, municipal, institutional, and industrial customers and provides professional resource management services to over 10,000 customer locations in more than 40 states.
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