On August 30, the Department of Transportation and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful announced the 2024-2025 cohort of Young Ambassadors of Pennsylvania.

The program, administered by KPB, is designed to grow community stewards and civic leaders by engaging and empowering young Pennsylvanians to keep their communities healthy and become ambassadors for a shared vision of a clean and beautiful Pennsylvania.

Students were selected through a competitive application process and have committed to nine months of service as ambassadors.

From September through May 2025, participants will develop civic leadership skills and experiences to champion and advocate for clean and beautiful communities across Pennsylvania.

“Programs like Young Ambassadors are the first step in creating lasting impact on Pennsylvania's ecological health," said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “These students will go on to become decision-makers and steer the state's green future. Starting now is critical."

Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful will be awarding a minimum of two $1000 scholarships to seniors in the Young Ambassadors program, both current and past participants.

“We are proud to welcome this new slate of Young Ambassadors to our program and excited to provide opportunities for them to engage and activate within their own community. Together, we will explore and connect with young professionals and like-minded students from not just Pennsylvania, but across the country and make a positive impact in our shared communities. We look forward to witnessing the remarkable achievements and positive changes that will emerge from this dynamic group," said Shannon Reiter, President, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.

2024-2025 Young Ambassadors of PA by county--

E. Yocum, 12th grade, Westinghouse Arts Academy, Allegheny County

Ghizal Halim, 11th grade, Bensalem Township High School, Bucks County

Zackery Laubach, 12th grade, Bellefonte Area High School, Centre County

Alexander Calalang Gutierrez, 10th grade, Conestoga High School, Chester County

Noori Choudhary, 11th grade, Unionville High School, Chester County

Sonya Patel, 12th grade, Downingtown STEM Academy, Chester County

JD Reyes, 12th grade, Oxford Area High School, Chester County

Hannah Harvey, 11th grade, Susquehanna Township High School, Dauphin County

Isaiah Khan, 12th grade, Susquehanna Township High School, Dauphin County

Erica Rainford, 11th grade, Ridley High School, Delaware County

Layani Watson, 10th grade, Penn Wood High School, Delaware County

Anvitha Vallabhaneni, 10th grade, Garnet Valley High School, Delaware County

Naba Hassan, 11th grade, Penn Wood High School, Delaware County

Gnana Ananya Desireddi, 11th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County

Holden Siegler, 12th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County

Masa Alkhudari, 11th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County

Samaira Karmarkar, 12th grade, McDowell High School, Erie County

Silvia Kang, 10th grade, Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy, Erie County

Annamary Oslikova, 11th grade, Waynesboro Area Senior High School, Franklin County

Soo-Jin Callahan, 10th grade, Waynesboro Area Senior High School, Franklin County

Marissa Hedin, 12th grade, Waynesboro Area Senior High School, Franklin County

Ava Spencer, 11th grade, Purchase Line High School, Indiana County

Emily Claps, 11th grade, Valley View High School, Lackawanna County

Joy Beckish, 10th grade, North Pocono High School, Lackawanna County

Kaitlyn Priest, 12th grade, Lakeland Jr/Sr High School, Lackawanna County

Peyton Martin, 11th grade, Lakeland Jr/Sr High School, Lackawanna County

Edie Hann, 10th grade, Scranton Preparatory School, Lackawanna County

Shrey Singh 11th grade, Lampeter Strasburg High School, Lancaster County

Alexia George, 11th grade, Methacton High School, Montgomery County

Kumba Tonguino, 11th grade, Plymouth Whitemarsh High School, Montgomery County

Olivia Sellers, 11th grade, Perkiomen Valley High School, Montgomery County

Jaclyn Keyser, 12th grade, Perkiomen Valley High School, Montgomery County

Callum Dormer, 10th grade, Hazleton Area Arts and Humanities Academy, Schuylkill County

Emmet Portland, 11th grade, Nativity B.V.M. High School, Schuylkill County

Miranda Burkot, 12th grade, Nativity B.V.M. High School, Schuylkill County

Ravit Patani, 10th grade, Peters Township High School, Washington County

Shrehan Patel, 10th grade, Peters Township High School,  Washington County

Brett Anthony, 11th grade, Greensburg Central Catholic High School, Westmoreland County

Emily Lori, 12th grade, Greensburg Central Catholic High School, Westmoreland County

Kathryn Trautmann, 12th grade, Franklin Regional Senior High School, Westmoreland County

KPB will provide education and training to program participants on topics related to the impacts of litter, litter prevention, waste management and recycling, civic engagement and related public policy, volunteer management, and social media marketing.

Ambassadors will have an opportunity to apply for job shadow opportunities with two companies, DOW, Inc. and Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania/NiSource.

Selected students will spend the day in the field with sustainability professionals.

Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful will provide a stipend to participants to support time and travel expenses.

For more information about the program and the Young Ambassadors, visit the KPB Young Ambassadors Program webpage or contact Kylie McCutcheon at kmccutcheon@keeppabeautiful.org.

The Young Ambassador program was recommended in the Commonwealth's Litter Action Plan, announced by the Wolf administration in 2021 in response to a 2019 Pennsylvania Litter Research Study, which found Pennsylvania has more than 500 million pieces of litter on its roadways.

The action plan includes strategies for all Pennsylvanians to fight litter in their communities.

PennDOT provides many additional litter cleanup volunteer opportunities, including Adopt-A-Highway, Litter Brigades, and more at PennDOT’s Roadside Beautification webpage.

Click Here for the complete announcement.

2024 Summit For Community Stewardship

Join KPB, its local affiliates, state agencies and volunteers from across the state for the 2024 Summit for Community Stewardship to be held October 16-17 in Scranton concerned about litter, illegal dumping and community beautification.

For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful website.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates from KPB, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, visit their YouTube Channel.

Keep PA Beautiful helps mobilize over 100,000 volunteers a year to pick up litter, clean up illegal dumping and beautify Pennsylvania.

Resource Link:

-- Week 10: Illegal Dumping Of Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Continues Unabated On Paved, Dirt Roads, Before It Rains, It Doesn’t Matter In Warren County  [PaEN]

Related Articles This Week:

-- PennDOT, Keep PA Beautiful Announce 40 Students Selected As 2024-25 Young Ambassadors For A Clean And Beautiful Pennsylvania  [PaEN] 

-- Keep PA Beautiful Supports 16th Allegheny River & Watershed Cleanup Sept. 12 to 14 In Warren County  [PaEN]

NewsClips:

-- WHYY Climate Fixers: Curbside Recycling Is Broken, In Kensington, Rabbit Recycling Will Take Anything

-- TribLive: Trash To Treasure: Fox Chapel Area Artists Compete In Global Junk Kouture Competition

-- Post-Gazette: Grandpa Isn’t Driving The Garbage Truck, But He’s A Recycling Wizard

[Posted: September 4, 2024]

9/9/2024