About

Nikki Katanguri (12th grade) and Riya Gangabathina (11th grade) are students at Glenelg High School and climate ambassadors of the Youth Climate Institute. As second-year students of the organization, they aim to create a meaningful change to the environment through initiating a capstone project in collaboration with Upcycled, a local non-profit that works to recycle plastic waste into usable products.

UpCycled

Their project, The Recycle Revolution, aims to collect as many pounds of #2 and #5 plastic as possible and transform them into meaningful products in collaboration with the Upcycled organization. Their ultimate goal is to repurpose the collected plastics to construct a bench, which will then be donated towards a library or school. While the project initially focused on collecting bottle caps, it has since expanded to include a wide range of different plastics, from take-out containers to shampoo bottles (check out the full list in the "PLASTIC" tab).

UpCycled

The project’s overall objective is to create a meaningful impact in the Howard County community by converting plastic waste into valuable items, thus fostering the art of upcycling and promoting sustainability. Any community support through donating plastic items or setting up public collection sites would be greatly appreciated in achieving this goal!