The artwork of 13 Nebraska students will be featured in the 2020 “Nebraska: Don’t Waste It!” environmental calendar. The statewide contest is sponsored by the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE) and focuses on the importance of waste reduction, recycling and litter cleanup.

The students whose submissions were selected for the 2020 calendar were invited to a ceremony at the State Capitol on Wednesday, August 7, where they were honored by Gov. Pete Ricketts and NDEE Director Jim Macy. Each month, the calendar features one of the 12 winning environmental posters. A 13th winner’s artwork provides the cover for the calendar.

The entry featured on the cover was submitted by Trey Lamkins, a tenth grade student from Weeping Water Public School.

The other 12 winners who are featured in the calendar are:

Sawyer Woehl, a kindergarten student from Fisher’s 24 School, Schuyler.
Brayden Behrendt, a ninth grade student from Gibbon Public School, Gibbon.
Hayden Worth, a second grade student from Chase County School, Imperial.
Trace Sherlock, a fourth grade student from Grandview Elementary School, Alliance.
Emma Begay, a first grade student from Crete Elementary School, Crete.
Mackenzie Ware, an eighth grade student from Winnebago Public School, Winnebago.
Matthew Steffan, an eighth grade student from Zion Lutheran School, Pierce.
Jewel Meusch, a sixth grade student from St. Joseph Catholic School, Atkinson.
Aliyah Lopez, a first grade student at Fisher’s 24 School, Schuyler.
Axel Vavricek, a first grade student at Fisher’s 24 School, Schuyler.
Eden Lozano, a fifth grade student at Stratton Elementary School, Stratton.
Isabelle Cerveny, a seventh grade student at Hastings Middle School, Hastings.

“We were impressed with the quality and messages of the posters that were submitted to us this year,” Macy said. “It shows our students are taking an important interest in protecting Nebraska’s environment.”

Copies of the calendar are available by contacting NDEQ at P.O. Box 98922, Lincoln, NE 68509-8922, or by sending an e-mail request to NDEQ.moreinfo@nebraska.gov.

Below are photos of the individual contest winners, taken at the Aug. 7 ceremony. In each photo, Gov. Pete Ricketts is at left, and NDEE Director Jim Macy is at right. The last attachment is a photo of the entire group.