Dewasters of Seaside

Dewasters of Seaside

Project Theme: Environmental justice – waste reduction

Target Audience and Location: Seaside residents in Seaside, CA.

Vision: A community of residents committed to reducing their waste for the collective betterment of the people, town and planet.

Mission: Through education about how garbage in landfills contributes to climate change, we inspire our community to change their attitude and habits, so they actively reduce their waste.

Project Description: Scholar Jackie Ballasteros Martinez and her educator Scholar Sarah Lester Guzmán focused their project on waste reduction, something they both were passionate about long before becoming Scholars. They are both members of their school’s Ocean Defenders Club and Jackie is known to carry around reusable water bottles, bags and cutlery to ensure she is doing her part to reduce waste.

This team made sure they built partnerships with local community organizations already engaged in sustainability efforts and decided their target audience for their founding year would be the mobile home community Jackie resides in. They are focused on building relationships with community members to build trust while surveying what they already know and practice, related to reducing their household waste and climate change. Based on what they learn, they are planning a community carnival full of healthy food, games, prizes and activities to provide education, information and resources in a fun, family friendly environment so residents become active participants in reducing their household waste and making a positive impact on climate change.