Past Winners
2023 Winners
The $1,000 first place prize was awarded to Cassy S and Emmett S from Bishop Lloyd Middle School (Lloydminster) for their proposal called, “Brush Off, Invaders.”
| Place | Proposal Idea | Student Name(s) | School |
| 1st | Brush Off, Invaders | Cassy S and Emmett S | Bishop Lloyd Middle School (Lloydminster) |
| 2nd | Our Eco-Week | Moses M | Centennial High School (Calgary) |
| 3rd | Willow Staking | Jade P | Centennial High School (Calgary) |
| 4th | Trees & Beads | Taylor B and Kyptin W | Dr Roy Wilson Learning Centre (Medicine Hat) |
| 5th | Environmentally Friendly Cosmetics | Sarah F, Zoe M, Nora V, Alexa S | Elboya School (Calgary) |
| 6th | Sustainable Irrigation | Aria V | Magrath Junior Senior High School (Magrath) |
| 7th | The Weird, Abstract and Educated | Stella W and Paige S | Dr Roy Wilson Learning Centre (Medicine Hat) |
| 8th | Bat Boxes | Mary-Ann T | Willow Creek Composite High (Claresholm) |
| 9th | Saving our bees and environment | Callie A and Kalia S | Cardston Junior High (Cardston) |
| 10th | Cover crops for gardens- lets stop erosion! | Bree P and Jayla S | Crescent Heights High School (Medicine Hat) |
2021 Winners
The $1,000 first place prize was awarded to Harish Guggilapu, Hailey Ash, Harika Guggilapu, and Jazmine Toews from Lacombe Composite High School for their proposal entitled, “The EPICC Garden.”
| Place | School | Student Name(s) | Proposal Idea |
| 1 | Lacombe Composite
High School |
Harish Guggilapu, Hailey Ash,
Harika Guggilapu, Jazmine Toews |
The EPICC Garden |
| 2 | Ross Sheppard High School, Edmonton | Quaila-Lee Trang | Become Cleaner Inhabitants with Thyme Disinfectants |
| 3 | M.E. LaZerte High School, Edmonton | Sarah Esmail | A Cure To The Plastic Pandemic |
| 4 | Fort McMurray Christian School | Esther Okorie, Lydia O’Byrne,
Onyinyechi Okoro |
Switch to LEDs |
| 5 | Lillian Osborne High School, Edmonton | Tracy Cui | A Garden for the Community, by the Community |
| 6 | New Myrnam School, Myrnam | Samantha O’Reilly, Jaeanna Saskiw,
Kalla Morritt |
Backyard Poultry Project |
| 7 | Bishop Lloyd Middle School, Lloydminster | Maheen Mangla | 1.Save 2.Compost 3.Plant 4.Donate 5.Care |
| 8 | Fort McMurray Christian School | Heidi Oxford, Abigail Friend, Selah Huygen | Composting and the Benefits to the Environment |
| 9 | Fort McMurray Christian School | Tino Kwatara, Edrey Jhun Albances,
Fernando Rodrigues |
The Importance of Removing Dog feces |
| 10 | Ecole McTavish High School, Fort McMurray | Brooklyn Gordon, Bianca Smith | Colouring and Activity Book |
2020 Winners
| Students | Project Title | School, Town |
| Julia Schoff | Watershed Kids Camp | Bashaw School, Bashaw |
| Ailene Thomas, Hailey Flett | LED Lights Campaign | École McTavish, Fort McMurray |
| Shanzey Adna, Priyanka Gupta | Watershed Hero Colouring Comic Book | École McTavish, Fort McMurray |
| Autumn Strong | Introducing Composting | Glendale Sciences & Technology School, Red Deer |
| Dana Sych, Soren Skaret | Spring Cleanup | Hay Lakes School, Hay Lakes |
| Michael Payne | Project Vermicompost | Holy Rosary High School, Lloydminster |
| Chelsea Smeltzer, Sneha Rose Jigo, JJ Dugan, Gage Coffey | Say No to Weed. (Goats for the school) |
Lacombe Composite High School, Lacombe |
| Anny Singh, Chrisle Petierre | Rub-a-dub-dub (Soap Sales and Phosphorus Education) | Laurier Heights School, Edmonton |
| Joffre Decore,Gabriel Osmond | Rain Barrel | Laurier Heights School, Edmonton |
2019 Winners
| Place | Student Names | Idea | School | Prize Amount |
| 1 | Neel Patel, Muhammad Ali Qureshi, Sparsh Patel, Darsh Patel | Clearwater Cleanup | Westwood Community Highschool, Fort McMurray | $1000 |
| 2 | Soren Skaret, Dana Sych | The Write Way to Recycle | Hay Lakes School, Hay Lakes | $900 |
| 3 | Harman Panesar | Creating a Resilient Watershed | A Blair McPherson School, Edmonton | $800 |
| 4 | Tessa Morrison | Erosion Terminators | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $700 |
| 5 | Stefanie Nielsen, Jacey Rasmussen, Piper Battle | Annual Watershed Day | Delia School, Delia | $600 |
| 6 | Lauren Laplante, Cate Nicholson | Vermiculture Bins in Our Schools | Laurier Heights School, Edmonton | $500 |
| 7 | Aleesa Morrison | Buffalo Bins and Boat Rinses | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $450 |
| 8 | Priscilla Bonsu, Isabella Wittal, Cheyeanne Rowan | Brochures for Change | Saint Augustine Catholic School, Ponoka | $400 |
| 9 | Linda Fisher, Nobiel Arsenal | Microclimate Spiral Herb Garden | Ecole Secondaire Lacombe High School, Lacombe | $350 |
| 10 | Sarah Sevick | Pollution and Our Watersheds | Laurier Heights School, Edmonton | $300 |
2018 Winners
| Place | Student Names | Idea | School | Prize Amount |
| 1 | Sparsh Patel, Neel Patel, Nirmit Parikh | Eco Amigos Composting Initiative | École McTavish Junior High Public School | $1000 |
| 2 | Lokesh Patel, Chintan Desai | EcoYOLO Phase Two | École McTavish Junior High Public School | $900 |
| 3 | Anders Bouck, Tyler Mokry | Staying Hydrated and Green | Charlie Killam School | $800 |
| 4 | Tessa Morrison | Rockeling Bay Pump Project | Bashaw School | $700 |
| 5 | Harman Panesar | Don’t Let the Butterfly, Flutterby | A. Blair McPherson School | $600 |
| 6 | Sarah Esmail | Saving Our Watershed, One Shower at a Time | Londonderry Junior High School | $500 |
| 7 | McKayla Ambury, Keana Patajo | Recycling Program | Rosary School | $450 |
| 8 | Sean Murphy, Kinley Baier | The Great Educational Night | Altario Public School | $400 |
| 9 | Raina Teichroeb | Bees… If they die, they’re taking us with them. | Bashaw School | $350 |
| 10 | Huda Abdi, Joanna Kiran | The Yellow Fish Road | Laurier Heights School | $300 |
2017 Winners
Thank you to all of the teachers, students and volunteers involved in the 2017 Caring for our Watersheds Contest! You are truly making a difference in your local communities.
| Place | Student Names | Idea | School Division | School, Location | Prize Amount |
| 1 | Simran Panesar | Accommodating Biodiversity in our Watershed | Edmonton Public Schools | W.P. Wagner, Edmonton | $1000 |
| 2 | Rachel Reitsma, Avy Lamb | Lacombe Irrigation Foods Experiment | Wolf Creek Public Schools | Ecole Lacombe Composite High School | $900 |
| 3 | Bria Kroetch, Brooke Hochausen, Alarie Guhle | Saving Drinking Water, One Cup at a Time | Battle River School Division | Dayslands School, Daysland | $800 |
| 4 | Emily Jackson | Down Cycle [Plastic Water Bottles] |
Wetaskiwin Regional Public Schools | Wetaskiwin Composite High School | $700 |
| 5 | Kisa Fatima, Raiha Hussain | Learning Grounds/Pollinator Garden | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray | $600 |
| 6 | Michelle Wu, Erika Tang, Azure La |
Rain Gardens | Edmonton Public Schools | Londonderry Junior High School, Edmonton | $500 |
| 7 | Suerry Yu, Rachel Low | Willows for Watersheds | Edmonton Public Schools | Londonderry Junior High School, Edmonton | $450 |
| 8 | Sharar Zaman | Birchwood Trails Dog Waste Dispensers | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray |
$400 |
| 9 | Dana Sych, Soren Skaret | Save the Trumpeter Swan | Battle River School Division | Hay Lakes School, Hay Lakes |
$350 |
| 10 | Bailie McDonald | How ‘bout them Wetlands | Battle River School Division | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $300 |
2016 Winners
Thank you to all of the teachers and students involved in the 2016 CFW Contest! This year we received 95 proposals submitted by 165 students. 13 schools from across the Central Alberta contest area were involved, from Beiseker and Byemoor, to Fort McMurray and Smokey Lake, to Edmonton and Wetaskiwin. Every student and teacher who has participated will be receiving a prize as a thank you from us for sharing your ideas on improving your watershed.
Top 10 Finalists
| Place | Student Names | Idea | School Division | School, Location | Prize Amount |
| 1 | Simran Panesar | Accommodating Biodiversity in our Watershed | Edmonton Public Schools | W.P. Wagner, Edmonton | $1000 |
| 2 | Rachel Reitsma, Avy Lamb | Lacombe Irrigation Foods Experiment | Wolf Creek Public Schools | Ecole Lacombe Composite High School | $900 |
| 3 | Bria Kroetch, Brooke Hochausen, Alarie Guhle | Saving Drinking Water, One Cup at a Time | Battle River School Division | Dayslands School, Daysland | $800 |
| 4 | Emily Jackson | Down Cycle [Plastic Water Bottles] |
Wetaskiwin Regional Public Schools | Wetaskiwin Composite High School | $700 |
| 5 | Kisa Fatima, Raiha Hussain | Learning Grounds/Pollinator Garden | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray | $600 |
| 6 | Michelle Wu, Erika Tang, Azure La |
Rain Gardens | Edmonton Public Schools | Londonderry Junior High School, Edmonton | $500 |
| 7 | Suerry Yu, Rachel Low | Willows for Watersheds | Edmonton Public Schools | Londonderry Junior High School, Edmonton | $450 |
| 8 | Sharar Zaman | Birchwood Trails Dog Waste Dispensers | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray |
$400 |
| 9 | Dana Sych, Soren Skaret | Save the Trumpeter Swan | Battle River School Division | Hay Lakes School, Hay Lakes |
$350 |
| 10 | Bailie McDonald | How ‘bout them Wetlands | Battle River School Division | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $300 |
Our Gems
These proposals did not quite make the finals but they were gems!
| School | Title | Students |
| Byemoor School | Environment Friends | Sydney Jack, Rachel Yates |
| École McTavish Junior High Public School | Saving Our Watershed One Barrel at a Time | Mira Patel, MacKenzie Guy |
| École Secondaire Lacombe Composite High School | Bee Wise | Alyssa Manderville |
| G.H.Primeau | Protecting our watersheds one insect at a time | Emma Van Brabant |
| H.A. Kostash (Smokey Lake) |
Tree Planting for Watershed Protection | Bryn Boykiw |
| Londonderry Jr. High | Neighborhood Rain Garden | Erika Tang, Azure La, Michelle Wu |
| Notre Dame High School (Bonnyville) | Increasing Awareness through an Online Community | Jayden Laturnus, Jason Beetham |
Implementation
We look forward to working with all of the students, teachers and schools involved in Caring for our Watersheds to help implement their projects. $10,000 of implementation money is available for students! All student groups are eligible for implementation funding, not just those who are finalists or gems. Please contact us for help implementing your projects.
Thank you again to every teacher and student who put in so much hard work! It gives us great pleasure to read all of the terrific ideas on what YOU would do to help improve your watershed.
2015 Winners
Thank you to all of the students, teachers and volunteers who participated. A record 150 entries were received. In a verbal competition in May 23rd, 2015 at the Reynolds-Alberta Museum the top entries presented their project ideas.
The $1,000 first place was awarded to Leah Marshall from Bawlf School for her proposal called, “Pollinators for the Watershed.” Great work everyone!
| Place | Student Names | Idea | School Division | School, Location | Prize Amount |
| 1 | Leah Marshall | Pollinators for the Watershed | Battle River | Bawlf School, Bawlf | $1000 |
| 2 | Simran Panesar | Interschool Clean-up Committee | Edmonton Public Schools | A. Blair McPherson, Edmonton | $900 |
| 3 | Brooklyn Green, Mina Shin | Get the Tweet on This | Star Catholic | St. Augustine School, Ponoka | $800 |
| 4 | Emily Wang | Soil Farming, Sustainable Development | Edmonton Public Schools | Vernon Bardford Junior High | $700 |
| 5 | Jaycee Dawbin | Carwashes Cleaning the Environment | Battle River | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $600 |
| 6 | Aneri Mavani, Albina Naumenko, Amy Crabtree | The Eco-Friendly Car Wash | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray | $500 |
| 7 | Urvi Patel, Lauren Dara | Making a Paper Free School | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray | $450 |
| 8 | Sydney Hunter | Erosion Control with Balsams | Battle River | Bashaw School, Bashaw | $400 |
| 9 | Jenny Lam, Jessica Han, Tracy Wang | Using Compost | Edmonton Public Schools | Londonderry Junior High School, Edmonton | $350 |
| 10 | Vrunda Patel, Ishani Patel, Bhavi Desai | Installation of Silt Screens on Outflows | Fort McMurray Public Schools | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray | $300 |
2014 Winners
Thank you to all of the students, teachers and volunteers who participated. Over 105 entries were received. In a verbal competition in May 3rd, 2014 at the Reynolds-Alberta Museum the top entries presented their project ideas.
First place was awarded to Tizita Hill, Sofia Capenttini, Michaela Reitsma and Ava Funkhouser from Ecole Secondaire Lacombe Composite for their proposal called, “Aquaponics Food Systems.” Great work everyone!
| Final Place | Award | Student Name(s) | Proposal Name | School |
| 1 | $1,000 | Sofia Capettini, Ava Funkhouser, Tizita Hill, Michaela Reitsma | Aquaponics Food System | Ecole Secondaire Composite, Lacombe |
| 2 | $900 | Isaac Boddy | Hummingbird Garden | Forestburg |
| 3 | $800 | Tyler Elder | Landscaping with Xeriscaping | Bashaw School, Bashaw |
| 4 | $700 | Simran Panesar | Toonies for Trees Campaign |
|
| 5 | $600 | Jenelle Chen, Christina Luu | Compost Fertilizer | Londonderry Junior High, Edmonton |
| 6 | $500 | Mark Cardinal, Andrea Noskiye | Sustainable Development | Kateri School, Trout Lake |
| 7 | $450 | Jared Chevrie, Mckaila Tunstall, Desiree St. Amant | Cattail Buffering Study | Notre Dame High School, Bonnyville |
| 8 | $400 | Brogan Middleton | Watershed Education Program | Bashaw School, Bashaw |
| 9 | $350 | Ashley Bilhete, Judzeah Sagstuen | Electronic Recycling | John D. Bracco, Edmonton |
| 10 | $300 | Madyson Thomsen | Water Recycling | Charlie Killam, Camrose |
| 10 | $300 | Maham Fatima | Acid Rain Awareness | Ecole McTavish, Fort McMurray |